Famous Spanish chef embraces Chinese cuisine

Chinese cuisine drew Arzak's attention for several reasons, but what appealed to her most was the soups. "I really liked the soups, how they added soy and tofu to them. I found it amazing, any soup was good," she says, stressing that the Chinese have a good command of how to make soup.

Arzak also appreciates the diversity and history of Chinese cuisine. "It's a huge country and has many different cuisines. I loved it, it is a very ancient cuisine, also what I liked about the Chinese cuisine is that they eat everything, from rooster combs to the legs," she says.

Visiting China continues to be a source of inspiration for her dishes. For her, the most important thing is flavor and "making good use of the products and raw materials."

She is famously passionate about constantly evolving her technical skill and experimenting with both flavors and colors: "I often say that color is an extra flavor."

At her family's restaurant, there is a research area where they have a "bank of flavors" that stores about 1,500 ingredients, from black lemons from Iran to swallows' nests. "Not all of them are used," she says, "but when we need to finish a dish, we look around and always find something".

Among the latest creations coming out of the kitchen of Arzak is the duck with guitar shavings, which are used for smoking the dish.

Chef Arzak will be part of the prize committee that will evaluate the nominations for the Basque Culinary World Prize, an annual award in San Sebastian that will reward a chef for positive contributions to society.