Matambre a la Pizza at La Escondida

I have not written much about the Bed and Breakfast I am staying at that I now consider home. It is quite comfortable and with various guests coming and
going I get the opportunity to meet some interesting people from all over. I also have the pleasure of Nancy and Emma taking care of my room, (fresh floweres by my bed) and taking care of my laundry (what a treat!) and trying to help me with my Spanish. They have been so great to me.






Juan is the host here and it turns out he is also a chef. I think he has just a few more courses before he officially completes his training.
Tonight he had some guest that were friends of his and he cooked an asada of Matambre a la Pizza.
When I returned from work today I joined him and his friends while they went to the local Supermarket to shop for dinner.
That was quite and experience. When we finished at there, we went to a local butcher to buy the matambre, which is a cut of meat that I have never seen before. It is basically a very thin strip of meat from the side/ rib section of the beef closer to the belly. Juan told me to only buy the side that the cow doesn’t sleep on. (He was joking) When he asked the butcher for the cut he wanted, the butcher turned behind him and opened up the cold storage where a side of beef was hanging and in a full swipe of a knife, we had our matambre.
We returned home around 8 and began to prepare.
I have found this dish to be a very popular here.

First you take the slab of beef which has a thin layer of fat on one side and sear it over the fire. They use wood here, and depending on what you are cooking the wood changes. For this you want a slow burning wood. Hot and with your coals pushed to the side.
After you sear the fat, turn the slab of beef over and coat with a layer of tomato sauce seasoned with thyme and oregano, salt and pepper.
Completely cover the beef with mozzarella, blue and provolone cheese.
Slow cook this over indirect heat for about a half an hour or so until the cheese is nice and melted, and the fat has melted into the meat and the fireside meat has a nice crust on it.
Do I need to say more?
Muy ricco.
The bread was cooked over the wood fire and the meal was served was just an assortment of different greens dressed with oil and vinegar.

Thanks Juan!
Buenas noches

Spanish Lessons and Inter-Cultural Events.

I finished up the week working at Ruca Malen. It is busy there and it seems that this is where I am most needed. I had my most intense week so far, on top of working 6 days in a row; I also started to work with a Spanish tutor. She is going to come two times a week and help me with my Spanish. She is young and energetic, and the best part is, she talks slowly to me! She works as a translator and an English teacher. Evangelica is her name. She came Wednesday for the first time and it went great. She came back on Friday and after a busy couple of days I really had difficulty concentrating. Eight-thirty at night is not a good time for me to try to conjugate verbs. To be or not to be had my head spinning. Estoy consada. How did my kids do homework after a full day? I should have been more understanding. Maybe I am getting my payback! She even left me with homework.

Thursday night my neighbors told me about an event at the inter-cultural/language center and invited me to go with them. It was a type of social that the center put on that focused on different foods from various countries. It seemed that everyone that takes language classes participated. There were all these different booths that cooked a dish that represented a specific country, or region or state. There was everything from BBQ goat (pictured above) from Argentina to Texas chili. Brazil had a booth as well as Scotland and Egypt. People were dressed up and it felt very festive. I helped out Pepe, who BBQ'd the goat, serving the food at his booth. I had a good time. It was difficult to get up in the morning. Things don't start at night until around ten so I was home fairly late. With that and a busy day at work it was no wonder that I had difficulty with a late night Spanish lesson. One more day of work then a day of rest again.
Estoy muy consada.

Buenas noches.

Solo with Sole and Melipal

I felt re - freshed and ready to go on Monday. Soledad and I were the only ones in the kitchen. At first I was a bit worried but as the day unfolded we fell into a nice rhythm and ended up pulling off 40 lunches with no problema.
Except with only two of us, the dished really backed up! It was great to be able to cook all the risotto for the first course. I enjoyed the rush. It was a nice pace and I was also responsible for the appetizers.
It was easier for me to follow what table was what when I did all the pre-courses. When I did just the risotto without the appetizers, I would get lost on what tables were what. Especially if there was no ticket! They have a funny system in the kitchen and it’s hard to follow. If we had just one extra person doing the dishes we would of be on top of everything!
We also did not have much time to mise for the next day so I knew that the next day was going to be a big prep day.

