Interview Series Chef Extraordinaire - Enrique Silva
Chef Enrique Silva was raised in Navojoa, Sonora, in Northern Mexico. His journey to culinary excellence took root in his childhood kitchen. Silva’s late mother, Ramona, viewed cooking as an art form and a celebration of culture, as well as an obligation to feed her family of 10. Enrique arrived in Los Cabos in 1990, armed with a degree in agricultural engineering and a love for Mexican cuisine.
by Mayté Rodríguez Cedillo and Fernando Favela · Chef Extraordinaire · BajaTraveler.com
Your cuisine feels deeply personal. If you had to distill your culinary identity into one essential idea, what would it be—and how has it evolved over time?
My culinary identity is fresh ingredients, using seasonal products from the ground and from the sea.
Baja California offers a striking sense of place. How do you translate the landscape—sea, desert, and vineyard—into a coherent culinary language?
I take what the difference landscapes of Baja have to offer, as these are essential for Baja cuisine sustainability.
Every great chef develops an almost obsessive relationship with certain ingredients. Which ones define your kitchen, and why are they indispensable?
Fresh herbs define my kitchen. These herbs allow me to combine with different proteins, oils and vegetables in order to create very savvy dishes.
I find this balance on Tamarindo’s crops, as they allow me to balance the ingredients of new creations
The Mediterranean ingredients that southern Baja’s weather provides, blends perfect with the wines from Baja, and other regions of México.
From your perspective, how is Valle de Guadalupe positioned today within the international food and wine landscape?
At Tamarindos’ we dedicate our entire wine list to Mexican wines, 50% of our wines come from Valle de Guadalupe. These wines can highly compete with the International standards of wine and cuisine regions anywhere in the world.
A truly gastronomic experience is honest food. It’s important to know the freshness and the origin of where the ingredients come from. We, at Tamarindo’s are very lucky as we produce our own ingredients －and that’s true luxury.
Sustainability is often discussed, but rarely understood in depth. What meaningful practices—often unseen by the guest—truly shape your approach?
At Tamarindos, we like to respect whole foods, followed by compost, for the production of our own fertilizers.
Which global influences have shaped your vision, and how do you reinterpret them while preserving a strong sense of place?
I’ve been influenced by the European and Mediterranean trips I’ve been fortunate to have taken. I’ve learned European techniques for the seasonal local products from the sea and the ground.
Beyond trends, what kind of legacy do you hope to build—and how do you envision the future of Baja’s cuisine on the global stage?
The legacy I hope to leave is for the respect of the use of seasonal and fresh ingredients. Keeping it simple. Baja’s cuisine must take the advantage of the richness of our oceans, the Mar de Cortés and the Pacific Ocean and all the beautiful organic products that Baja produces.
BajaTraveler® Signature Closing
1. A wine that never fails to move you (red, white, or sparkling)
Red
2. One Baja ingredient you can’t live without
Fresh Fish
3. A restaurant anywhere in the world that recently inspired you
Le Doyenné, Chambres
4. Sea or land—where do you find more inspiration?
Land
5. A perfect pairing—simple, yet unforgettable
Baked local lamb with a Nebbiolo from Valle de Guadalupe
6. A guilty pleasure
Lots of wine
7. The first dish or memory that defined your palate
Pasts pomodoro
8. If you weren’t a chef, what would you be…
Farmer
9. A culinary destination you consider essential today
Oaxaca
10. In one word: what is Baja to you?
FRESHNESS