Considered the Rolls Royce of charcoal-run cooking equipment, The Claridges gets a makeover with a new Josper Oven. Chef Rajiv tells I Kaur about experimenting with food on it
Giving their food new colour and feel, Sevilla at The Claridges recently reworked their menu to make dishes prepared in a Josper Oven, a wooden charcoal oven enclosed in a metal case.
“The Josper’s speciality is that it gives dishes a rustic, smoky feel,” said Rajiv, a chef at the restaurant. He said it was designed in a way that steam penetrates through food, retaining its juiciness.
The Josper also flavours accompaniments. He gave the example of a soup on the menu called ‘Essence of young leaf.’ “A lot of times I roasted flavoured leaves in the josper and mixed it with clear soup. This gave the soup a very nice, pastoral taste.”
Calling himself inquisitive and experimental, Chef Rajiv remarked, “There is a famous sauce preparation in Spain called ‘romesco,’ which I make often using the Josper. I roast its ingredients in an oven. When I use it as a side dish, it gets a smoky taste,” he added.
He believes the new oven has given authenticity to international cuisines. Some under ‘tapas’ in the new menu are roasted vegetables with goat cheese, montados grilled asparagus with romesco sauce, Josper oven cooked chicken wings, grilled lamb chops with honey aioli and josper baked prawns with garlic and paprika.
“All dishes on the josper menu are bucolic (characteristics of the countryside). They have a smoky feel and that is only possible to produce genuinely with a josper oven,” said he.
Curiosity led Rajiv to experiencing new styles. He shared, “When I make pumpkin risotto, I always roast the pumpkin in an oven and top the risotto with it. The added country taste makes the flavour stand out.” Rajiv averred that ever since the oven came into the kitchen, the quality of food has improved.
They have also started using the oven for making most of their grilled dishes. Chef continues to discover dishes out of the oven and will keep adding to them.
Existing ones, apart from the tapas are Josper oven grilled chilean, sea bass with fava bean ragu, fondant potatoes, baby spinach salad and sauce bordigera in the main course. Along with Josper oven smoked pineapple with blue berry gelato in desserts.