Chef José Andrés tours Spain with his daughters in his new documentary series on HBO Max: "It is my gift to the land that has given me so much"

"To really understand Spain you have to understand its food."

José Andrés starts with a phrase that perfectly sums up the spirit of what will come later.

HBO Max premieres this Tuesday

, a docuseries in which the famous chef with

tours six autonomous communities with his daughters to discover the flavors and history of the country where he was born.

It's been 30 years since José Andrés crossed the pond to settle in the US.

There he

He married and raised his three daughters there:

.

"They are very American, but if you don't know where they were born, you would think they were Spanish. Her mother [la Cádiz

] and I have always wanted them to know the culture from which we have come", says the chef by Zoom from New York. He is sitting at ease on a red sofa and holding a glass of white wine.

.

Pure blockbuster

, even for interviews.

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"I want them to see everything, learn everything and try everything, from the simplest and most iconic food to the most sophisticated and unique dishes of my country."

With this objective, the documentary series begins in Barcelona, ​​where the family of the

he moved from Asturias when he was only six years old.

he explains.

The tapas give the gastronomic starting signal on television as they did in his life.

The

He started between the stoves at home, together with his parents.

, remembers with his daughters.

And so, little by little, on board a 600 or in a paragliding flight, the viewer accompanies the family

.

A journey through the known and the unknown that has allowed the chef to discover endless new corners and flavors.

Him, and his daughters.

That is the wonderful thing about Spain: the more you know, the more you know that you know nothing

The three heirs to the Andrés empire enter the bars saying "good morning" and throughout the series we even see them participate in a paella contest, stoking the fire to keep it even and with the little girl, Lucía, running the show:

.

The youngest girl later joins the adventure because she was finishing high school.

Everything stays in the family.

However, and although

It is a documentary of discovery, it is more so for the public than for the protagonists themselves.

"My daughters are fascinated with the Spanish culture, for them coming here is their hobby", admits the chef, "they love the

fried, they love Valencian paella...

.

Is not it wonderful?".

For a father with the busy life of José Andrés, who in addition to managing more than thirty restaurants throughout the US is the visible head of his NGO World Central Kitchen, present wherever there is a conflict, a natural disaster or , simply, where it can be useful, the program has been a vacation getaway more than a job.

Of course, directed by his daughters.

We do not give importance in Spain to places at street level.

The same is a man in a gas station making some fried eggs to cry

"They are no longer the little girls I remember in my arms, they are adult women with their opinions. They know what they want, where they want it, how they want it and, above all, how to ask for it. The series may have their father involved, but they were the ones in charge," he says.

In gastronomy, José Andrés highlights, yes, the internationalization of the big names with stars, but also "

.

We don't give them importance and the same thing there is a man making fried eggs that are to cry.

We have to be aware of what we have and celebrate what we have."

"In Alcalá de los Gazules, in my beloved Cádiz, there is an inn called Caracena, I think it doesn't even appear in the guides. There is a wonderful family there that makes you a hot gazpacho...", he assures, and after painstakingly describing the recipe without hiding that his mouth is watering, he admits:

.

José Andrés has found so much new food that he assures that he has not fit into the program.

"That's the wonderful thing about Spain: the more you know, the more you know that you don't know anything."

It is true that we Spaniards are very self-critical.

Sometimes we need to get a positive vision out of it

What begins as a family discovery trip ends up becoming an excellent tourism campaign.

A few weeks ago, the prestigious magazine

he scolded the Spanish for being too "grumpy" and always putting the bad above the good.

, agrees the chef, whom

already posted twice

, "and that's good when from that you get a positive vision of what can be improved. I think that sometimes that's what we lack."

His optimistic grain of sand is precisely this documentary series: "

.

I was going to do one more social or political program on another channel, but I saw that I had the opportunity to help my country, to give back a little of what it has given me, and I owe it my DNA."

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