Tuesday I started to set up my station and Pablo told me I was to go to Melipal to work. It seemed that there was some dispute going on as to where I was needed the most today and then I was off to the Melipal winery to cook with Ferd - inand.
Melipal was the Winery where I toured last year and first met Lucas. The winery had just opened and he had given our group a cooking class in an outdoor asada area next to the vineyards because the kitchen was not finished yet. I have fond memories of Melipal seeing how our group was the winery’s first visitors.
The kitchen was small, compact and organized - the dining room small and quaint. It seats maybe around twenty-five people at most. The menu is a little more sophisticated and the plate presentation has a bit of a flare to it compared to Ruca.
Ferdinando is young but a good cook with an attention to detail. It was just the two of us today with around ten lunches. It is very relaxed and a less intense pace than Ruca Malen. I enjoyed working here very much. I am scheduled to be here the last two weeks of my stay.
After today I am really looking forward to being back here. It is so beautiful and such a refined and relaxed atmosphere.

Buenas noches

Kitchen Hopping...

I don't know where this past week and and a half has gone. In fact I lost track of the date. I put in another couple days back at Ruca Malen after working at Belasco De Baquedano then had a Sunday free. It was great to have a day to sleep in, take a nice long run at the nearby park, then stroll around. Even though I had lost track of the day, I knew it was October because a few days previous they had colored the water in the fountain in the Plaza de Independencia bright pink for recognition of breast cancer awareness month. Evidently the fountain will run pink all month.

I found a nice spot and treated myself to a liesurely lunch, savouring my day off. The next morning I was back at Ruca Malen.

The van stops daily for gas, actually propane, and we all have to pile out. I guess it is the law or else no one wants to be in the van if it blows up. Anyway, we all hang out or buy snacks then pile pack in. Here's the gang on the right. They are a great bunch of hard working young kids. They are patient and kind to me which makes my days easier. I am really enjoying getting to know each of them.

It is an interesting routine.

Buenas noches.

Balasco de Baquedano

I worked in a different location today.
Balasco de Baquedano.
An absolutely beautiful view from the dining room. This Spanish style winery was closed for awhile due to some owner disputes and changes and is now reopening.
Andre is the chef here and spoke absolutely no English. We managed just fine -seeing how there was only a few guest today. He was so nice and easy to work with.
The menu is similar to Ruca Malen though with a slight Spanish flare.
Lucas was there and showed me the plans for the new kitchen. The new kitchen will have the most spectacular view of any kitchen I can imagine. There will be an opening in two weeks that will be followed by a dinner for about 200 people. I couldn't quite capture this spectacular view because of the light. I will try again next time I'm here.

Andre and Lucas were working on the menu for the opening as well as a new menu for the lunches. I think the plan for me is to finish another week at Ruca Malen then work here as they prepare for this event.

Andre helped me with my caramel technique. I think I am starting to get the hang of it.

Buenas noches

Dinner Next Door and more Ruca Malen...

Although the pace of life is much different here than in the US, my days seem to be going quickly. It was nice to receive a dinner invite and I so enjoyed meeting everyone who lives in the house nextdoor. (Pathways Argentina I beleive it is called)

Conner was the cook for the evening and did a fantastic job. He made a delicious teriyaki style marinade for the "asada" and served it with a nice stir fry rice with vegetables. I think he is the resident pro in the kitchen. I hope to cook with him in the future

I enjoyed being at a family style dinner table with the chatting and bantering. After dinner I was treated to recording of each persons music that they had composed. Each had a unique style and all were quite talented. Even Rich,the house Dad, and his son had recorded a song together. I was impressed by their talent and passion for music. A gentleman named Craig joined us also. A retired American music teacher who has taken up residence here in Mendoza. It was an entertaining and informative evening.

