When I returned to my village, Lera* was my only reference", says Edorta Lamo, chef at Arrea!* (Kanpezu, Álava), explaining the numerous synergies that exist between the two establishments, despite the difference in territory and culture. The truth is that the chef from Lera* (Castroverde de Campos, Zamora) has for years been the last bastion, especially in his area, of an incredibly rich rural culture that is disappearing. We need a proliferation of events like Terrae or our Campo & Montaña, which bring the concepts of tradition and proximity back to the minds of guests.

For Edorta, the important thing is that "these values contribute to having a primary sector that is more representative and fairer in this globalised world, and the institutions must work together to streamline the regulations that favour hunting and gathering", an idea shared by Luis, because "the system is so tired that it takes us out of the system, and this only leads to homogeneity. If the administration wants us all to be the same and eat the same food, they can count me out. I want to give back to the land what it has given us, and I want to be free to do so," he said emphatically. And he has unveiled a selection of rural stars to help him in this endeavour, including chefs Eduardo Ruiz, Nacho Solana, Nandu Jubany, Juan Carlos García and María Solivellas, as well as Edorta.

From the wild boar to the gait

And the two chefs lit up the Kursaal's stoves to demonstrate the versatility of their cooking with two foods for which they profess great admiration. First up was pigeon, cured in a gilda, in the form of crumbs with beeswax or stewed in a bonbon with foie gras, creations that are part of Edorta's theme show at Arrea! Luis Lera followed with other evocative delicacies such as pigeon tartar with anchovies and organic Zamorano bread; a leg of pigeon cooked in water, brandy and vegetables and then fried; and a breast of pigeon 'marinated for 12 hours in garlic, pepper, thyme and Thai green papaya' with grilled aubergine and fried sage.

Then came the wild boar, "I prefer wild boar because it produces more fat", Edorta explained, an animal from which he made prosciutto and loin, "massaged before aeration with lichen to bring out the flavour of the forest"; sausages such as pastrami, made with the belly, boar's head and smoked tongue. He also showed us roasted snout and roasted shank, as well as a beautiful dish of mountain pâté made with liver and head, accompanied by some wild boar crumbs imitating the earth of the forest on a grass of fern shoots, and some dried leaves made of baked apple. Lera, for his part, also demonstrated how to "make the most of all game, enjoying its finesse and delicacy, by doing little with it", by serving braised tongue with pepper sauce and a roasted pepper loin. He finished with a grilled snout, accompanied by a sauce of pork snout with cumin.