The Chamber of Agriculture, is of course present at Expogast, the world gastronomy event in Luxembourg, which is being held until 30 November at LuxExpo, and in partnership with VATEL Luxembourg, has the honour of highlighting one of the Grand Duchy’s flagship products: its beef. The Chamber asked some of the international teams competing in the World Culinary Cup what they thought of this local product. Here is the opinion of an expert: Jorge Fernandes, Team Captain of the Portuguese Junior National Team.
With numerous national and international awards to his name, Jorge Fernandes is one of the most experienced chefs on the Portuguese scene. He has worked in prestigious hotels and for this edition of Expogast, he is managing the Portuguese Junior Team.
How would you rate the quality of beef, a product of Luxembourg’s terroir?
Really good. It’s texture is tender as it should be, really pleasant to work with. And the taste is “amazing”! And on top of that, it’s not full of water like some meats are at times. This is my sixth participation at Expogast, and each time we have very good quality products. La Provençale and all the partners do a really good job.
In Portugal, does the origin of beef play a particular role for butchers and consumers alike?
In Portugal, there are more cows than people (laughs)! We eat a lot of beef, and pork too. We love it. But the quality is not always equal, sometimes they are a bit too watery…
Can you tell us your little secret for preparing meat that is tender and melts in the mouth?
The meat must be rare. If it is well cooked, or even overcooked, it loses all its flavour. Eating meat rare is the best way to enjoy it.
What is your favourite piece of beef and why?
I like beef fillet. It should be cooked quickly in a very classic way, with only a little butter.
How did you stage the pieces of Luxembourgish beef you were given for this Culinary World Cup?
So we had two pieces of beef. A rump steak, which we cooked rare, just sautéed on each side, and beef chuck, which we offered “American dried”. We brought our charcoal from Portugal and covered the meat to cook it at low temperature. This way the meat is black on the outside and red on the inside. We created a little crust around it with herbs and salt.