What Does gourmet Mean
Gourmet is a French word translated by the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) as a gourmet , a person who understands gastronomy or fond of exquisite meals. The term is used as an adjective to describe those meals of refined elaboration.
The gourmet, therefore, is associated with the most exalted of gastronomy . The quality of the ingredients and the way of preparation is what determines whether a dish is considered gourmet or not.
Gourmet foods are those preparations that have been made with exquisitely selected ingredients, with exhaustive hygiene care and organoleptic properties ; they have also been made by people who, after many years of experience and a clear passion for haute cuisine, are ready to offer a product that can be consumed by someone who truly appreciates its quality and delicacy.
In any case, it is necessary to mention that gourmet products are not necessarily the most expensive and exclusive, but rather those that come from a respectable collection or production, regardless of their price. Both an apple from the market and a dish from the most expensive restaurant in Paris can belong to this classification.
Most of the artisan products also belong to this classification, since they have been carefully elaborated by people who love their work and want to offer a quality product; even those that have additives for their preservation (as long as they do not influence the organoleptic quality) can be gourmet products.
ElGourmet.com is a television channel and Internet portal dedicated to spreading culinary delights. Several of the most renowned chefs in Latin America , such as Francis Mallmann , Iwao Komiyama , Sumito Estévez , Borja Blázquez , Narda Lepes and Donato de Santis, participate in this station and teach viewers to prepare various recipes .
The Gourmet and Gastrosophy
The gastrosophy is the discipline devoted to the study of appetite, joys and feelings. It is assumed that a gourmet will not only enjoy the best quality food, but also have artistic and cultural interests linked to enjoyment.
Friedrich Christian Eugen Baron von Vaerst ( 1792 - 1855 ), known by the pseudonym Chevalier de Lelly , was a military man and writer noted as the promoter of gastrosophy and, therefore, a precursor of gourmet.
The gourmet is also linked to hedonism , which is the philosophical doctrine that holds pleasure as the main objective of life. Selecting the right ingredients and dedicating the necessary time to each preparation is part of the gourmet philosophy, which aims to make food a moment of enjoyment.
This science has its similarity to philosophy in that it tries to define the importance of eating in a healthy and ethical way. According to Chevalier de Lelly, there were three types of diners: the Gourmand (passionate about food), the Gourmet (they like elaborate and refined dishes) and the Gastrophors (they always choose those healthy and more "moral" foods).
Several years later, the scholar Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin captured all these ideas of Lelly in the book "Physiology of Taste" where he explained in detail everything related to the importance of eating according to how you want to live . Unfortunately over the years this philosophy has ceased to be given importance and nowadays there is no teaching of this type as a University subject.
Surely relating our diet to our way of thinking and our ethical values is the best way to become balanced people . There is a very widespread phrase that says " We are what we eat " and it hits the spot.
If we are willing to have an ethical diet , without consuming products that derive from the slavery of other animals, we will be healthier people who live in greater harmony with the environment .
If, on the other hand, we prefer to give more importance to our desire to enjoy a "good piece of meat" regardless of the mistreatment that exists before that food reaches our plate, we will become selfish people who do not care about the environment and we will live in conflict with the world.