The traditional cooks of Yucatan: they find their Italian counterpart, the “Cesarine” and they are a success in the Italo-Mexican Night of the Milan Expo 2015
September 12, 2015 – The aromas of turkey in black recado and shrimp in achiote joined those of green lasagna and meat ragu in a delicious encounter between traditional Mexican and Italian cuisine at the Expo Milano 2015. In the morning it took held the event “Cooks, Cesarine and more”, before an audience of about 100 people, eager to learn the secrets of cooking passed down from generation to generation. While at night, more than 800 visitors of the Expo participated in the “White Night”; an Italian-Mexican dinner with show cooking of traditional cooks, folkloric dance of the Carlos Acereto Ballet, and screening of the movie “Como agua para chocolate”. The unforgettable day was organized by the Pavilion of Mexico, Coop Future Food District, the Conservatory of Mexican Gastronomic Culture, Fico-Eataly World and the Chocolate Consortium of Modica.
The meeting “Cooks, Cesarine and more” was a true dialogue in kitchen, expert panelists in the gastronomic culture narrated their projects and experiences while the Yucatecan and Italian cooks prepared exquisite typical dishes. Among the panelists were Gloria López Morales, President of the Conservatory of Mexican Gastronomic Culture and Tiziana Primori, CEO of Fico – Eataly World.
The sociologist Egeria Di Nallo, was the ideal moderator for dialogue; Di Nallo founded the group of traditional cooks “Cesarine”, which today has more than 500 participants. Two of the “Cesarine” prepared béchamel sauce, tortellini and noodles before the public – along with three Yucatecan cooks – while the panelists shared some words in speeches with poetic overtones.
Gloria Lopez reminded the audience that before the figure of the Chef are the cooks. These cooks transmit the culinary heritage from mother to daughter and thanks to it, Mexican cuisine has not lost its roots. Lopez said, “Mexican cuisine does not talk about recipes, it’s not an academic lesson, it’s a reflection of the cook’s creativity.”
The famous Mexican chef Margarita Carrillo accompanied Lopez in the meeting and interviewed the three Yucatecan cooks who explained that in their culture, the Mayan girls start cooking at 8 and 9 years of age. Chef Carrillo emphasized the importance of the local product and the seasonality of Yucatecan cuisine. The international audience also learned that in Yucatan it is originally cooked with firewood and underground.
As for the Italian speakers, Tiziana Primori explained that in Italy it is fundamental to transmit the art of making pasta at home, using mom’s recipes. Institutions such as Casa Artusi are dedicated to promoting this domestic kitchen in Italy. The Vice President of Casa Artusi, Laila Tentonti, was part of the dialogue and stressed, “Italian and Mexican cuisine have a long tradition in common. It is just this tradition that gives us strength to see into the future. ”
The meeting was also attended by Mario Cornali, chef, and writer who promotes the principles of Slow Food; Valentina Lapiccirella Zingari, anthropologist; Mario Turci, anthropologist and Director of the Ethnographic Museum of Santarcangelo in Romagna; and Germana Borgini, traditional cook and poet.
After the dialogue, a tasting of typical dishes, fresh waters and traditional sweets was held during the lunch hour. Later, during dinner at the White Night, diners tasted a wide variety of dishes: from Italian pizza to Yucatecan cochinita pibil.
