AEG x Kitchen Theory – Tasteology

When I saw the event ‘What does it take to achieve the ultimate taste experience?’ in my mailbox hosted by AEG and Kitchen Theory I thought it might be a groovy dining experience maybe with some deeper food connections, so thought why not this looks fun.

The team have created a documentary asking instagrammers, scientists, chefs and beyond the question above while delving deeper into the food system.

There are four episodes which covered a broad range of food related aspects, from sourcing and production to waste and our experience of eating.  The episodes were peppered with dishes created by Jozef Youssef and his Kitchen Theory team.

Episode 1 Source: Food sourcing, foraging

Episode 2 Chill: Waste, properly store food

Episode 3 Heat: Cooking methods

Episode 4 Experience: Perception, taste, dining experience

There were a number of incredible prominent players involved who are revolutionizing the food industry including: waste combating pioneer Tristram Stewart (http://feedbackglobal.org/ ¦ @TristramStuart); Japans Miyamasou restaurant which utilizes all locally foraged produce http://www.miyamasou.jp/) ; The Culinary Misfits (@culinarymisfits) promoting ‘flawed’ produce, Mark Schatzker’s (@MarkSchatzker) journey to understand and find true flavour and Chef Jacques La Merde (@chefjacqueslm)poking fun at fine dining.

The episodes were awesome. They really covered all aspects of connecting with our food from sourcing and its importance to cherishing every mouthful and the environment we eat in.

Throughout the screening a number of collaborators chatted to us about an array of food topics, from the fact that organic means so much less now and we can still damage the environment with monocultures yet call produce organic to how we can store food in the fridge properly to reduce food waste.

However the dining experience itself was a total juxtaposition to the documentary that preceded it.

The documentaries focussed on locality, foraging, transparency and techniques of eating that were wholesome and did not take away from the food (e.g. dry ice and effects).

Then the first course came out, an ode to Miyamasou of mushroom Tsumikasa. This totally makes sense! However I’m pretty sure the cassava isn’t native to the UK…(a typically tropical plant and requires warm humid climate). Then they had liquid nitrogen pots put on the table and made them smoke. Novelty? Fancy effects? Hmmm.

Next we were offered a fridge on a plate where we make our own tartare. The components placed where they should be kept in the fridge. Again a pretty awesome concept, however beef being served at a sustainability dinner is an interesting choice. No hint of where this food had come from either. Before I ate I enquired as to the sourcing. Jozef told us the veg produce had come from a wholesalers. After all the talking they have no idea how they were grown and the country of origin.

Next course salmon 4 ways. Again another interesting meat choice as salmon is a popular fish that has problems with over consumption and over farming. A whole dish focused on meat which could have focussed on how that meat got there and why, but instead only honed in on how cooking the fish could change flavour.

Some of the predominant themes in the film were locality and community. Yet using some relatable examples we were served beef, salmon and passionfruit. This would have been the prime time to showcase obscure cuts of meat that are often wasted or not deemed edible (e.g. blood, bone, brain) or sea creatures that are considered ‘by-catch’ (which accounts of 40% for all ocean catch, only 60% is wanted and readily sold, over 20% is sent back to sea)[i] or a delicious in season UK fruit like rhubarb.

Instead of someone having to ask ‘where did this come from?’ and receiving just a name of a supplier or wholesaler which is something you can get if you ask in almost any restaurant we could have received the name of the fisherman, the place that mushroom was grown and the conditions it was grown in.

Yes it would take work and yes it would be hard but if you have put time, money and effort into creating these amazing films why not translate this into real life where real people live, play and make choices every day?

The event would have been the perfect chance to give people a totally different dining experience. Not just in the physical: plating, textures and taste, but giving depth to what people ate and the connection they had to the food.

And yes I took away how to create a great dining experience with my plating and food texture, and now I know where to store my food in the fridge, but what did we take away from how to pick the food we eat and create help rebuild the broken food system?

Organic? Ask about sourcing? But when you ask about sourcing what does that mean? These are the important questions we need to ask and find answers to.

So as I sit here and type I am not going to preach. I am not the person to say stop eating meat, eat quinoa all the time, indulge in a £5 vegan raw chocolate bar or lather everything in coconut butter.

But there are some easy choices we can make. Maybe eat a little less meat, obscure cuts and use it to flavour dishes. Use a variety of grains and pseudo grains[ii] (a fancy pants word for quinoa, buckwheat, amaranth etc.) which can add extra texture, taste and nutrition to traditional dishes. Try where possible to buy at markets etc. (harder with busy lifestyles, but totally doable in London!) and chat to the person you buy it from.

At the end of the day we eat for enjoyment and I wouldn’t want to take that away from anyone. Therefore it’s about teaming great flavour with a sustainable food system – growing, processing and buying our food because those aspects are entwined.

A cracking attempt guys and I really loved the documentaries you have made. But damn it go deeper and follow through to reality because together we can make a real change.

Check out the four episodes here

 

Reporter: Abi Aspen Glencross ¦ @AbiAspen ¦ futurefarmlab.com

 

Website: https://kitchen-theory.com/tasteology-an-aeg-documentary/

Twitter: @kitchentheory ¦ #tasteology ¦ #TakeTasteFurther

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