Editor’s letter I S S UE 8, 20 20


Flour, yeast, salt and water. It’s a simple-sounding list of ingredients. Yet the scope for interpretation is broad. This was brought home to me last month when my hometown hosted a French market. Having stocked up on macarons and French cheese, I picked up a ‘tradition’ baguette and, unable to wait, bit into it straight away. Suddenly, it all became clear again — I realised I’d been making do; putting up with


pale, under-baked, uninspiring bread; baguettes with barely any crust and scant flavour; loaves that don’t so much crackle when squeezed as bow apologetically. How had I been living like this? Over the past decade, our relationship with bread has grown complicated.


Supermarket sales have gone up and down; big-name bakeries have had uneven fortunes; sourdough has become hip, but no one can agree on a definition; ancient grains are back in fashion, but so is abstinence, as an increasing number of us find modern bread hard to stomach. Yet for all this, it’s worth remembering that, at its finest, bread is so much more


than a mere staple. And, whenever circumstance allows, it’s well worth seeking out the best — loaves baked by the skilled hands of those able to turn simple ingredients into something truly worth devouring. Thankfully, the world is full of such people and such bread. You’ll find some of both in our cover story.


Glen Mutel, editor NATGEOTR AVE LU K


WHAT’S ONLINE AT NATIONALGEOGRAPHIC.CO.UK/FOOD-TRAVEL


Madrid master Officially the most decorated chef in Spain, Martín Berasategui is a culinary master. We head to Madrid to take a closer look at his latest restaurant, Etxeko.


The art of kombucha With kombucha’s current popularity showing no signs of waning, a trip to London’s Cookery School unlocks the secrets of this bubbly, slightly fermented tea.


Houston calling The Texan city is carving out a food scene worth exploring, with everything from Ethiopian restaurants and vegan cafes to cold-press coffeeshops.


NATIONALGEOGRAPHIC.CO.UK/FOOD-TRAVEL


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IMAGE: WWW.ROBERTOCASTANO.COM/ETXEKO


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