Why choose Laska?
What makes a company like LASKA? Its products, its know-how and its success? Yes. But not only. Because something deeper is responsible for all that. The essence of a company. Curiosity. Courage. Determination. Dedication. Obsession. These are the values. It is precisely these values of LASKA that were combined with artists from the cultural region of Upper Austria in the shape of interactive works to form a large whole: the LASKA Manifest.
Curiosity
It impels us to search for the hidden and unknown, constantly driving us forward.
Courage
The Englishman Fergus Henderson coined the motto “From nose to tail” published in 1999, using all parts of the animal, thereby causing a real stir. Age-old knowledge and new techniques have turned the concept into a new trend in fine cuisine.In pursuance of this concept, Philip Rachinger from the Mühltalhof will showcase for us six recipes that test the courage of both the chef and the diner.
Philip Rachinger, born in 1989, is an Austrian award-winning chef, who together with his father, Helmut Rachinger, and his aunt, Johanna Eckl, manages the Mühltalhof, a hotel and catering establishment in Neufelden (Upper Austria).
The “impulsive yet nonchalant natural cuisine” served by the Rachinger family has received international acclaim. The “A la carte” gourmet guide named them the third best restaurant in Upper Austria in 2014. In 2018, they received the highest rating in Upper Austria with 18 points and three toques for outstanding cuisine from “Gault&Millau”. Moreover, together with Lukas Mraz and Felix Schellhorn, Philip Rachinger makes up the internationally acclaimed unconventional cooking trio “Healthy Boy Band”.
Pig’s Head with Black Pudding 1 pig’s head (halved) / 8 carrots / 2 celery stalks / 2 onions / 2 garlic cloves / 1 leek / peppercorns / bay leaf / salt / coriander
Bring the pig’s head to the boil with the vegetables, the onions and the garlic cloves. Add the spices and simmer slowly for 3 hours. Then remove the pig’s head and cut it into cubes of 1 cm. Important: although the ears are also cooked, they are not added to the black pudding mixture.
Cut the green bacon into 9 mm cubes and make into crackling. For this purpose, cover the bacon with a little water until the fat runs out and the raw (green) bacon cubes are crispy.
Remove the crust from the bread and cut into small cubes. These will serve as a binding for the black pudding mixture.
Finely dice the onion and garlic cloves. Heat the fat in a saucepan and caramelise the small onion and garlic cubes until slightly brown. Next, mix the diced pig’s head with some of the rendered crispy crackling and bread cubes as well as the pig’s blood. Season to taste with the spices and add sufficient salt. Shape the black pudding mixture with the help of the caul fat. Place the black pudding in the oven at 160°C for 45 min.
Black pudding mixture
10 onions
17 garlic cloves
480 g pork lard
6 l pig’s blood
4 pcs pork caul fat
2 kg green bacon
1 loaf of (sliced) toasting bread
ground cumin, ground allspice, ras el hanout, pepper, marjoram, hot paprika powder, salt
Leave the blissful familiarity of your comfort zone behind. Dive headfirst into the unknown, without any idea of how it will turn out. All this definitely requires courage. Yet, shouldn’t we fear the same old, same old much more?
Determination
Beware of sensitivity to light: Some people may experience epileptic seizures.
Siegfried A. Fruhauf, born in 1976, is an Austrian avant-garde filmmaker. His portfolio includes numerous works and exhibitions in the field of film, videography and photography and he has participated in renowned international film fesitvals. The film „Fleischwolftanz“ on which the flip book is based was shot with a Bolex H-16 Reflex built in 1964, lens Som Berthiot Pan-Cinor 17-70mm f/2.4.
Dedication
Those who completely surrender themselves experience the essence of things. They become absorbed in them and remain attached to them. Abandoning pure practicality, devotion permeates our innermost being, breathing life into every task and manifests itself in the details.
This limited photo edition is dedicated to devotion. It brings into focus those details that remain hidden when viewed superficially.
Jürgen Grünwald works as a photographer with a keen sense and understanding of cultural trends and contemporary graphic design. He graduated in graphic design and photography from the University of Art and Industrial Design in Linz and assisted renowned photographers in Austria and Switzerland during his study.
Obsession
Without Will, with Unexpected Powers.
On Classical & Contemporary Obsession
Robert Pfaller
Robert Pfaller, born in Vienna in 1962, is an Austrian philosopher, author and university professor who received international acclaim for his cultural studies, among others, his book Interpassivity The Aesthetics of Delegated Enjoyment (2009) (English version 2017). In the widely acknowledged publication Wofür es sich zu leben lohnt. Elemente materialistischer Philosophie (2011) (English: What Life Is Worth Living For. Elements of Materialist Philosophy), Pfaller addressed what he describes as today’s “proscriptive society” and considers our society to be characterised by the renunciation of pleasure and asceticism. His most recent publication, Erwachsenensprache. Über ihr Verschwinden aus Politik und Kultur (English: Adult Language: On its disappearance from politics and culture), was published in 2017. In 2020, he was awarded the Paul Watzlawick Ring of Honour.
