Every
\ntraditional Romanian product has its own feast, and this time of the year is
\nwhen several celebrations are devoted to fatback. Apart from the traditional
\nrecipes that delight consumers, every time there are new products that appear,
\nwhich are the result of chefs’ ingenuity. At the SlanaFest festival held in
\nCluj in the first week of February, the public were happy to taste fatback and
\nmozzarella pie and \u00e9clairs with pork rind cream, fatback specialties decorated
\nwith culinary gold leafs, as well as pralines with chocolate, chili and
\nfatback. Apart from exchanging recipes and promoting products, participants
\nwere also interested in organic pig farming, using only grains and fodder, with
\nno chemicals and preservers.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
SlanaFest festival in Cluj was at its 4th
\nedition this year. Eighteen participants entered the competition, including
\nIonut Mangu, who combined traditional fat back with a variety of vegetables,
\nlike horseradish, beet and chili paste to obtain new tastes. To make things
\neven more interesting, he improved the white and red mix with a little 24-carat
\ngold, which according to chef Mangu, makes people happier.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
We also found out that out of the traditional fatback
\nrecipes, one of the tastiest is cooked by keeping the fatback in sauerkraut
\njuice prior to smoking it, and then scrubbing beech sawdust into it to give it
\nflavor.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Another active participant in relevant festivals is Chef
\nRadu Garba, who brought a variety of recipes to Cluj:<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
I’ve cooked 4 types of fatback, one with chili powder, one with garlic and
\nspring onion paste, one with coriander and caraway, and a smoked variety.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Out of Chef
\nRadu Garba’s recipes, the fatback-based deserts were particularly popular among
\nvisitors:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
My
\ndesserts are \u00e9clairs with pork rind cream, \u00e9clairs with bean paste and bacon, a
\nham, cheese and fatback pie, and pralines with chocolate, chili and fatback.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Fat
\nback pralines have been especially designed for the festival, because at such
\nevents people usually come with the expectation of trying something new, a
\nvariety of tastes and they are open to any new idea. But chef G\u00e2rba says that the idea of doing something
\nnew is not original:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Last year at the SlanaFest one of our colleagues made something similar, and
\nwe wanted to continue the idea this year, by making different recipes. We made
\npralines. Our pralines are made of a chocolate shell filled with pieces of
\nchocolate and of fatback and are coated with ground pistachio, sesame or
\nwalnut. Visitors have been delighted and promised to return next year.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Another
\nteam came to Cluj with an impressive product from a visual point of view: a
\nsmall house made of fatback from Mangalita pig and prosciutto, which replicates
\nthe Romanian traditional architecture. The house chimney was made from a sausage
\njust like the fence. There came people at the festival who prepare pork in
\ntheir households traditionally, without making it into a business. They see the
\nfestival as an opportunity to socialize and exchange recipes. We asked Chef
\nRadu G\u00e2rba why he participates in such events:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
I like to compete, that’s why I take part in these festivals. I like what I do
\nand I like to see others’ work, I find inspiration in my colleagues’ works.
\nThis year I have won the silver and bronze medals.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
We also
\nasked Chef G\u00e2rba about the role which fatback can still have in today’s world when
\nthere is a lot of hype about healthy food, healthy meaning the opposite of fat:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Fatback is an important product, it is a
\nstaple food, everybody eats it, it’s very tasty and in small amounts it cannot
\nbe harmful.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
This
\nweek another event featuring ‘fatback’ will be hosted by Sibiu, in central
\nRomania. Chef G\u00e2rba, who will be there, says visitors are in for a lot of
\nsurprises.<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A popular festival currently held in Cluj<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":126,"featured_media":135640,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42520],"tags":[43065,43183,43182,43184],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-135639","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-inside-romania","tag-culinary-delights","tag-fatback","tag-slanafest","tag-traditional-recipes"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n