Cook and Travel Fest started its showcookings with Takashi Ochiai.
Thisjapanese pastry rmaster talked about his beginnings as pastry chef in Barcelona, 36 years ago. In that time, he baked catalan pasrty, but one day, a businessman who had visited Japan and had his desk close to Ochiai asked him to make some japanese sweets he liked very much: mochi. And he did it. News were spread and different japanese restaurants of Barcelona went for mochis. Because of the success of the sweets, the master decided to include them as usual product.
Mochis are for celebrations, because they mean happiness. They are so special that in Japan there is a bag for children who are learning to walk. They put mochi dough on pockets on the front and the back to achieve a balance that allow child to walk by himself. It is said mochi is a sweet with 600 years old, introduced in Japan by a Chinese master, who made a kind of Manju.
The base of mochi is glutinous rice flour, that is mixed with water and steam cooked. The filling can be very different, but the typical for springtime is Sakura.
In addition to Mochis, Takashi Ochiai talked about other elements and products of japanese pastry, as Castera, a spongecake created by european missioners for the Tea Ceremony. It is said if was created 100 years ago in Nagasaki.
Azuki has a lot of presence in japanese pastry, as sweet paste used for fillings.
Also, a star product is Matcha tea. Master Ochiai told he uses around 400 kg per year. It is used in many products, more than 10 references. For Matcha spongecake, it is added clorophill to mantain green color.
Asked for the future of pastry, he said something surprising and brave: macarons will dissapear, at least in Catalan pastries, because they are a product with colorants and fat, and nowadays, people are looking for healthier products.
Also, he adviced about individuals (little cakes and preparations for one person) as increasing way of consuming pastry, because in a group, individual tastes are represented.
At the end, we could taste the wonderful sweets made by master Ochiai's bakery.
Thisjapanese pastry rmaster talked about his beginnings as pastry chef in Barcelona, 36 years ago. In that time, he baked catalan pasrty, but one day, a businessman who had visited Japan and had his desk close to Ochiai asked him to make some japanese sweets he liked very much: mochi. And he did it. News were spread and different japanese restaurants of Barcelona went for mochis. Because of the success of the sweets, the master decided to include them as usual product.
Mochis are for celebrations, because they mean happiness. They are so special that in Japan there is a bag for children who are learning to walk. They put mochi dough on pockets on the front and the back to achieve a balance that allow child to walk by himself. It is said mochi is a sweet with 600 years old, introduced in Japan by a Chinese master, who made a kind of Manju.
The base of mochi is glutinous rice flour, that is mixed with water and steam cooked. The filling can be very different, but the typical for springtime is Sakura.
In addition to Mochis, Takashi Ochiai talked about other elements and products of japanese pastry, as Castera, a spongecake created by european missioners for the Tea Ceremony. It is said if was created 100 years ago in Nagasaki.
Azuki has a lot of presence in japanese pastry, as sweet paste used for fillings.
Also, a star product is Matcha tea. Master Ochiai told he uses around 400 kg per year. It is used in many products, more than 10 references. For Matcha spongecake, it is added clorophill to mantain green color.
Asked for the future of pastry, he said something surprising and brave: macarons will dissapear, at least in Catalan pastries, because they are a product with colorants and fat, and nowadays, people are looking for healthier products.
Also, he adviced about individuals (little cakes and preparations for one person) as increasing way of consuming pastry, because in a group, individual tastes are represented.
At the end, we could taste the wonderful sweets made by master Ochiai's bakery.
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