The impact of last year’s culinary venture set the stage for a new collaboration and the favorable feedback and the palpable energy among participants underscored the eagerness to have this kind of experience. This positive framework has given rise to the realization of a second event in 2023, building upon the enriching groundwork laid in the previous year.
This year, chef Giovanna De Vincentis, a member of the Slow Food Chefs’ Alliance, was the protagonist. Well selected by Slow Food for her commitment to selling Slow Food’s values as part of its cutting-edge culinary approach, Chef Giovanna hosted an authentic signature gastronomic delight at a dinner that took place on November 23 at AlUla’s Heart of the Oasis restaurant and hosted more than 80 guests. among them were Italy’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Roberto Cantone, and his wife, Tania Mehanna. .
Also participating were Silvia Barbone, from the Department of Associations of the Royal Commission of AlUla; Dr. Megbel Aleidan, Head of the Oasis Agricultural Campus of the Royal Commission of AlUla; and Saudi chef Mona Mosly, host and judge of Top Chef Middle East.
“AlUla’s long-term purpose of establishing, cultivating and celebrating a culinary scene that promotes wonderful local produce and encourages our network to help local farms, suppliers and restaurants is not unusual for the purposes of the Italian Slow Food movement. “Silvia Barbone, Executive Director of Partnerships at the Royal Commission of AlUla, percentage: “Together, we emphasise the importance of ‘good, clean and fair’ food that is ethically sourced, environmentally sustainable and tastes wonderful. Hosting this exciting Slow Food occasion for this second year allows us to once again protect the richness of Saudi Arabia and Italy’s varied and delicious culinary traditions. It is an honor to welcome the Italian Ambassador and Chef De Vincentis to AlUla, to share excellent food with our local farmers and students. , and our commitments to preserve biodiversity, help local communities, and foster people’s appreciation of local food and the important cultural and social benefits it can bring.
This year’s theme of Italian Gastronomy Week was “At the Table with Italian Cuisine: Health with Taste”. In accordance with the theme, Chef Giovanna designed a menu for the dinner that emphasized healthy eating and featured a throughline ingredient that embodies the ideas of health and Italian gastronomy: extra virgin olive oil.
Chef De Vincentis has brought AlUla his unique touch to the regional recipes of his local Abruzzo, adding palotta cacio e ova. He also used ingredients such as Castel del Monte Canestrato cheese, a product of Slow Food’s Ark of Taste, and olive oil from the Toccolana Cultivar, which is part of Slow Food’s Presidium of Ancient Olives. As a component of the menu innovation, many of AlUla’s ingredients were used in the dishes, such as locally grown citrus fruits and other products from AlUla farms, as well as products that are a component of Saudi Arabia’s Ark of Taste, adding mint Hassawi to complement the baccalà and Taifi rose water to accentuate the dessert.
“The experience at AlUla was full of commitment, and representing the chefs of the Slow Food alliance in my region was a vital responsibility. Whenever he faced a new challenge, he approached it with the eyes of a Boy Scout; As in a treasure hunt, I studied and tasted products from some other culture and some other territory, merging them with those that are part of me, creating an exclusive harmony. I discovered many treasures, adding the GOOD, CLEAN and JUST heart of the other people who welcomed me and accompanied me on this adventure. They eased my burdens and anxieties and celebrated with me in a collective hug at the end of the event. In my opinion, creating connections is the purpose of any activity; They are the true protagonists, the ones who remain in the memory and in the heart. And here, in this faraway land, connections were made: between products, producers, organizers, between men and women who jointly believed that anything was possible, striving for a common purpose.
One day before the dinner, Chef Giovanna led a culinary workshop for ten young industry professionals in AlUla, where she presented two of the dishes she had prepared for the dinner. The workshop was organized not only to impart culinary knowledge, but also to share Slow Food values. and methodologies with workshop participants. During the workshop, Chef Giovanna led an olive oil tasting consultation with participants, in which they compared olive oils from Italy and Saudi Arabia. This comparison illustrates how other production strategies for other cultivars allow for diverse flavor expressions in extra virgin olive oil.
This event, controlled through Slow Food and the AlUla Real Project, is part of an ongoing collaboration to expand Slow Food’s presence and activity in AlUla, to further Slow Food’s project of providing good, white, fair food for all.
“We are extremely proud of this initiative, strongly aligned with the Italian government’s commitment to promote Italian Cuisine abroad,” declared the Italian Ambassador Roberto Cantone in his opening speech. “The menu crafted by Chef Giovanna De Vincentis has proven to be a perfect culinary translation of this year’s theme. Recently, the Italian government has proposed to inscribe Italian Cuisine as an Intangible Heritage of UNESCO, and I want to express my gratitude to the Royal Commission for AlUla and Slow Food for their extraordinary commitment in making such meaningful initiatives possible.”
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