20-12-2019
Photos from Noma’s test kitchen. Almost every single dish at the restaurant in Copenhagen (2 Michelin stars and number 2 in the World's 50Best) includes one or more fermented ingredients
When speaking of fermentations, chefs have opposite reactions. For a larger portion of professionals, they’re the future of food; the others ignore it, considering them distant from their identity and culture. Those in the first group would ferment even their handkerchiefs; those in the second, keep them at a distance because, for instance in the case of Italian chefs, «our fresh products are so good and always available that there’s no need to ferment them». These are two parties in a lively debate, which has been going on for some time, and is surely destined to stay alive in the next few years. The wisest point of view is that according to which, in general, a chef who believes in innovation should never limit himself. Prejudgement, disguised as a preservation of one’s identity, never wins: before saying no, it’s always best to try. Of course, it’s not a compulsory exercise and everyone is free to create the transformations he prefers, but one should consider some elements that are clearer after a recent visit to Noma.
“The Noma Guide to fermentation.” In Italy it’s published by Giunti (460 pages, 49 euros, you can buy it online)
Canadian David Zilber and Danish of Albanian/Macedonian origins Rene Redzepi, authors of the Guide. (photo Christopher Ho/KCRW)
Some of the cooking bases at Noma
Koji, that is to say rice or spelt inoculated with Aspergillus oryzae
Koji in an advanced state of fermentation
Mould sandwiches at Noma
After clarifying the historical importance in our diet, for the guys at Noma fermentation is most of all a pillar in the cuisine of the future. «It’s a strong statement», Redzepi says assertively, «but so was the introduction of sea urchins in the menu at Noma 15 years ago: at the time, it was as bizarre as cooking zebra meat. And it also seemed strange to have waiters wait at the table, while this is now the rule in many restaurants. We’re sure that fermentation is the future of flavour. That bacteria, yeasts and moulds can transform food from analogic into digital, infinitely increasing the range of flavours. Multinationals already know this, and they’re creating fermentation kits so that people can experiment at home». At Noma now there’s coherence between theory and practice: «While at first we had absolutely no idea of how fermentations would work, today in each dish in our menus there’s a fermented food. It all began casually, when we preserved some gooseberry in salt, in 2008, on the Test Kitchen boat anchored in front of the old location. Now fermentations are the real pillar of our restaurant, much more than foraging, by which people usually identify us». If these arguments have made at least a small impression on the reader, the next step is buying the Noma Guide to Fermentation. The book is focused on 7 types of fermentations plus one: lactic acid, kombucha, vinegar, koji, miso, shoyu, garum plus blackenedfruits and vegetables – which technically are not the result of the same fermentation process, but have much in common. There’s no mention of alcohol, cured meat, bread or cheese, products that are very common in the West: once again Rene Redzepi focuses mostly on the customs of other worlds, especially in the East – he did so already with seaweeds and ants – and applies these principles to his local raw materials. He looks elsewhere to define his microbe terroir, a fascinating concept with infinite potential.
Swan garum at Noma. Garum – the result of so-called secondary fermentations, a mix of koji and animal proteins – was already analysed inApicius’s "De re coquinaria" a book from 2 thousand years ago
Squirrel garum
The 460-page volume analyses every fermented product from a historic point of view, trying to define its scientific function and its features in terms of taste. It has advices, rather than indications, and simplifications rather than rules with obscure technical terms. It puts together dozens of preparations, from plums fermented in milk to black, waxed shallots; from gammel dansk vinegar to coffee shoyu. «Fermentation improves every flavour», the Danish chef promises. «When you’ll taste the result of your efforts, you won’t be able to do without».
Translated into English by Slawka G. Scarso See also Autumn at Noma, game on Mars
Gabriele Zanatta’s opinion: on establishments, chefs and trends in Italy and the world
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born in Milan, 1973, freelance journalist, coordinator of Identità Golose World restaurant guidebook since 2007, he is a contributor for several magazines and teaches History of gastronomy and Culinary global trends into universities and institutes. twitter @gabrielezanatt instagram @gabrielezanatt