Gelinaz, the chef’s collective, are back in town on the 3rd December. But this time, they are not travelling, they are staying “at home”. What travels this time, are their recipes. Each chef had to submit eight recipes that are typical for him/her, but she/he never served them at the restaurant yet. Those recipes were then shuffled and sent to another chef who will remix them in his/her own way and serve on the 3rd of December, for one night only, dishes inspired by those recipes to her/his guests. The guests and the chef will get to know whose recipes was interpreting the chef only at the end of the dinner through the Gelinaz ambassador who will attend the dinner (I will be that night the ambassador at the Aimsir restaurant in Ireland). Ambassadors will also take care of communication from the restaurants on that night, so if you are curious what is happening on the other side of the world, do follow us on Instagram (mine is here).
Selassie Atadika has received her recipes. What now?
What was your first thought when you read the recipes you received?
My first reaction to the recipes was curiosity! I wanted to figure out who the recipes belonged to, how I could honour their creativity, wisdom and process.
What do you think of them now?
Having spent time to read through the recipes and techniques, I started to fall in love with their respect of the ingredients, restraint and admiration for acidity.
If you had to choose an animal to describe them, what would it be?
If I could choose something in the animal kingdom to describe them, I would choose a butterfly. Beauty, pollination and a light touch!
How will you approach it?
I will approach it with respect while bringing in my terroir. After all, it is the STAY IN TOUR. I want to make sure I use what is local and in season to keep my carbon footprint low.
What will be the greatest challenge for you in this Gelinaz project?
As a small restaurant with more traditional cooking techniques, the greatest challenge was to plan my execution of some of the more modern culinary approaches to our style.
And what are you looking forward to?
I’m very much looking forward to the reveal of the mastermind behind the menu!
After this event is behind you, what’s the next thing?
The end of year holiday season is our peak season, so I’m looking forward to creating dining experiences that will allow my diners to celebrate the year and usher in an amazing 2020!
Selassie Atadika will be cooking at Midunu in Accra, Ghana. You can buy your ticket here.
PS Do check also Rodolfo Guzman, Zaiyu Hasegawa, Virgilio Martinez, Alberto Landgraf, Alex Atala and Santiago Lastra.
