Five minutes with Ferran Adrià
Ferran Adrià, the Spanish head chef of three-Michelin star restaurant elBulli, is considered one of the greatest chefs in the world. He’s known for his creativity and imaginative approach to cooking and has recently launched a new instalment in his Bullipedia series: Coffee Sapiens (an encyclopaedic look at coffee) in collaboration with Lavazza..
We caught up with Ferran while on a trip to the UK, to quiz him about how he’d fare on a desert island…
What’s the first recipe you learned to cook?
I have been cooking for as long as I can remember; food was a huge part of my childhood. The first recipe I learnt to cook was the traditional Catalan dish of stewed meat and potatoes.
What’s the recipe you can’t live without?
I think my favourite thing to eat is seafood. Growing up, I learnt how to get by with very little but now I’m lucky enough to have access to a whole host of ingredients, where I’m able to choose what to eat and have lots of fun experimenting in the kitchen.
What is truly important to me is eating a varied diet, hence why I was inspired to launch the Bullipedia project back in 2012, an encyclopaedia about food and all the other issues that are related to that.
What’s the one ingredient you’d take to a desert island with you?
I would say salt, but I think there would probably be enough of that already….
In all seriousness, I would probably bring some typical Iberian ham, Jamon serrano, pata negra. And if I didn’t choose ham, then coffee. I love the stuff and find it ever so fascinating.
What’s the meal you’d miss the most?
A potato tortilla – for sure!
You can have a one-off dinner party on the island…Who would you invite?
Well, I would have to invite my wife, Isabel.
Which cookbook would you take with you to the island?
I don’t think I’d bring a cookbook but rather books that feed the mind! I would bring either Physiology of Taste or Coffee Sapiens. The latter is essentially a coffee encyclopaedia, about the production, manufacture and consumption of coffee, so I’m sure it would keep me occupied with all that time on my hands.
See more of our Five minutes with interviews, including Melissa Hemsley, Thomasina Miers, Gizzi Erskine and Lorraine Pascale.