It was not easy to get up for work the next morning, (dinner is usually around ten o'clock here) but I made it to the plaza by 9 and was back at Ruca Malen for another days lunches. It seems that the owner, after having had lunch the other day wanted a sweeter desert - so we switched from the quince mousse to a dolce de leche mousse. I am having fun practicing the the little caramel toppings. Soledad is a pro at them...I need to practice.

The mousse is served on a little cookie atop a dollop of dolce de leche sauce, garnished with the little dots of a malbec reduction.

I have to admit that I was sneaking the dolce de leche sauce and putting it in my coffee.

I couldn't help it!

Buenas noches

Ruca Malen

The past few days I been working at Ruca Malen. I wake up around seven, get ready for work, have breakfast then walk downtown to the main Plaza de Independencia to get picked up by nine. It is about a fifteen minute walk. The van, stopping at a few more locations to pick up other employee outside the central district also makes stops at the butcher shop to pick up the meat, then market, then heads out to the winery. We arrive around 10 and began prepping for the days lunches. We switch off on who preps what. I feel like I am falling in to somewhat of a routine.

The menu is prefixed and changes seasonally. I thought I would get tired of the same menu but with the language barrier it is bettter for me. Pablo is the head chef (above)and he speaks a tiny bit of english. He is very easy to work with. It is usually Pablo, Soledad, Martias and myself.

The menu begins with little rolls of carmalized onions that have been baked, served with a bit of fresh herbed cheese and a tiny bit of gremolata. This is paired with a Yauquen Chardonnay (07) to highlight the citrus and fruits in the wine.

Next are some roasted pumpkin croquettes that are served with a Malbec "jam" which is made from the malbec leaves that have been left behind in the tank. This sediment is mixed with a purre of prunes and onion and wild thyme to create this topping for the croquettes. It is really quite delicious.

The pumkin and the sediment are to bring out the fresh fruit and sweetness in the Malbec. (Yauquen Malbec) 07

The third course is a carrot and sun-dried tomato rissota. Served with a Merlot, this dish is garninshed with a fig pesto to enhance the wine's fruit and evolution.

The entre, of course is steak. After all this is Argentina. It is served with a sweet potato purree and a stir-fry style ratatouille. The sauce for the Bife de chorizo is made from potato, onions rosemary and a little cream. Very nice and not too rich. Interesting that they use potato to thicken the sauce.

After a busy weekend I feel like I am starting to get the swing of things.

Sunday, a chef named Sergio was there instead of Soledad. He was about my age. Just one year in culinary school and was very nice to work with. He really helped me with my Spanish. He would correct my pronuciation and when I would try to request something in Spanish he would correct me and have my repeat it. I really enjoyed working with him and the day went very smoothly. He only works two days a week, one of which I am off, so I won't work with him much.

I am pretty much responsible for plating the first two couses then the dessert. I do ok but when it gets really busy. I loose track of the orders. That's when I wish I understoood Spanish and could understand their system for the tickets.

Monday, Pablo was not there. It seemed that it was going to be just Soledad, Matias and myself. I was a bit uneasy about that. There were reservations for forty and the owner was there for a buisness lunch with some visitors from France. They were tasting the wines that had been stored in different barrels. Lucas showed up after about an hour and put me at ease (pictured right) It's nice when he is there.

There is definatley a different energy when he is in the kitchen.

I think I 'm getting a little quicker each day with the plating.

On my way home I met my neighbors who are American. They are a couple (the wife is back in the states with another son presently so I didn't meet her) who run a home for young boys who did not thrive in the mainstream American schools. The couple is from Idaho and they have five boys from different parts of the US that live in the home. Some are finishing up their education but the main focus is music. They invited me for dinner with them this week! The boys take turns cooking. I am excited to go and meet all of them and hear their stories.

I'm starting to have a social life..

Buenas noches,