Empordanese cuisine tastes like fig

GironaFrom mid-August to the end of September is the optimal season for figs, one of the most delicious fruits in the Mediterranean. On its own, the fig is excellent: tasty, sweet, creamy and with the soft crunch of the tiny seeds inside. But, in the kitchen, combined with other ingredients, it yields great results and has a lot of recipe possibilities. For this reason, this month of September, from Monday the 7th to Sunday the 20th, fifteen restaurants in Figueres and the Alt Empordà are offering on their menu all kinds of dishes with this seasonal product as the protagonist. It is the gastronomic campaign Enfiga't, organized by the Figueres City Council, La Cuina del Vent and the local commerce association, which is repeated every year around these dates with the aim of promoting the fig, typical of the area, which gives the Alt Empordà capital its name since the time of the Romans.

Restaurants of many styles and prices participate, from pizzerias like l'Augustea to pintxo and tapas bars like Lizarran or Txots. Most, however, are historic Catalan cuisine establishments, such as the Hotel Duran restaurant, a legendary place, founded in 1855, of which Salvador Dalí was a regular customer. For the Enfiga't event, they are preparing a set menu for 35 euros: for the first course, a salad of figs and a mix of Empordà tomatoes with smoked sardine, olive oil caviar and vinaigrette; the main course is a tender Iberian pork cheek with figs candied in Garnacha wine; and, for dessert, Belgian chocolate brownie with figs and almond cream. Another of the participating establishments is the Hostal Amiel, very popular in Figueres, which also has a restaurant in Pont de Molins. Between the two locations, they serve a salad with fig, honey and nut vinaigrette, and for dessert a fig flower with Greek yogurt foam and violet sugar.

Catering professionals agree that one of the great virtues of the fig in the kitchen is its versatility. "With fish, meat, or dessert, it combines very well. The contrast between sweet and salty offers many possibilities. Various versions can be made: a mousse, a fresh carpaccio, candied, stuffed with ice cream... With chocolate it works very well, and also with smoked foods," explains David González, head chef at the Duran restaurant. In fact, beyond the fig, the use of fruit in stews and cooked dishes, from raisins to peaches, is a trait absolutely typical of traditional Catalan cuisine and even more so of the Empordà region: "Duck with pears or apples stuffed with meat are great dishes of Empordà cuisine," highlights González.

The fig season, however, is very short. The heat can extend it a little, but the best time is these weeks. Nevertheless, to use them throughout the year, there is the option of drying them, candying them, or making jam. "At the restaurant, we candy them with alcohol or make a preserve with 50% sugar, letting them cook very slowly, for three or four days," concludes the chef from Can Duran.

"In Figueres, the fig leaf is on our coat of arms"

Pep Amiel, from the Amiel businesses, also highlights the enormous range of options for cooking figs. "We chefs like to use seasonal produce and the fig is multifunctional. For example, we can take another Empordà product, such as duck magret, which many people make with red fruit sauce, and we can change this tradition and make a fig sauce for it. It accepts it formidably well. Likewise, in a beef stew, instead of using dried apricots and plums, you can change these two products for the fig and make a very Empordanese recipe by adding the fig," argues Amiel.

Another option is in rice, as will be shown by chef Gregory Abella, from the Falconera restaurant, in Roses, on Saturday, September 12th with a showcooking throughout the morning and midday at Plaça Catalunya. He will prepare a dry rice with confit duck foie gras and figs. All this with the goal of promoting the land, Catalan cuisine, and the tradition of the Empordà. "In Figueres, the fig leaf is on the city's coat of arms. It is a local product, like the Figueres onion, and events like these are an important way to ensure that traditions are never lost," concludes Pep Amiel.