Kike Erazo
Born in the state of Jujuy in the north of Argentina, chef Kike Erazo’s background is a example of hard work and self-improvement. The chef has been passionate about cooking since a young age, “because cooking was the basis of family gatherings”, he notes, nostalgically, while recalling family get-togethers in which uncles, aunts, cousins and grandparents would gather around the table to celebrate a birthday or some other celebration. “Each part of the family had its own speciality”, he adds, as a smile spreads across his face.
At the age of 17 and with only one idea in his head, that of becoming a chef, he packed his bags and set off for Buenos Aires. He worked selling newspapers at a drugstore and at a printing press before finally managing to join a large restaurant in the capital as a waiter’s assistant. “But what attracted me was the kitchen, so I kept insisting to the chef that he let me in”, he notes. “[…] at the time it was very difficult to get into the kitchen, it was very cliquey, but I insisted to the head chef so much that he eventually gave me a chance. It was a really big restaurant, with capacity for 300 diners, and I was lucky enough to go through all the different sections and with my earnings I managed to pay for my studies. It was hard. If I look back I cannot believe how I started out. But I was really hungry to keep on learning; I learnt how to make bread, pasta, to work with fish and meat…”
Blind rice
In the end, after graduating as a gastronomy professional and working at several renowned restaurants in Buenos Aires, he set himself the goal of getting to Europe by 2002. After saving up and fulfilling his dream, he was told by a friend about the many qualities of the Balearic Islands and decided to settle in Mallorca, which has been his home for more than two decades and where he has collaborated on important gastronomic projects together with renowned chefs such as the Michelin-starred Adrián Quetglas and Fernando Pérez Arellano.
A passion for rice
Making a rice dish may seem simple... to someone who has never done it before. In fact, getting rice to turn out well is one of the most complicated things to do in the kitchen. And chef Erazo excels at it. His passion for the world of rice began three years ago when he was asked to launch El Puente, the rice restaurant where he still works as a chef today. Although he had previously worked with rice, he never believed that he could convey all his creativity with just one humble ingredient.
Thus, in addition to paellas and classic recipes, the Argentinian chef has developed over the years a whole recipe book of signature rice dishes. A must is his slow-cooked lamb neck marinated with ras el hanout, a North African spice mix, paying homage to navarin, a delicious, traditional French stew.
Seafood rice
We ask him about the secret to a good rice dish, to which he says “A good sautéed base and a good broth”, adding: “although you must also pay a lot of attention to the product, play with the timings and use exact measurements, which is the only way to maintain the quality and flavour. If it is not done well, you are left with a rice dish with stuff added to it”.
He confesses that he loves working with rice, but that he would love to open a creole restaurant, something intimate, where he can express himself through the flavours and aromas of his childhood. And, if you consider the long journey that this tenacious but humble chef has been on since he left the safety and security of his family in his teens to pursue his dream, this does not seem like a faraway prospect.
