A Journey Through the World’s Ingredients That Shape Vuelve Carolina’s Cuisine

Condiments, sauces, aromatic leaves, or chiles that, when used well, define a cuisine and give it personality. At Vuelve Carolina, many of these ingredients arrive from far away, but they eventually find their place in some of the most recognizable dishes at our restaurant in the center of València.

This is a journey through a few of them. Not to create an inventory, but to understand how they are integrated into the restaurant’s cooking.

Tsuyu no Moto (Japan)

Tsuyu no moto is a very popular concentrate in Japanese cuisine. It is made from dashi, a light broth prepared with kombu seaweed, dried bonito flakes (katsuobushi), and water, to which mirin (a type of rice wine or sake with very low alcohol content) and soy sauce are added. The result is a balanced, savory and umami-rich base used both as a seasoning and for preparing broths.

It is one of the most common sauces in Japanese cooking, often served as a dipping sauce for tempura or used as the base for broths such as those accompanying udon or miso soup.

In València, it is not difficult to find. It is usually available ready-made in speciality Asian grocery stores in the city’s Chinatown area, especially along Pelayo Street, where several supermarkets stock it regularly.

At Vuelve Carolina, tsuyu no moto is mainly used to deepen broths and sauces. It also appears occasionally in dishes from our Around the World Menu or Midday Trip Menu, such as the red curry beef cheek, where it integrates into the sauce, or in the lightly spicy fried cauliflower with romesco.

Rocoto (Perú)

Rocoto is one of the most intense and spicy ají peppers in Peruvian and Bolivian cuisine. Bold, aromatic, and full of character, it is a key ingredient in many traditional recipes and an essential element for understanding the balance of flavors in this culinary tradition.

At Vuelve Carolina, we have gradually expanded its use in our kitchen.

It can be found in some municipal markets in València, although it is not always easy to locate fresh. In the kitchen it is used in different ways: sometimes emulsified to season a salmon tartare that is later served inside a samm; other times blended with milder peppers, such as ají amarillo, to prepare the huancaína sauce for our patatas bravas or the causa limeña with pickled mussels.

To soften its intensity and better adapt it to our palate, the seeds are usually removed and the pepper is briefly cooked in water with a small amount of sugar and vinegar.

As a reference, the heat level of chiles is measured using the Scoville scale (SHU), which calculates the amount of capsaicin present, the compound responsible for their distinctive spiciness.

Harissa Paste (Morocco – Tunisia)

Harissa is a fragrant, spicy paste widely used in Maghrebi cuisine, particularly in Tunisia. It is made primarily from red chiles – often around 30% of the mixture – along with garlic, salt, and olive oil, and is typically seasoned with spices such as cumin, cinnamon, or caraway depending on the recipe. The result is an intense yet versatile sauce, commonly used in stews, broths, and marinades.

In València, it can easily be found in Arab grocery stores and also at some stalls in the Mercado Central, such as Menjars del Món or Especias Antonio Catalán.

At Vuelve Carolina, harissa is mainly used to add depth to broths and sauces, providing a controlled heat. One example is our beef tartare with harissa, served with fried papadum.

Shiso (Asia)

Shiso is one of the most widely used aromatic plants in several Asian cuisines. Its leaves, with herbaceous and slightly citrus notes, are highly versatile: they can flavor broths, be incorporated into fresh sauces, or be eaten directly, raw, cooked, or even in tempura.

In València it is mostly found in specialty or gourmet stores, where it typically arrives in good condition.

In the kitchen of Vuelve Carolina it plays a very specific role: it forms part of the shiso vinaigrette served with the red tuna carpaccio pizza. The combination of acidity, salinity, and a subtle sweetness works especially well with the tuna, enhancing its freshness.

Beyond their origins, these ingredients share something in common: they do not appear as mere anecdotes. They are integrated into dishes designed for sharing, adapted to the context and rhythm of the restaurant.

At Vuelve Carolina, ingredients from around the world are not understood as a collection, but as tools to build a recognizable cuisine – one that is alive and constantly evolving. A cuisine where detail matters, even when it is not always immediately visible.