Chefs Speak

Chefs Speak: Chef Ferran Adria on Liquid Nitrogen

From the restaurant elBulli in coastal northeast Spain, Chef and culinary genius Ferran Adria speaks about innovative uses of liquid nitrogen in their restaurant kitchen.  He demonstrates techniques using this creative scientific method to produce sorbets made from alcohol and pureed pistachio truffles.  A featured interview as part of a series for Fora Tv, this video features molecular gastronomy at it’s finest.

Haute cuisine or epic fail? What are your thoughts on chemistry in the kitchen? Amazingly cool or an inappropriate leap from food as nature intended? We’d love to hear your thoughts, let us know in the comments!

(Note: for mere mortals, elBulli is almost impossible to get in to, as the restaurant is only open for 6 months per year with space for 8000 seats in total.  Each year, there are half a million applicants for the 8,000 seats.)

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  • Kelly
    March 31, 2009 at 7:30 am

    Looks fun to play with! I’ve never had food manipulated with liquid nitrogen, but I’d love to try something some day. I’ll reserve further judgment until then…

  • grassosalvato86
    March 31, 2009 at 7:53 am

    Hello!

    I am really curious to taste the pistachio truffles cooked in liquid nitrogen. They look so yummy!

  • Gera @ SweetsFoods
    March 31, 2009 at 7:57 am

    I didn’t taste a dish till now, in that way with nitrogen, but why not? Cooking is chemistry always, don’t you?

    Cheers!
    Gera

  • Savory Tv
    March 31, 2009 at 12:26 pm

    Thanks Kelly, grassosalvato86, and Gera for your thoughts!

    I think of it this way: while I embrace the idea of rustic, back to basics cooking, I think molecular gastronomy is extremely cool!

    And…when you think about it, we’ve been playing with our food since we were infants right? Why stop now!

  • OysterCulture
    April 2, 2009 at 4:09 pm

    I love the creativity – this certainly brings new meaning to playing with your food. Now that sous vide is almost passe, will this be the newest must have kitchen accessory? =)

  • Savor
    April 2, 2009 at 5:23 pm

    I love that we both have ‘savor’ in our title. Your blog and approach is very unique-good going.

  • sarahjenniferherman
    April 5, 2009 at 8:27 am

    Thanks for visiting my site! What a interesting and informative site you have! As for liquid nitrogen I haven’t used it as of yet, but would love to incorporate into my food in the future!

  • ella
    April 5, 2009 at 9:31 am

    I think molecular gastronomy has already been overdone. Everyone has hopped on the bandwagon and not always with the customer in mind.

  • Savory Tv
    April 7, 2009 at 12:00 pm

    Oyster Culture, I would buy one! I question the food safety of sous vide prepared food, but have been yearning to taste an item prepared that way!

    Savor, thank you!

    Sarah Jennifer, thank you for visiting!

    Ella, having equipment like this in a restaurant kitchen must surely pass on the expense to the customers in some form. Cheers!

  • Will
    April 8, 2009 at 2:23 pm

    Interesting. I heard about this from a friend the other night who actually experienced it in Spain a few weeks ago. He said that more people hurt themselves in the kitchen with pairing knives than with liquid nitrogen.

    Definitely haute cuisine, and necessary, I think. It’s like fashion and art, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible via pure theater and expression.

    Spain, as the NYT said a few years back, is definitely the new France.

    Will

  • Gabi
    April 22, 2009 at 11:08 am

    I call it Avant-garde Cuisine! 🙂

    Goes well with experimental jazz.

    Gabi @ Mamaliga.

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    April 1, 2010 at 3:37 am

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  • MARK FUSHIN
    December 22, 2010 at 4:09 am

    Hi Guys, well it’s so great to see so much interrest in this, i can’t wait to get my Duwer and nitrogen, already been playing around with the alginates and butane cooking….
    Ferran is a food genius thanks for opening up the world of food beond our expectations!!!