You may have noticed that I talked about food a lot in my blog posts on Spain and Portugal. And, we posted lots of pictures. So, I thought I'd just do a recap of the food of the two countries we visited.
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| Incredible food |
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| The face says it all |
I was particularly pleased with the availability of tapas, because appetizers are my favorites ...
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| Peppers, salad, olives, bread, eggplant, sangria |
... and because it allowed us to taste many things.
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| Choosing is tough |
Spanish Cuisine
I have loved Spanish food for years – in Florida, Pepe’s and
Tio Pepe’s were our favorite restaurants (and, yes, they were Spanish, not
Cuban). So, traveling to Spain and tasting the food was an experience.
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| Love it all |
So, here’s the rundown on Spanish food. The Romans
introduced the custom of collecting and eating mushrooms, which is still
preserved in many parts of Spain, especially in the north. The Romans along
with the Greeks introduced viticulture; it also appears that the extension of grapes
along the Mediterranean seems to be due to colonization of the Greeks.
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| Backyard vineyard |
There are many wines and sangria (wine mixed with fruit and often fortified with brandy) is a great accompaniment to tapas. The
Visigoths introduced brewing and beer is quite popular.
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| Tapas is meant to be consumed with adult beverages |
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| Marketplace |
The discovery of America in 1492, brought new
culinary elements, such as tomato, cucumber, potato, corn, bell pepper, spicy
pepper, paprika, vanilla and cocoa and chocolate.
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| Fresh, fresh, fresh |
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| Just an afternoon snack |
... and ham ...
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| Jamon |
... and more ham ...
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| It is Spain's most prized food |
Ham stores are even referred to a "museums of ham" ...
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| Really! |
AndalusiaAndalusian cuisine (Seville, Granada) is rural and coastal, with lots
of olive oil. Gazpacho, a cold vegetable soup, is the most famous dish.
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| Salmorejo is a heartier version with cream and a ham and hard-boiled egg garnish |
Olives are often served as a complimentary snack with drinks.
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| Olives are often served with sangria |
This is not surprising because of the vast expanses of olive trees ...
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| Miles and miles of olive trees |
Popular Andalusian Dishes include: flamenquín (serrano ham rolled in
pork loin, battered and fried), pringá (roast beef or pork, cured sausages and fat
slow-cooked for hours until the meat falls apart), oxtail (rabo del toro) ...
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| Rabo del toro |
... tripe, “cat” soup
(bread soup), “dog” stew (fish soup with orange juice), migas canas (fried
bread and milk), fried fish, cod pavías (fried cod sticks) and parpandúas
(baked cod with saffron).
Asturia
Asturian cuisine (north coast and the Picos de Europa area)
is rooted in Celtic traditions of northern Europe. Dishes include: bean stew (white beans, sausages and pork); beans with clams, hare and
partridge; chosco (pork loin and tongue seasoned with salt, Spanish paprika and
garlic, packed in pig's intestine, smoked and cured); tripe with chorizo; bollos
preñaos (sausage rolls), carne gobernada (beef stewed in white wine with
onions); cachopo (ham and cheese placed between beef filets, breaded and
fried).
We had some light and airy fried fish with a lovely salad that we dressed with local olive oil ...
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| We finished that off! |
Asturian cheeses, especially cabrales, a strong-smelling blue cheese
from Picos de Europa that is often served with local cider, are very popular in
the rest of Spain. Desserts include frisuelos (crepes), rice pudding and
carbayones (puff pastry filled with ground almonds, eggs and sweet wine, cognac
or liqueur, baked and glazed with lemon juice and sugar).
Castile-La Mancha
The food of Castile-La Mancha (Toledo) originated with shepherds
and peasants. It uses grains and lots of garlic ...
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| Hanging from a porch |
Traditional dishes include gazpacho
manchego (game stew with unleavened bread), pisto manchego (a vegetable dish
like a pureed ratatouille), migas ruleras (a dish made with bread crumbs and
olive oil), morteruelo (a type of foie gras), manchego cheese, conejo al ajillo
(rabbit in garlic sauce), Valladolid (black pudding), judión de la granja (local fava-type beans), sopa
de ajo (garlic soup), lechazo (roast lamb), botillo del Bierzo (meat-stuffed
pork intestine), jamón de Guijuelo (cured ham), sausages, cheeses and Ribera
del Duero wines.
But, cochinillo asado (roast suckling pig) rules -- especially in Segovia ...
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| Speciality |
I stumbled upon a celebration that centered around chefs and pigs ...
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| Showing off their skills |
Scott had some and said that it was rather bland (I guess once you have smoked your pork, you can't go back).
Catalonia
The cuisine of Catalonia (Barcelona) is based on rural
culture with three area types: seafood, mountain and interior. Among the most
popular dishes are: escudella (a thick soup/stew that can contain a variety of
meats and vegetables), tomato bread ...
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Tomato rubbed on bread and grilled! Heaven!
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... tortilla (somewhat like a frittata), coca
de recapte (a salad comprising roasted peppers and eggplant with sardines, herring,
tuna or sausage, onion, olives and tomato), samfaina (stewed onions, garlic,
eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and zucchini), farigola soup (garlic soup), snails,
bouillabaisse, sausages and salami ...
