The Art of Heinz Beck

HEINZ BECK might have become best known in gastronomic circles for his now 20-year tenure at La Pergola, the 3 Michelin starred restaurant at Waldorf Astoria Rome Cavalieri, one of the top gastronomic destinations in the world, but along the way he has made his mark at many other distinguished venues, inspiring thousands with his unique culinary style: a blend of German discipline and innovative nuances of Italian and Mediterranean cuisine.

At the Conrad Algarve’s Gusto, Beck has created a flagship restaurant with a distinctive Italian flavour. Currently, the chefs he has working for him, under his fellow German head chef Mike Bräutigam, are nearly 100% Italian, but, now that the desired mindset has been established, he is looking to bring in some more local Portuguese talent. ‘These guys do know what they want in the kitchen,’ smiles Conrad Algarve General Manager, Joachim Hartl, speaking of how they request both very specific apparatus and ingredients. 

For Beck, who, alongside writing his regular books on food and cooking, all of which have been nominated for gourmet literary prizes, has collaborated on other works looking into the impact of nutrition on illnesses such as diabetes, obesity in children and blood pressure, the focus is strongly on health. ‘You are what you eat,’ he says, going on to explain: ‘To digest, you need oxygen. The only way you can get oxygen to your stomach is through your blood. If the food is heavy, more blood goes to your stomach and less to your brain. Therefore you feel tired.’ Hence, the food you will enjoy in Beck’s restaurants is light, foamy, and easy to digest; that it is delicious to boot, goes without saying.

But how does he do it? And how do the flavours become condensed into the peerless foams and snows with which his name is synonymous? We were all excited to be invited into the Gusto kitchen to help prepare our own meal – as assistants to the master – watching him blanche parsley, toast crumbs in a salamander, thicken his red pepper sauce with potato, orange juice and olive oil, and create herb snow by squeezing some puréed herbs into a pan of liquid nitrogen (-170C). We were also honoured as Beck had flown in especially from Tokyo to partake in this exclusive Taste Portugal event.

Our efforts were helped on their way by appetisers of foie gras with chocolate, pea purée and orange; an innovative ‘Bloody Mary’, combining shrimps, tomato and celery in a glass; razor clam gratin; and oysters and tarragon on ice. Sparkling wine also helped improve the already cheerful mood.

With matchless views out over the hotel’s infinity pool and beyond, we later sat to savour the fruits of our travail – along with some further special treats the chefs had made for us, beginning with the freshest sea bass carpaccio imaginable.

Everything with Beck is experimental. His divine Il Mare, a platter of percebes, clams and herbs, came accompanied by a green spongy ‘rock’, which dissolved instantaneously as its juice was poured over it. The colour of the ‘rock’ was actually derived from freeze-dried blue potatoes, cooked to just the right degree in stock so as not to turn a ‘dull and unexciting grey’ (Tip: remove the pan from the heat as soon as the potatoes are added). The resulting dish was very rich in potassium, magnesium and selenium – all minerals that we lose by walking around, sweating, in the summer. Another nod to our wellbeing by the conscientious chef.

Even the wines were colour coordinated, with the ensuing green tortellini being paired with Julia Kemper 2013 from the Dão, a blend of Encruzado and Malvasia Fina, particularly fruity and, yes, green.

The slow-cooked bacalhau with wild herb snow, pepper sauce and fennel represented the colours of the Portuguese flag. The snow picked up on the coldness of the northern waters in which the codfish are caught. With Beck, every detail chimes with the next. The accompanying Conceito Bastardo 2013 from the Douro is made from an ancient grape, practically extinct, and this was one of a limited edition of around 3000 produced by one of the few wineries still to use the grape. Full of fruit, it is sometimes referred to as ‘Christmas Pudding’ because of its rich flavour.

The highlight of the meal was, however, the dessert course: an iced sphere of red fruits on tea cream (aka chocolate!) with crystallised raspberries. This dreamy delight was paired with Croft Pink Port. Sadly our next port (excuse the pun!) of call was the airport to fly back home to London. But this fantastic closing event and meal left us floating on a cloud of happy memories of all that Portugal, its fresh produce, its luxury destinations, and its talented chefs have to offer.

RECIPE

Green Tortellini con Frutti di Mare

Stuffing:
300gr tomatoes

3 spoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 clove of garlic

10 black olives

5 basil leaves

3 capers

Parsley:

200 gr parsley
250ml water

Tortellini:
160gr flour
80gr semolina
2 egg yolks

1 egg

salt

Seafood Sauce:
140gr tomatoes

500gr clams

500gr mussels

2 spoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 clove of garlic

1 sprig of thyme

1 sprig of rosemary

1 carrot

100ml white wine

1 spoon of chopped parsley
500gr shrimps

COOKING METHOD

The Filling:
1. Clean the tomatoes,
remove the skin, seeds, and cut into cubes
2. Sauté in a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and garlic
3. Pit the green olives and cut into small 
cubes
4. Wash the basil and capers and chop finely

5. Add the tomatoes, olives, parsley and capers, adding salt if necessary

The Parsley:
1. Carefully wash the 
parsley
2. Put it in a blender with cold water and blend for a few minutes
3. Pass through a cloth, wring 
well and bring to the boil
4. Drain the water with a clean cloth
and keep the green aside for the 
tortellini dough 

The Tortellini:
1. Mix the flour with the 
semolina, add two egg yolks, egg, a pinch of 
salt and sufficient water to obtain a consistent dough
2. Knead the dough to form a ball, wrap in cling film 
and let it rest for about an hour in the refrigerator
3. Roll out the dough thinly into two sheets
4. Brush one of the 
two sheets with a beaten egg and spread the filling over it, using a spoon
5. Mold the dough into tortellini shapes, closing the crescents

Seafood Sauce:
1. Blanch the 
tomatoes for a few seconds, peel and cut
 petals making sure to remove the seeds
2. Wash the mussels and clams and let them open in a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil,
the garlic, thyme, rosemary, carrots and white wine
3. Sieve, add a pinch
 of salt, chopped parsley and 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
4. On the side, shell the prawns and remove the central wire
5. Sauté in a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and add the tomato petals, the clams, the mussels and their juices

Plate Preparation:
1. Cook the tortellini al dente in plenty of 
boiling salted water.
2. Cook in a pan with the seafood sauce
3. Place the tortellini in the centre of a plate, surround them with the sauce and garnish with a few drops of extra virgin olive oil