The DNA of Joseba Arguiñano (Zarautz, 1985) had gastronomic foundations. Karlos Arguiñano’s youngest son has followed in his footsteps and already has extensive television experience linked to cooking. The protagonist of ‘Joseba Arguiñano Sukalerrian’ on ETB1 and ‘Historias a bocados’, on ETB2, has traveled the Basque Country with his characteristic appetite and people skills. His success allows him to speak with his own voice. Beyond genetics, this pastry chef has become a reference on its own.
– He seemed predestined for the job of cook.
– I was born and raised between kitchens and, although it is true that I did not think so before, the truth is that it has been like that. When I was a teenager I wanted to be a motorcycle racer, but I have sucked the love for gastronomy and I carry it inside. Yes, it was predestined.
– And that hobby for two wheels?
– I really like motorcycle racing and my father and I had a close relationship with Carlos Checa. He said that if you are born in Catalonia you are a pilot and, in Euskadi, a pelotari. I was also attracted to the pediment, but I lacked strength in my hand. I have it more appropriate for cakes than for balls.
– The most critical can say that he is plugged in.
– Thanks to the aita I am here. It’s important that they open doors for you, but I’m still there for having worked hard, for putting a lot of effort into it. You have to do it well, bet a lot, give the callous, like and have audiences. Fortunately, she has turned out well.
– What do you prefer? The camera or the stove?
– I do not leave the stove, I enjoy it a lot and I am always learning. The cameras, too, because I get along very well with people. I like my job on TV because I interview and, in addition, I cook. I think it’s great to be able to combine the two tasks.
– It has a certain ability to generate a good atmosphere and win over the guest.
I also inherited that from my father. He inspires confidence, and when we arrive at a place, they love us right away, without knowing us. It is also true that I am wild and talkative and I get along with everyone.
– They have defined you as the sexy son and confectioner of Karlos Arguiñano.
– Come on, since I’m a pastry chef, they consider me the sweet son, and when it comes to sexy, well, I think they’ve gone a bit over there.
– You have toured the entire Basque Country with your program ‘Historias a bocados’. What has she discovered?
– I have discovered that we have a very rich environment, a lot of different climates, that this country, being so small, is very diverse. It is surprising to find so many cultural and customs differences from Iparralde to Carranza, with its Castilian touch. We go to the Mediterranean, Indonesia or South Africa, and we forget that we have an impressive diversity next door.
– Any gastronomic revelation of your journey?
– I would say the oil. He knew that Arroniz had good oil, but he did not imagine its impressive quality. But there is also honey, meat, fish and orchard, we have it all at the gastronomic level.
Good atmosphere
“The important thing about our program is the people and the excuse is cooking”
– And the darkest side?
– In just a few years there has been a ‘heavy’ transformation thanks to technology, and I don’t know whether to say it’s good or bad. In any case, the truth is that the baserris are getting lost and it scares me a lot. I understand the pain of those affected, because it also means losing a harmonious relationship with their neighbors and the link with the land. We are immersed in a process of dehumanization and that must be emphasized.
– We are in January, recommend us a dish to climb this slope now even steeper.
– Cooked after cooked. Put a porrusalda between chest and back to keep you warm and strong.
– Is pastry the torture of every aspiring cook? Is the subject bone?
– I think not and I know that exactitude is required, that it is not possible to go wrong with the ingredients. You can leave a stew without carrots and nothing happens, but you cannot do without eggs in a sponge cake or leave rice pudding without sugar. Now, if you can make the recipe sweeter, fattier or lighter. What must be respected are times and temperatures. But you don’t have to carry a scale everywhere. The amonas did it by eye.
“You have to eat just enough”
– Choose the ideal dessert for the best palate.
– The plum cake, which I still make at the bakery. I choose it because it has history. It takes me back to the beginning of the restaurant and we have made it for more than thirty years and also at home.
– By the way, there were ten at the table. How was that troop fed?
– It was eaten simply, always with a spoon, lentils, broths, porrusaldas, rice and pasta, something grilled and yogurt, which my parents bought by the dozens every day.
– Would you like to do a pure and hard talk show?
– We have it now because the important thing in our program is the people and the excuse is cooking. The good atmosphere is generated by the team and we immediately become friends with the people and, in the end, they don’t even notice that they are recording.
– How do you avoid the demands of workshops and sets?
– I have always felt like a man of the sea, I was born on the beach, I have surfed, fished and looked for limpets and shrimps. Aita had a little boat with which we would go to Getaria for beauty. In addition, we have a farmhouse with animals and I take care of my pottokas and beehives that keep me attached to the ground. With that I am happy.
– You are attracted to adventure, haven’t you thought about putting land and sea in between and starting another life in the Maldives or Bali, for example?
– Yes I’ve thinked about it. I have been to the five continents, but here I feel in my habitat.
– Is it true that you make the best croissant in the world, as they claim on the networks?
– We try with the best possible ingredients and everything I have learned from my aunt Eva. We want to offer something that she nourishes, not fills.
– Is the best breakfast a latte with croissants on a terrace overlooking the sea?
– Hahaha, I’ll change it for some eggs with bacon and then a cut with a small croissant. I’m a pastry chef, but you can’t go overboard with sweets. You have to eat just enough.
– Cupcakes, so colorful and full of glitter, were a trend some time ago. What opinion do they deserve?
– I also made them and for a celebration, well, but not for every day, it is not sustainable or reasonable.
– How to fight against industrial pastries?
– People go to the price and the industrial is cheaper and easier. How many artisan bakeries have closed? You have to bet on the neighborhood professional.
– By the way, in relation to the monstrosities, he has declared himself an admirer of the English cook Jamie Oliver, the author of the paella with chorizo. Are we not talking about a mortal sin?
– We all do something crazy sometimes. You have to eat every day and you end up messing it up.