Japan, Spain and Argentina, these are the three winning countries of Girotonno in Carloforte, plus a fourth bravo to be dedicated to a fourth country. Japan won because the technic jury, formed by ten people, voted Haruo Ichikawa’s To.Ka.Mi as their favourite. This is the reasoning: “In an edition in which the recipe of the Tonno Asado, presented by Argentinian Emiliano Lopez at number 3, and Spain’s Tuna Belly with chilli pepper mousse and rocket salad and black garlic pesto by José Luis Marìn Marugàn at number 2, the first prize is won by Japan thanks to chef Haruo Ichikawa.
“The jury was in fact impressed by To.Ka.Mi’s evocative skills, celebrating a journey in the history of tuna from Tokyo to Carloforte, passing through Milan where the chef lives and works, and also thanks to the extraordinary technique with which this masterpiece which Italy should love and respect more, namely red tuna, is processed”.
Eel with blanched tuna belli, Teriaki sauce and crispy kataifi pastry, fourth and final moment of Haruo Ichikawa’s journey from Tokyo to Carloforte and Milano
The public jury, formed by 80 different people in each phase (four juries altogether, between Thursday and Saturday, with three semi-finals and a final) had a completely different opinion. During the eliminatory round, the public preferred French chef
Alain Cirelli and his tuna hamburger,
Fresh tuna in phyllo pastry with citron, pine nuts and pistachios is the exact name of the recipe, to the cultural-fairy-tale style journey of the manager of
Iyo, a Japanese restaurant in Milan. As a consequence, yesterday, while the moon was high in the sky, the winner had to be different, whoever it would be, since the chef from the Far East was sitting among the audience. So Spain was awarded, together with Argentina and, as mentioned, France.
This is no surprise. It often happens even at the Cous Cous Fest in San Vito Lo Capo in Sicily (the rules are the same, so is the organising agency, namely Feedback from Palermo) that enthusiasts and experts arrive at opposite conclusions. The most reassuring dish wins, almost always, against the more conceptual one and, to make a long story short, a variation of sushi could not make everyone agree, not even in Milan where Japan has been in fashion for years.
Emiliano Lopez’s Tonno Asado
The third hurray goes to
Emiliano Lopez. The 31-year-old Argentinian arrived in Italy 12 years ago and now works at
Buca di Ripetta in Rome. According to the jury his
Tonno Asado was the best-presented dish, the most good looking and spectacular. With a notice: being the president of the jury I had asked not to limit our judgement on beauty but to keep in mind the taste of each dish too. It would be pointless to praise a chef who has forgotten to add salt because he was too preoccupied to decorate his fillet and its side dish. So the dish of the South American chef is beautiful but it is also good. Double bravo!
Six nations competed at a very high level. This doesn’t happen often. Putting aside the competitions to which people with connections, or those who improvise (and are not real chefs), are admitted, there are always those who get too emotional, or those who are arrogant or cannot feel at ease and end up making a mistake despite their talent. No such thing happened in Carloforte, not this year at least. There were young and passionate chefs, full of energy, careful in every step, and ready to collaborate with each other. To complete this group, it’s good to remember Vinod Sookar, from Mauritius, chef at Fornello da Ricci in Ceglie Messapica, and Sardinian chefs Roberto Flore from Seneghe, a small place on Montiferru where he guides an “albergo diffuso” called Antica Dimora del Gruccione with a strong and sincere connection with the territory, and Pierluigi Fais, chef at Il Duomo in Oristano.
A personal note, an award of my own, goes to the tuna which was caught in front of the island of San Pietro, and then marinated overnight in red wine, and finally chargrilled in Carloforte’s
tonnara, in the fire place where the fishermen and the employees usually cook. It was touching: served with a tomato salad and an extraordinary Ligurian focaccia (the story of the island is linked to Genova Pegli and the red and blue flags are those of the Genoa’s soccer supporters, not Cagliari’s). This is a rough raw material, majestic in its proud purity. It will be difficult for many (if not for all) to forget this edition of
Girotonno 2013.
