Locavore

It has become very fashionable to eat local products, mostly because it is useful and natural. One by one, restaurants around the world open with the concept of “local food only”. Conservative locavorers believe products can be called “local” if they are grown or produced no more than 160 kilometres from one’s home, modern locavorers have expanded the scope to the borders of one’s region. Odessa region, due to its climatic features, geographical location and history of the region, is rich in local products and recipes. Together with Promenu tableware chain stores we decided to have a lesson for their customers and to devote it to the local cuisine. During the lesson we prepared Odessa mussels and Buyurdi, a snack from Bessarabian sheep cheese. In the cooking process, I used only local products and cookware sold in Promenu. Clients of Promenu are people who like to cook with the help of beautiful, high-quality and convenient cookware. It is the source of their inspiration; it gives them pleasure from cooking and from the meal itself. I share those views and working on the site of Promenu is always a particular pleasure for me. Sommelier Konstantin Vidoborenko also chose a local wine from an autochthonous grape variety for the lesson. White Sukholimanske Kolonist is made in Bessarabia, in the south of Odessa region, by the hands of winemakers from chateau Kolonist and my good friends. Together with the guests of the lesson, we discussed the “100 Mile Diet” and how great it is when the products fall literally from the garden into the dish, are never frozen or defrosted, are not processed with chemicals to prolong their lifespan, do not travel for months in containers and wagons, before they get to the store counter or our desks. And of course, we talked a lot about our rich Odessa cuisine and about the “happiness of living in Odessa”.

Lesson recipes:

• Odessa mussels
• Greek buyurdi
• Odessa buyurdi

Photos from the lesson