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| A wide variety of sausages and salami |
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| Roasted peppers and eggplant |
... lots of seafood ...
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| Taking advantage of seaside location |
... and many parts of the animal I don't want to eat ...
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| Nope! |
Among the
desserts are: Catalan cream (crème brulee), carquiñoles (similar to biscotti),
panellets (a variety of small cakes made with marzipan) and Kings Tortel
(basically, a King cake). Sweets were simply gorgeous ...
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| An abundance of deliciousness |
Galicia
Galician (northwestern Spain) cuisine is influenced by
immigration. Popular dishes include Galician soup (greens and ham; also called
caldo gallego), pork with turnip tops, caldo de castañas (chestnut broth), Galician
empanadas (pork and pepper turnovers), octopus, scallops, crab, barnacles, razor clams, skate ...
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| Razor clams and skate |
We had a delicious carne asada cooked in a pottery dish that was steaming hot and fork tender.
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| Yum! |
Plus, we ate at a very local restaurant in Galicia, where the menu was handwritten on a notepad and seafood was fresh from the fish market across the street ...
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| This is where we had skate |
Madrid
Madrid's culinary dishes are mainly modifications to dishes
from other Spanish regions. Notably, however, because of the influx of visitors
from the 19th century onwards, Madrid was one of the first cities to introduce
the concept of the restaurant.
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| Eating out is very Spanish (especially late) |
Strawberries and melons are common and Madrid is
rich in religious confectionery, with sweets such a buñuelos (fried dough balls) and chocolate con churros (fried dough sticks with a thick chocolate sauce) ...
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| The "sauce" is like pudding |
Paella
The cuisine of Valencia features produce and seafood. One of
the most popular dishes is paella, which is considered Spain’s national dish
but originated in Valencia. We didn't go to Valencia, but we did sample paella in Seville ...
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| Classic paella |
... and Barcelona ...
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| Prepared tableside |
The three best-known types are Valencian (white
rice, green vegetables, chicken and rabbit, white beans and seasoning such as
saffron, rosemary and occasionally lemon, artichoke, pepper and/or chicken
liver), seafood (replaces meats with seafood and omits beans and green
vegetables) and mixed (a free-style combination of meat, seafood, vegetables,
and sometimes beans) paella, but there are many others as well. We had lobster in Barcelona.
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| Superb! |
Other Valencian dishes include arroz con costra (crusty rice
with pork and chicken), fideuá (a paella-like dish with pasta), arroz al horno
(oven-baked rice with pork, morcilla blood sausage, garlic, tomatoes, potatoes
and garbanzo beans), rice with beans and turnips and fish stew.
Among the
desserts are: coffee liqueur, chocolates, arnadí (baked sweetened pumpkin), horchata
(a drink made of ground almonds, sesame seeds, rice, barley and/or tigernuts), nougat
and peladillas (almonds wrapped in a thick layer of caramel).
Through Spain, cafes -- many outdoors -- are relaxed.
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| Outdoor cafe |
You can order a drink and a few tapas and sit for hours. In fact, getting your check can be a challenge.
Portuguese Cuisine
The Portuguese consume lots of dried cod (bacalhau in Portuguese), for which there are hundreds of recipes.
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| Bacalhau |
Two other popular fish recipes are grilled sardines and caldeirada, a potato-based fish stew. Typical Portuguese meat recipes (made from beef, pork, lamb or chicken) include cozido à portuguesa (stew), feijoada (beans with beef and pork), frango de churrasco (chicken grilled over hot coals), frango asada (grilled chicken -- this one with spicy piripiri sauce) ...
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| At a "food court"! |
... leitão (roast suckling pig) and carne de porco à alentejana (pork and clam stew). Typical fast food dishes include the Francesinha (a huge meat-filled sandwich topped with egg and cheese, smothered in a beer-based sauce, served with French fries) ...
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| Is is soup or a sandwich? |
...and bifanas (grilled pork) or prego (grilled beef) sandwiches.
Although tapas originated in Spain, they are popular in Portugal, too. Like Spain, the opening appetizer is often served automatically and you are charged for what you eat. Cheese, olives, anchovies sardine pate are common.
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| Yummy bites |
The Portuguese pastry has its origins in medieval Catholic monasteries spread across the country. Using very few ingredients (mostly almonds, flour, eggs and some liquor), they created a wide range of pastries, including pastéis de Belém (or pastéis de nata - rich egg custard in individual flaky pastry cups), ovos moles (sweetened egg yolk in a crunchy pastry shell), trouxas de ovos (a sugary egg confection) and raivas (cinnamon-flavored cookies that look like small funnel cakes). Almonds are common is desserts, such as this sumptuous cake ...
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| Beautiful and delicious |
In The Algarve, seafood reigns supreme. Scott had the most delicious ceviche and mussels ...
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| Fresh seafood |
Note: Scott took many (probably most) of theses photos. Too many to credit!
Trip date: April 25-May 15, 2015
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