Until recently, Asturias was an almost forgotten paradise for the Spaniards. Garden of Eden hidden behind Negron, which Melendy spoke of, where it rained 300 days a year. Some lucky people, such as chef Nacho Manzano from La Salgar (Arriondas), were able enjoy it for the rest of your life and at the same time grow professionally.

The rest had to go, as an Asturian would say, to find a place where you can make money. This story is repeated again and again, generation after generation, and this already happened two hundred years ago, during the time of the Indians.

Nacho Manzano and his family They run several restaurants in Asturias.. The first, Casa Marcial (in Arriondas), thanks to which it received two Michelin stars.

Also La Salgar (in Gijon), Gloria (in Gijon and Oviedo), NM and Nastura (in Oviedo) and Narbaçu (in the Rubianes Palace in Cereced). They all refer to places in Asturian gastronomy, to such an extent that some of them are regular stops for recipients of the Princess of Asturias Award.

Princess awards through the eyes of an Asturian illustrious

For example, he dined at Gloria this week. Donnie Bassler, this publication’s winner in the science and technology research category. Thus, Nacho Manzano is the ideal person to discuss the current situation in Asturias The capital is the epicenter of the action at this week’s Princess Awards.

“We gave her the book, and the woman was delighted. There are superstars like Meryl Streep. and there are people who are workers, work in the laboratory, spend time and live harsh life, beyond any glamorous focus. And we must be the masters,” Nacho Manzano tells us.

And the Asturians are so willing. “There are many kings in Asturias. Now that a princess who represents the new generation and remains a girl most of the timeand then the Queen of Asturias,” comments the chef. And this is noticeable on the streets of Oviedo, as well as in each of the events that the royal family has held these days. “In Asturias we are very monarchical and love them, although we are also very left-wing,” he admits.

But he says this timidly. He knows that any political comment today can be taken out of context or used against him. “We live in an increasingly radical world, it seems that we are going not forward, but backward. I’ve seen failure, you need to be careful what you say,” Manzano admits.

Princess awards are a “gift”

For this chef, the Princess Awards are a “gift” from Asturias, and they are much more important than people think. “The proof is that very wonderful people come year after year. The Asturians don’t appreciate it on the scale that it has, and that makes me a little sad,” he admits. He also notes that the visibility they give to this little paradise is unparalleled. “That’s why I’d like it to be even more festive, and Asturias throws out more,” he adds.

And one of the strengths of the award, which attracts these top-level laureates, is, without a doubt, gastronomy. “We have a very powerful gastronomy”, he says. And he knows this well, but this does not mean that he avoids criticism of his own creativity.

According to the chef, one of the problems of Asturias is localism. Notes that There is life in the Principality beyond Oviedo and Gijon., and remember that often the best cuisine is not in big cities. “Sometimes you have to go deeper to find out the authenticity of the land,” he says. “Oviedo has very good food, but I think we have room for improvement., you need to be self-critical. We have two casual dining restaurants and one fine dining restaurant called NM,” says Manzano.

We are optimistic about the future of Asturias

This conversation with Nacho Manzano took place while we were drinking coffee and sharing sweets at the La Mallor patisserie in Oviedo. And it happened the next day finally announced the premiere Option. This is considered the most important railway project in Spain and will finally allow the AVE to arrive in Asturias, starting on November 30th.

An opportunity for the Principality that the chef clearly sees: “It will be wonderful. Bringing us closer to Madrid will give us a much-needed boost.”I am very optimistic about Asturias.“I think it has some qualities that are worth cultivating… and this land makes you fall in love.”

According to him, tourism is growing every year, although infrastructure is needed: “it’s inconvenient to come, although there are now more flights and better flights with AVE. Of course, we’ll see what comes of it, let’s see how it works…” and, of course, we’ll see how much it costs.”We are fashionable”, says the chef. This leads me to ask him about the trend that is sweeping Asturias and beyond. So much so that recently It seems to be the only thing people know. about the principality: Kachopo.

There is life outside the cachapo

“We already served it at Casa Marcial in 1993, but it’s true that it got out of control. It’s not so much the quality of food, but its quantity.. They give out some monstrous cachopos in the form of sheets, I don’t like it,” he comments. According to him, any dish, traditional or not, needs to be prepared with a little love.

That’s why Nacho Manzano is working hard to restore and highlight other less valuable dishesmay have forgotten about typical Asturian gastronomy. We all know fabada, but arroz conpitu, for example, is one of the chef’s bets in his restaurants to make other aspects of the local cuisine fashionable.

“We didn’t invent this“My mother already made this when we were little, but it’s true that it’s not in the Asturian recipe books,” he shares. He also offers sweat or mackerel, so important in the north, or corn cakes, which they also value. in the Battle House.

Because gastronomy is cultural value, also strives to tell stories through food. Same as with your menu. Indiana, created especially for the holiday of San Mateo de Oviedo. The idea was to honor the memory of these products brought from America and it changed the way we eat forever. That is, potatoes Fabescorn… An initiative that has been launched in more than twenty restaurants in Oviedo and which Manzano hopes it will happen again now year after year.