Aponiente’s concern, led by chef Ángel León, to continue observing and researching new ingredients and products from the great pantry of the sea has led him to discover the ‘marine cereal’, the seed of the seagrass, an aquatic plant that it is born under the sea, feeds on water and performs key biological and ecological functions.
“For more than a decade, the entire Aponiente team has continued to work with the responsibility of publicizing and taking advantage of the great pantry that is the sea, integrating new products and foods into the human diet that are still hidden as great treasures under the sea. Our dream is that the sea forms part of everyone’s diet and we hope to be able to achieve it little by little”, says chef Ángel León. The objective is to continue taking advantage of all those ingredients that make food of marine origin a sustainable resource, innovating and adding value to the gastronomy sector and to society.
The marine cereal, a research work by the Aponiente team
Ángel León next to the marine cereal
The Aponiente R&D team has spent more than 3 years researching, together with the University of Cádiz and other scientific entities, the eelgrass and its seeds, “the marine cereal”, managing to cultivate it for the first time in history in a controlled environment, a project thanks to which they have been able to determine their viability for human consumption. For now, a total of 3,000m2, in the Bahía de Cádiz Natural Park. A pioneering project in the world, which could also change the global map of the planet, making cultivation possible in areas that only have access to salt water.
It has been possible to verify that the cultivation of marine cereal is one of the most sustainable on the planet and a generator of ecological, landscape and social wealth; as well as key in the fight against climate change. In addition, fewer technical and economic resources are needed for its plantation compared to other types of cereals. In addition, it has been found that marine cereal or marine rice as some call it, can not only be used for human consumption, but also has unique nutritional properties, becoming a new superfood.
Sea grain vs. rice, wheat or oats
marine cereal
Aponiente has carried out numerous analyzes and comparative studies of marine cereal with respect to common rice and other types of cereals grown on land such as barley, wheat, oats or corn.
The results have determined that a grain is much denser than other cereals and nutritious, very similar to legumes. At a gastronomic level, it opens the door to another texture and flavor, dense and firm, like an al dente pasta, aromatic, vegetable and iodized. Its characteristics for culinary use range from cooking in the same line as rice or pasta, going through processing it as flour, in turn making bread or dry pasta.
It contains a greater amount of high-quality protein (13%), carbohydrates (82% of which more than 50% is starch), less than 2% fat (vegetable), as well as vitamins A and E that no other type of cereal has or high concentrations of B vitamins. Finally, essential fatty acids, omegas 3 and 6, amino acids that do not exist in common cereals, minerals and even a significant proportion of glucose, which makes it a superfood with exceptional qualities for a very healthy diet.
The marine cereal, a more respectful crop with the environment
Scientific studies have certified that seagrass, the plant from which marine cereal comes, generates habitats of extremely high biological, ecological, landscape and social value. The environmental benefits are innumerable, as coastal wetlands and seagrass beds are the most efficient carbon sinks on Earth.
For the detailed study of the marine cereal, areas that had been abandoned decades ago have been recovered, contributing to the environmental and social revitalization of the environment.
Old salt flats and fish farms have been restored to create marine cereal plantations that have made it possible to maintain the primary traditional activity and recover ecosystems, generating great marine biodiversity. It must be taken into account that the seagrass is in danger of extinction and that through its cultivation an autochthonous species of great value to the environment is being recovered.
And, on the other hand, this landscape and natural wealth is undoubtedly a claim for ecotourism; becoming an important economic and social catalyst, helping the community and preserving nature and marine ecosystems for future generations, thus adding to the sea from the kitchen.
The productivity of cultivating marine cereal
marine cereal
The study carried out shows that the cultivation of marine cereal has fewer needs and technical and economic requirements for its cultivation than other common cereals, and is also very productive.
In relation to the latter, up to 5 spikes per plant are obtained, thus exceeding the potential of an extension of tropical forest by 30 times. The estimated yield in the wild is 5 to 7 tons per hectare, similar to the production of other types of cereals.
On the other hand, the costs of its cultivation are low because the “marine cereal” is a perennial plant, so it is not necessary to replant the crops annually. In addition, it does not require pesticides because there are no pests, it does not suffer from known diseases, nor does it require fertilizers, in addition, seawater circulates constantly and the surplus can be used and used for other uses that generate returns.
Forum ‘Despesques’, an alliance between Ángel León and Cervezas 1906
The search for the avant-garde and innovation has also led chef Ángel León to ally himself with Cervezas 1906, from the Hijos de Rivera group. A collaboration that focuses on the development of Despesques, a debate forum organized by Ángel León that has become a reference meeting in our country in favor of sustainable and responsible gastronomy. In its latest edition, León managed to bring together eighty top-level chefs from a dozen countries and representatives of the food industry and environmental organizations, all of them working and proposing ideas to stop the degradation of the marine environment from their field of action .
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