Fruits and vegetables Stern

Non-standardized is simply better.

Crooked, bent, dancing out of line and falling through the grid. Non-standardized vegetables and fruits have many names, but just as much taste as those that stick to solid forms and tend to grow as they should. The approach of Johannes Stern, a passionate fruit and vegetable dealer, is to look at food in terms of quality and taste and not to reduce it to its appearance. "The farmer tries to produce a fruit [...] one [tomato] gets more sun and develops better than the other and ultimately they only differ in size," Stern corrects the view in the supermarket This means that only standardized food is allowed to find its way into the display and a not inconsiderable part is not even sold.

The Kitzbühel Johannes Stern is in close contact with chef Achim Hack almost every day. Contrary to what you might think, the range of vegetables and fruits is constantly evolving and new products want to be tested. That's why Stern sets off for Munich well before sunrise. As for so many others, the Munich wholesale market is his goal. Here in the very early hours of the morning there is already a crowd like in an oriental bazaar and busily haggling between meter-high fruit and vegetable crates for the kilo price, goods being sampled and eagerly carted to the vans. The wholesale market is a really colorful hustle and bustle, but it has a system and only those who move around safely, have contacts and know where the best products are, make their customers happy in the end. The early bird is sure to catch the worm here and so Johannes Stern's green car is already in the yard of Gut Steinbach at nine o'clock.

In the baskets, chanterelles shine next to deep brown porcini mushrooms, fresh Swiss chard with its brightly colored stems and green leaves attracts glances and if your eyes didn't catch the bright red and seductively scented strawberries, all the attention would be drawn to the goose-footed chard . At the latest in the kitchen, however, the food will all come together again. Because Achim Hack is a true master at transforming culinary experiments into first-class enjoyment and using all of the ingredients. The big oxheart tomato is used here just like its smaller brother, beetroot is used up from the leaf to the root according to the motto "No waste" and he does not want to tell us yet what Hack makes of the broad beans.

The vegetable lover and fruit lover Johannes Stern is just as sustainable as our chef, who chooses his producers according to strict criteria. For him, the farmer must be able to live from his work and his produce. It is important to him that the farmer can cultivate unpolluted soil and grow food on it that is sometimes higher than the price. The symbiosis that can be felt on our farm between Achim Hack and Johannes Stern also exists with the farmers who are interested in the further use of their products. According to the motto "Live and let live", the farmers know very well about the direction in which fine gastronomy and upscale cuisine are developing and what restaurateurs want. The claim to produce for the best is therefore high, but Johannes Stern and, last but not least, the guests at Gut Steinbach, honor the ambition of the farmers with their appreciation.

In restaurants, Johannes Stern appreciates a well-stocked, small daily menu, because here you know "aha, the chef doesn't have a huge inventory, he cooks all menus with fresh products". If you ask Johannes Stern about his favorite dish in the joyful anticipation of exotic vegetables that are crowned with a fulminant fruit dessert, then the Kitzbühler hardly surprises us with the classic Wiener Schnitzel. But that is a poem for Achim Hack anyway and together with the potato salad, which is guaranteed to be made from non-standardized potatoes, the greengrocer will also be true to his passion again.

Johannes Stern can also be found with his stand at the farmers' market in Kitzbühel every Friday.