Catalan cuisine

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Variation of a classic "mar i muntanya" dish: Peus de porc i bogavant ( pork feet with lobster )

The Catalan cuisine is a Spanish regional cuisine .

description

Thanks to the country’s long coastline and extensive mountain ranges, the connection between mar i muntanya (sea and mountains), i.e. the combination of fish or seafood with meat, is a characteristic of Catalan cuisine. Despite this peculiarity, it shares many characteristics of Mediterranean cuisine , such as the use of tomatoes, eggplants, artichokes, zucchini, peppers, garlic, aromatic herbs and olive oil . The meaning of the onion is almost proverbial: La ceba és la reina de la cuina catalana (The onion is the queen of Catalan cuisine). Another specialty is the variety of sausage products such as fuet (cat. "Whip") and llonganissa (two types of permanent sausage), bull (a boiled sausage), pernil (air-dried ham) and the Xoriço and rice dishes that are common throughout the Iberian Peninsula . In autumn, mushroom dishes are popular in Catalonia, especially with Reizker mushrooms (cat. Rovellons ) and porcini mushrooms ( bolets ).

In addition to the large number of original Catalan dishes, the country's cuisine has also been influenced by that of its neighbors. From the Region of Valencia coming paella (cat. "Pan"), which Fideuà and Orxata (span. Horchata ) of the Balearic Islands , the Ensaïmada and mayonnaise (cat. Maionesa, d. H. "From {the city} Mahon ") and also the tapas (cat. tapes) typical for all of Spain have their firm place in the Catalan gastronomy. The special taste characteristic of this regional cuisine is that it often salty and sweet taste components are prepared together harmoniously, such as B. Braised rabbit with pears, cinnamon and onions.

Catalonia dishes

Ingredients and side dishes

Escalivada
  • Allioli (all i oli = garlic and oil): a whitish paste with the consistency of mayonnaise, which traditionally consists exclusively of garlic and oil and is served with meat or botifarra, for example; known as Aioli in German-speaking countries
  • Escalivada : cold, marinated, previously cooked (grilled) and then peeled vegetables (aubergines, onions, tomatoes, peppers)
  • Pa amb tomàquet (bread with tomato): the unofficial national dish that Catalan cuisine cannot do without; Roasted or unroasted white bread slices rubbed in with a tomato cut in half and then drizzled with oil and salted

Main courses

Calçots on the grill
  • Arròs amb conill : rice with rabbit, similar to a paella
  • Arròs negre : "black rice", rice dish with pieces of squid, which is colored black by the squid ink
  • Bacallà amb samfaina : fried stockfish with aubergines, peppers, zucchini and tomatoes
  • Brandada de bacallà : stockfish puree gratinated
  • Botifarra amb mongetes : very typically Catalan; a kind of coarse bratwurst, often served with white beans
  • Calçots : a special type of onion that is eaten grilled towards the end of winter (see calçotada )
  • Conill amb cargols : rabbit with snails; original Catalan dish
  • Escudella : noodle soup

Typical "mar i muntanya" dishes:

  • Pollastre amb llagosta : Chicken with lobster
  • Sípia amb mandonguilles : octopus with meatballs
  • Cua de vedella amb sípia and Peus de porc amb sípia : Veal's tail or pork's feet with squid

Dessert and desserts

Goat's milk cheese Mató
  • Bunyols : Easter cookies ; small donuts flavored with lemon or aniseed
  • Coca de Sant Joan : yeast cake, specialty for St. John's Day ( June 24th )
  • Crema catalana : pudding with a layer of caramel , similar to crème brûlée . Usually served in a fireproof clay pot.
  • Mel i mató (honey and mató cheese): a cream cheese made from goat milk, served with honey

Alcoholic drinks

Wines are produced in several regions of Catalonia. The most famous wine regions are Penedès (white wines, but also respected red wines) and Priorat (mainly red wines). In addition to France, Catalonia is an important producer of sparkling wine (cat. Cava ), the market leaders are the two brands Freixenet and Codorniu . The name of the typical Catalan, often homemade herbal liqueur is Ratafia .

literature

  • Torsten Eßer Cooking Catalan - dishes and their history . Verlag Die Werkstatt, Göttingen 2007, ISBN 978-3-89533-564-8

Web links

Commons : Catalan Cuisine  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files