France’s Beef Bourguignon P1100
Chef Carlo relates with gusto that from his sojourns in France, he took home the experience of Beef Bourguignon and replicated it at The Red Piano. Going for authenticity, he braised the beef in beaujolais wine . After all Beef Bourguignon literally translated means beef in red wine. Together with the beaujolais, beef is also braised in brown stock ala Julia Childs. But unlike Julia Childs , he went further than the 8-16 hours simmer to a total of 48 hours.
The result ? a rich decadent and robust beaujolais-based sauce that coats the palate lovingly. The beef was indeed tender infused with the flavors of carrots, mushrooms and an undertone of smoked pancetta (?) . The dish went well with angel hair pasta or was it spaghettini but rice-loving Pinoys would probably order extra rice.
Italy’s Osso Bucco P1500
Imported red veal shank cooked low and slow until meat is fall-off-the-bone tender in
Pinot Grigio and meticulously prepared brown stock.
Topped with gremolata . Served with either risotto or pasta.
From Italy , Chef Carlo brings in the celebratory dish Osso Bucco which is Italian for “bone with a hole” – osso”bone” bucco “hole” (Wikipedia)
Chef Carlo was proud to share that The Red Piano uses New Zealand Veal braised in Pinot Grigio and the same brown stock simmered for 48 hours used in Beef Bourguignon.
Pinot Grigio is a white wine grape variety thought to be a clone of pinot noir (wiki)
Gremolata is a chopped herb condiment classically made of lemon zest, garlic, parsley and anchovy
The NZ veal was indeed fall off the bone and so tender, it was a joy relishing its texture and flavors. The sauce was scrumptious with complex flavors from the butter , Pinot Grigio and the 48 hour brown stock.
Spain’s Carne Y Mariscos Paella
(4-5 ppl P1490, 6-8 ppl P2980)
Authentic Bomba Rice, chorrizos chicken, shrimps, mussels, clams
From his trips in Espana, Chef Carlo brought in the Paella de Marisco. What is Paella de Marisco?
Paella de Marisco or Seafood Paella is the world’s most popular paella recipe. It emerged in its modern
version in Spain’s Valencian coastal region in the early 1800s…- Wikipedia
Per Chef Carlo, The Red Piano is just one among 2 or 3 restaurants which uses Bomba Rice (from Calaspara in Spain) for their paella owing to its price – about P1000 per kilo. They also use saffron for their dish.
BOMBA RICE was nearly extinct until gourmet chef recently recognized its superior quality for producing the perfect paella…. Each year a precious amount of the very best rice in Spain is cultivated in the village of Calasparra in the neighboring region of Murcia – La Tienda
TRP also served us their Paella Negra ( 4-5 P1385, 6-8 P2765). I loved the flavor of the squid ink on the Bomba rice. When it comes to paella, my favorite part would be scraping all those socarrat from the bottom of the pan. That is where all the flavors are concentrated….
soccarat is the crusty part at the the bottom of the paella pan. In local parlance its the “tutong”
Italy’s Spaghetti alle Carbonara
From his travels in Italy, Chef Carlo Llave shared what an authentic carbonara is. TRP’s Spaghetti alle Carbonara ( with local pancetta P365, with guanciale P510) is composed only of 4 ingredients – parmegianno regianno, pecorino, guanciale and egg yolk. No cream. The Italians do not use cream on their carbonara.
Guanciale is an Italian cured meat prepared from pork jowl or cheeks. Its name is derived
from guancia, Italian for cheek – Wikipedia
Per Chef Carlo, The Red Piano (TRP) is the only restaurant in the metro that makes carbonara with the most authentic ingredients. The guanciale is not available anywhere in the country. Chef Carlo hand carries the guanciale from his trips in Italy
Spaghetti alle Frutti di Mare P420
Frutti di Mare literally means “fruit of the sea “. Chef Carlo proudly shared how all the seafood in the dish are fresh from the sea.