Typical Cuisine in Southern Spain

Gambas Photo: www.mistylobycris

Someone not familiar with Spanish food might at first assume it to be like Mexican food...it's a common misconception if you haven't done your research, but the two are nothing alike. 

Take the tortilla for example--coming from the States, we know the tortilla as a round, thin, flat bread made of wheat or corn--a vehicle for tacos, burritos, chimichangas, quesadillas and many other Mexican favorites. 

In Spain, tortilla is a thick, extraordinarily dense potato & egg omelette/pie consisting of fried potatoes, onions, and eggs, fried in olive oil in a deep skillet.  Spanish Tortilla is cut into wedges like a pie, and served either warm or cold and is a staple on most tapas menus here.  It is quite a tasty dish, and even more so when you know what to expect.

Spanish tortilla

If you were to compare Mexican food with Spanish food, you would find the Spanish food to be very bland in comparison.  The Spanish people I have met do not like spicy food, and while it can seem bland in comparison even to American food (whatever that is), it is unique to the region and once you embrace that it is not going to be like what you are used to, you can start to appreciate it for what it is.

Here in southern Spain, fresh seafood is plentiful and is the basis for most tapas and many meals.  Pescados fritos (fried fish) is prominent on restaurant menus and encompasses almost everything that you might find (swimming) in the ocean--squid,  chocos (cuttlefish--also in the squid family), octopus, boquerones (anchovies), sardinas (sardines), gambas (prawns), almejas (clams) and so many others!  Most anything with a shell is cooked and served exactly as it came out of the ocean...shell, eyeballs, the works. It takes some doing to dig those little buggers out... A few dishes, such as gambas al ajillo (prawns in garlic), come peeled and ready to eat.   If it doesn't have a shell, it is typically battered and fried--skin, bones and all.  Boquerones, for example, are tiny little fish so they are battered and fried whole, and served basically like french fries.

Boquerones Photo: www.azahar-sevilla.com

Larger fish like bacalao (cod), dorada (bream), and rape (monkfish), are prepared either salted (raw), or grilled (whole), lightly seasoned and maybe topped with a dice of fresh tomatoes and onions.   If you are moving here and have an issue with eyeballs on your plate, you better get over it quick.   Some preparations also include stewing chunks of fish in a tomato based broth.  In fact, fish Rota Style, is common in Rota (go figure) and is prepared this way...stewed in a broth of tomatoes, onions, and sometimes pimientos (peppers--but not the spicy variety).  Rota actually has a festival each year to celebrate the Urta, which is, no lie, the patron fish of Rota, and likely what you will be eating if you order Rota style fish.  This preparation is quite tasty.  

Fish Rota-style Photo: Andalucia.org

The best part about all of this seafood is that it is readily available, fresh every day at local markets for you to take home and prepare whatever way you like! And, it is very reasonably priced in its raw state. Tuna is very common here and is typically sold in the form of steaks because it is such a large fish. We're on the metric system here, so food is sold by the kilo--remember this when looking at prices. One kilo is about 2.2 lbs.  Even prepared,  fish are priced on the menu per kilo--be mindful of this because it can wind up costing a pretty penny...you might think you couldn't possibly be served an entire kilo of fish, but since the fish are prepared whole, take into account the head, skin and bones, and you can pay a lot for a fish and really not eat that much. 

When you visit the mercados publicos (public markets), get there early, and take a stroll past all of the fish vendors before you buy...notice what booths are crowded and shop there.  The locals know what the best deals are, and it's easy to tell in one or two visits to the markets which vendors are the clear favorites.  Go ahead and wait in line rather than going to the guy next door who doesn't have any customers...it will be worth it! This is true no matter the type of food--same for fruit, meats, and produce.

Seafood at the fish market

One more note about the fish market...if you see a fish you like but don't want to contend with cleaning it yourself when you get home, ask the vendor to "limpio, por favor" which means, "cleaned, please.". They will do this for you at no charge, but the price you pay is based on the whole fish, not the fish in its cleaned state.  Vendors will also cut the fish up however you want, for example if you are making fish tacos and need small pieces. 

While fish is a staple here in Andalusia, I would be remiss if I didn't talk about meat as well.  Pork is the basis of most meat dishes here, and is an integral part of the culture and history of the region.  See my post about Jamon & Queso on the Spanish Culture page.

Jamon & Queso

Piggy parts! Photo: Naturebrain.com

Aside from Jamon, which is in a category of it's own,  there are many other preparations of pork that you will find on a typical menu.  Think of the many preparations of beef that you are familiar with, and substitute pork, and this is what you will find here.  Just as there are different parts of a cow, same goes for a pig, and different parts are used for different preparations.  "Pig" in Spanish is "Cerdo," so on a menu you might see this listed, or more likely dishes named for the cut of the meat, such as solomillo de roquefort.  

Iberian steak would be prepared much the same way as a beef steak, typically grilled and served with rice or potatoes.  You might also find pork as the star of a kebab with vegetables.  There is certainly beef available here, but nine times out of ten, a steak is going to be pork rather than beef.  Beef in southern Spain consists primarily of toro (bull) , or ox, which you'd think would be like shoe leather, but ox tenderloin is likely the most tender cut of meat I have ever eaten.  There are many different breeds of beef cattle, but here in Spain the beef is not likely to come from the breeds we are familiar with in the States (i.e Angus beef, etc.). 

Finally, a few other staples that you can expect to (almost) always find here.  Olives are the primary crop here in southern Spain and they will be served to you as a matter of routine, brought to the table when you first sit down.  They are good!  Most will have pits, and the flavor varies depending on what was used in preparing the brine...some are better than others and it's a matter of personal taste.  Olive oil & vinegar are staples on the table as well. Bread, small baguettes, or little bags of oblong, crunchy crouton-like things called picos are common on the table as well.  Andalusia is also known for a cold soup called Salmorejo--sort of similar to gazpacho, but distinct in that it is made with tomatoes and bread which is incorporated into the soup.  Pimientos fritos (fried peppers) are common both as tapas and as a garnish on a plate...they are more sweet than spicy, and quite good. 

At breakfast time (11AM for coffee and toast, here), you will find molletes (pron. moy-et-ahs) which are the bomb.  These are individual flat sourdough rolls which are sliced lengthwise, toasted, drizzled with olive oil and served with sliced tomatoes on top.  It's typical to eat them with jamon as well, and some places also offer them with butter and jam.  There are MANY other foods to discover here in Andalusia, but the ones I've mentioned are very typical.  I hope you get the chance to experience some of these soon, and I'd love to hear what you think of Spanish cuisine!

Mollete Photo: wikipedia