Foodvice: restaurant Le Fourneau

Le Fourneau restaurant specializes in small portions of delicious food, especially fish. The flavours are fresh and the idea is to cook fast, without compromising flavours. That's why I decided to bring them a living carp, a lake fish which is difficult to cut, to gut, to cook and to serve!by Maria Tarantino

:: Le Fourneau, Sint-Katelijneplein 8, 1000 Brussel, 02-513 10 02

Our Magic Box contained manioc, pomegranate and a live carp. The cook will have to improvise a delicious dish with these ingredients. All purchased in Brussels of course, but to know more about these exotic ingredients, take a look below.

Manioc
Manioc, also known as yuca or cassava in Central America and the US, is a white starchy tuber with a delicate taste (many people I know say that fried manioc beats potatoes anytime). It has been a staple of the Brazilian Indians' diet for centuries, and it is from their language, Tupi, that we have the names mandioca (madi'og) and aipim (ai'pi) for the root and tapioca (tipi'og) for its starch.

Pomegranate
About Pomegranates: The pomegranate is one of the oldest fruits as well as richest in history and folklore. Once you get past the multitude of seeds, its juice is tangy, sweet, rich and flavorful. This juice becomes the base for sauces and flavorings for drinks, savory dishes, and sweets, while the whole seeds are a simple delight eaten fresh or used as a colorful accent as a garnish. The fruit is about the size of an orange. The rind color can range from yellow-orange to deep reddish-purple.

Origin: This fruit originated in tropical Asia but has been cultivated throughout the Mediterranean and the Middle East. History credits Spanish padres with bringing pomegranates to California more than 200 years ago.

Carp
There are various types of carps, with or without scales. He fish lives in lakes and likes muddy waters. It has many bones, which makes it difficult to clean and to eat. Carp is celebrated by Chinese cuisine, both steamed and fried.