Dishes like works of art, banquets that look like paintings, all to provide a moment of pure multi-sensory enjoyment. This is the fruit carvingthe ancient technique of carving fruit and vegetables.
And so, fruit is transformed into a beautiful bouquet, watermelons or pineapples become the stars of impressive mise en place or fantastic characters that almost seem to animate the dishes.
The roots of the fruit carving are distant and originate in Thailandwhere this discipline represents one of the ten oldest trades since the 14th century. During the dynasty of Sukhothaiin 1364, the emperor's consort Phra Ruangon the occasion of the Loy Kratang Festivalcreated a spectacular buffet by transforming various fruits and vegetables into flowers, animals and leaves.
The emperor was so enthusiastic that he ordered that all women in the royal court should bring as dowry, in addition to grace and beauty, knowledge of this wonderful discipline. Practised for many years only at court, it was introduced into the school curriculum in 1939, making it accessible to all.
There are various carving techniques, from 45° carving to ivy leaf decorations, to the most famous Thai cuts, created with the eponymous knives. These tools, more commonly called stilettos, have a cylindrical-shaped handle, a very sharp, narrow and flexible blade, about 5 cm long.
So let your imagination run wild, to create and recreate characters, objects or simply decorate plates and tables. And speaking of fantasy, the Japanese chef Takehiro Kishimotopassionate carver, who has recently succeeded in bringing the ancient technique of carving back into the limelight. fruit carving. The Kobu chef, by exploiting sharing on his social platforms, has made fruit and vegetable carving a viral phenomenon, thanks also to the tutorials he offers and the pictures he posts. He is capable of carving any type of vegetable or fruit, but his absolute favourite is the avocado.
The production time is quite long, one hour for broccoli, two for avocado and as much as three hours for an apple. Sometimes the drawings represent characters or geometric shapes, but often they are traditional Japanese figures. He himself claims it is a way to relax and develop creativity and admits, in the end, that he always eats his works. A true nourishment of beauty.
Edited by Roberta Luppino
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