Among all the directions of Mediterranean cuisine, the culinary customs of Catalonia occupy a special place. Catalan recipes, culinary delights and processes were described in documents of the XV century. Most dishes are of rural origin, traditional recipes include olive oil and lard, onions and garlic, rustic vegetables, seafood and fish, rice and beans, herbs and spices.
Features of cuisine in different regions of Catalonia
A number of traditional Catalan dishes are world famous, but you need to take into account the fact that each of the 4 provinces has its own recipes for cooking a particular dish.
- In the province of Girona, special attention is paid to rice combined with peas or mushrooms, sea-buckthorn, hake, perch or lobster dishes, as well as sausages with beans.
- The unique cuisine of Barcelona is dominated by dishes from aubergines, tomatoes and burgers.
- The province of Lleida is an important agricultural region in Catalonia, and its diverse cuisine emphasizes the influence of vegetables and local fruits: pears, plums, peaches, nectarines and apples. From meat here prefer duck, chicken and turkey, but do not forget the rabbit and pork.
- The Tarragona province's cuisine has fish and seafood as its basic ingredients.
Famous dishes of Catalan cuisine
Here are some typical Catalan dishes:
- Arroz de Ampurdan - rice with rabbit and chicken meat, as well as Catalan sausage, mushrooms, tomatoes and almonds.
- Callos con garbanzos - a traditional Catalan dish for the cold season, consisting of pork and chickpeas, as well as grated tomatoes, onions, garlic and chorizo.
- Pollo de corral con pimientos - chicken pieces fried with potatoes, Italian pepper, asparagus and herbs under white wine.
- Bacalao con pasas - a contrasting dish of cod with raisins, which has several variations in different regions.
- Albndigas con sepia - meatballs with sauce and cuttlefish. The composition of the dish is very rich: meatballs of pork or beef minced meat, cuttlefish, peas, onions, tomatoes, garlic, spices. A "highlight" of the sauce is a few grams of bitter chocolate.
- Fricand is a fricassee, one of the few classic Catalan dishes based on veal. It is a stewed veal with mushrooms.
- Coca de mermelada de tomate con queso y menta - baking with jam from tomato, cheese and decorated with mint leaves.
- Cocas de manzana con piones y piquillos - pastries with apples, red pepper, thyme and rosemary.
- Coca de sardinas con tomates - baking with sardines, cherry tomatoes, cashews, parmesan cheese, capers.
- Pollo de corral con pimientos - chicken pieces fried with potatoes, Italian pepper, asparagus and herbs under white wine.
- Pescados de roca - modest and simple, but very tasty soup of minnows, anchovy or mackerel with croutons and sherry.
- Canelones a la catalana - this dish, as a rule, is prepared for Christmas, and the process of preparing it is quite time consuming. Traditionally includes chicken and beef, onions, tomatoes, white wine and béchamel sauce.
The whole world knows the old traditions of Catalan winemaking. A total of 330 municipalities produce wine from Riesling, Chardonnay, Muscat, Sauvignon white, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and others. The best producers are the House of Miguel Torres, Codorniou and Freshenet.