THE ‘Bravas Martina 24’ of chef Javier García Albuger, from the Martina restaurant in Albacete, were crowned the best in the world in the fifth edition of the Una de Bravas International Competitionwhich took place at the Hotel Rey Sancho in Palencia. The jury highlighted its technical perfection, the balance of flavors, the contrast between its creamy interior and its crunchy exterior and the perfection of the sauce.
Second place went to the chef Ariel Munguía, from Flamma Valladolid, for his ‘Brava à la Flamma’, while the third was Javier Alfaro, from the Bestial restaurant at Rossi la Loca in Madrid, for his “Bestial Bravas”.
García Alburger received as champion a diploma, a work by the famous plastic artist from Palencia Antonio Guzmán Capel, and a replica of the Cristo del Otero, icon of the city. You also benefit from a voucher of 750 euros, a training offered by Barra de Bar Consulting worth 1,000 euros and a professional video report from Océangrain Audiovisuel.
In addition, the first three received bottles of Fuentes de Lebanza water (1,500, 1,000 and 500), Coca Cola products (worth 750, 500 and 250 euros respectively), a batch of Cerealto products, another of Paprika La Chinata and a work by the realist painter Antonio Guzmán Capel.
For the president of the Provincial Council of Palencia, Ángeles Armisén, the competition is already “a gastronomic emblem for Palencia and the province, since bravas are one of the most popular dishes”. “Promoting the cultural, gastronomic and environmental wealth of our territory is one of the objectives we have. In addition, we also seek to highlight a product as typical of Palencia as the potato from La Ojeda and Valdivia, considered by many to be one of the best in the whole country and, through it, improve its positioning at a national level”, he said. added.
The jury, chaired by the starred chef Miguel Cobo, accompanied by Lara Roguez, Custodio López Zamarra, Anna Téres, Pilar Hernández Coloma and Celso Vázquez, awarded its special mention to Alberto Villegas, from the San Remo establishment, located in Palencia, for the “bravas castizas”, made with a traditional brava sauce, with spicy and sweet paprika, ñora, onion, as well as a powerful chicken broth defatted for 24 hours, accompanied by a puffed bread filled with mojo picon.
The Innovation Award went to María Antón and Philip Parajan, from Le Qualité Tasca, in Madrid, for their “Rota de patata a la brava leonesa y torrezno de ear”. The Hitcooking Aesthetic Award went to Roberto Terradillos, Erik Lorenzo Álvarez and Justin de los Santos, from Terra Palencia, for their “Patatas bravas a la importance”, accompanied by seaweed and two sauces in a balancing act between spiciness and flavour. This one also received the Palencia Food Award.
