'Wagyu' beef on offer at Intercontinental's food festival
'Wagyu' beef on offer at Intercontinental's food festival
Maria Endah Hulupi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Beef lovers demand a thick cut of finely marbled, premium grade
beef, ensuring succulence, perfect tenderness and a deep, rich
flavor. One beef that fits this description is wagyu.
Wagyu refers to any breed of cattle native to Japan, which are
generally black in color. In the Japanese language, the word
wagyu is derived from two words: wa means Japanese and gyu means
beef.
Despite its famous reputation, there is often a
misunderstanding about wagyu beef and Kobe beef. In the past,
Kobe beef referred to cattle that was specifically bred and
raised in Kobe prefecture, Japan. But today most Kobe beef,
including wagyu beef, is bred in California and Australia where,
unlike in Japan, land and feed is relatively inexpensive.
When the cattle is ready for slaughter, it is shipped to Kobe
to be raised and fed based on the strict specifications for Kobe
beef before it is slaughtered.
Wagyu beef is famous around the world as the smoothest, most
delicious and most marbled beef. Some connoisseurs even liken the
richness and smoothness of wagyu beef to the delicate foie gras.
And this is not without reason, since with the right technique
the beef can be prepared into an extremely tender, succulent
steak that fork and knife will glide through, and which will
release delicious juices when chewed.
Luca Pezzera, chef de cuisine at the Intercontinental Midplaza
Hotel in Jakarta, said wagyu beef could be easily identified by
its high marbling and the intensity of the white streaks in its
flesh, which is the fat content.
"This marbling contributes not only to tenderness and
juiciness, but more importantly to taste," Luca said during a
food tasting at the hotel's stylish Scusa restaurant.
The food tasting was held ahead of the restaurant's Wagyu Beef
Festival from Aug. 6 to Aug. 17, jointly sponsored by PT
Bogacitra Nusapratama and Bir Bintang.
The hotel is importing specially bred wagyu beef from
Australia for the festival.
Luca said research at Washington State University in the U.S.
indicated that the infra-muscular fat of wagyu cattle contained
high levels of mono-unsaturated fats with a lower level of
saturated fat.
"This makes wagyu beef flavorful and healthier than any other
breed of cattle."
This delicate beef also requires delicate handling, especially
during cooking.
"The tender texture of wagyu beef can only be maintained with
the right cooking technique, which is usually done by searing,"
Luca said.
During the tasting, Luca also performed a cooking
demonstration, preparing two dishes featured in the beef
promotion: beef salad with sauteed forest mushrooms and rosemary
garlic croutons, and grilled tenderloin with Parmesan risotto and
duck liver mousse.
For the grilled tenderloin, the chef seasoned a thick cut of
wagyu beef and cooked it using a variety of methods, including
searing it on the stove, grilling it and then baking it. But all
were done very briefly, so as not to expose the fragile beef to
the heat for too long. The result was a juicy steak that was
brown on the outside but tender and palatable on the inside.
Other special dishes on the menu for the festival include warm
beef carpaccio with melted fontina cheese spinach and truffle
oil, and grilled rib eye with baked eggplant, grilled asparagus
and roasted tomato salsa.
Luca, who specializes in Mediterranean cuisine, is using
mostly natural herbs and spices to season the delectable wagyu
dishes featured in the festival.