Catalonia

One of the most popular and classic Catalan dishes is botifarra, a tasty sausage that is often eaten in the mountain regions and Iberian Peninsula. The sausage is generally made from lean pork with salt and pepper seasoning before being grilled and served alongside mongetes (white beans). Often other ingredients such as garlic, mushrooms, onions and parsley are added to the meat. The combination of the sausage with the beans is simply delicious!

Like in many other Mediterranean countries, bread is not only a staple of the Catalan diet but it’s also part of the culinary heritage. Pa amb tomaquet is, in simple terms, bread rubbed with tomato. Smearing the bread with tomato was once a means of utilising any leftover or stale bread to avoid waste when food was scarce. You’ll find this regional delicacy or rustic bread and ripened tomatoes accompanying most meals in Catalan households or restaurants. In more traditional mountainous areas, the bread is served alongside tomatoes, garlic and olive oil and you rub the bread yourself.

This traditional regional dish is the perfect starter or accompaniment to a meal and is ideal for vegetarians and vegans. Meat and fish are common ingredients in most Catalan dishes so escalivada is a great alternative. There are just two main ingredients in escalivada, aubergines and red peppers. Typically, they’re both left to char on a barbeque or grill before the insides are cut out and mixed with salt, olive oil and garlic. Delicious on its own or served with pa amb tomaquet or flat bread (coca), escalivada has a wonderful smoky flavour.

A fabulous fish dish with origins from ancient Catalonia, Arros negre is traditionally made with cuttlefish, green pepper, garlic and white rice. Shellfish lovers often add whole prawns and mussels, which is very similar to a basic paella. The black ink from the squid is added to the water that the rice is boiled in, giving it a more intense and rich seafood flavour. A slight variation of Arros negre is fideua Negra, which replaces the white rice with noodles and is served with a thick, garlic aioli.

This rich, hearty stew is a favourite with Catalans during the autumn months when they go out to forage for wild mushrooms in the woodlands and countryside. Put into a large cooking pot and blended with veal, red wine and ripe tomatoes, the mushrooms add a deep, earthy flavour to this traditional stew. Before the stew is served up, a combination of breadcrumbs, saffron, oil, parsley and toasted almonds (known as picada) is thrown into the mix to add flavour and thicken the juices from the meat. This is a perfect dish to warm up your stomach and soul on a cool autumn evening.