Asturian cuisine

Last updated
Fabada asturiana with sidra, a typical dish of Asturias Fabada y sidra.jpg
Fabada asturiana with sidra, a typical dish of Asturias

Asturian cuisine refers to the typical dishes and ingredients found in the cuisine of the Asturias region of Spain.

Contents

Foods

Asturias is especially known for its seafood, such as fresh squid, crab, shrimp and sea bass. Salmon are caught in Asturian rivers, notably the Sella; the first fish of the season is called campanu, a bell tolled to signal the first catch.

Bread

Bollos prenaos Bollus prenaos.jpg
Bollos preñaos

Spelt bread (pan d'escanda) is very traditional. Formigos are a type of French toast made with crumbled bread and eggs. Bollos preñaos are buns filled with chorizo. Pancakes called frixuelos, similar to Galician filloas, are typical desserts. Other specialities are made with cornmeal, such as boroña (round loaf of hard bread), the fariñes, farrapes or papes (cornmeal porridge), the rapa (similar to boroña with pieces of bacon inside the dough) and tortos (cornmeal flatbread).

Fruits, vegetables and legumes

The most common legume in Asturian cuisine is beans ("fabes"), the main element in the iconic fabada stew, one of the most well-known Asturian dishes, apart from other dishes such as beans and clams (fabes con amasueles). Another rich stew is pote asturianu, with cabbage, potatoes, beans and pork products. Turnips are found in pote de nabos (turnip stew), a typical winter dish, just as chestnuts in the more humble pote de castañes (chestnut stew). Green beans, peas, potatoes, peppers, cawliflower and other vegetables are also common. Mushrooms from the Asturian forests are also found, such as fairy ring mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, and parasol mushrooms.

Among fruits, apples are most important (an indispensable element for making Asturian cider, there being several autochthonous varieties). Cherries, strawberries and figs (such as figos miguelinos) are also quite typical, as well as chestnuts, walnuts and hazelnuts.

Cheeses

Queso de Cabrales Cabrales blue Cheese.jpg
Queso de Cabrales

Asturian cheeses, especially Cabrales, are also famous throughout Spain and beyond; Cabrales is known for its pungent odour and strong flavour. Asturias is often called "the land of cheeses" (el pais de los quesos) due to the product's diversity and quality in this region. Other famous cheeses are:

Dishes

The most famous regional dish is fabada Asturiana, a rich stew made with the Asturian typical large white beans ( fabes de la Granja ), pork shoulder (llacón), morcilla, chorizo, and saffron (azafrán).

Other major dishes include beans with clams ( fabes con almejas ), Asturian stew, Cachopo , frixuelos , and rice pudding.

Asturian cider being poured in the traditional manner. Escanciar.jpg
Asturian cider being poured in the traditional manner.

Beverages

Apple groves foster the production of the traditional alcoholic drink, a natural cider (sidra). It is a very dry cider, and unlike French or English natural ciders, uses predominantly acidic apples, rather than sweet or bittersweet. The proportions are: acidic 40%, sub-acidic 30-25%, sweet 10-15%, bittersweet 15-20%, bitter 5%. [1]

Sidra is traditionally poured in by an expert server (or escanciador): the bottle is raised high above his or her head to oxygenate the brew as it moves into the glass below. The glass is also held at a slight angle. A small amount (~120ml) is poured at a time (called a "culín"), as it must be drunk immediately before the sidra loses its carbonation. Any sidra left in the glass is poured onto a woodchip-strewn floor or a trough along the bottom of the bar.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spanish cuisine</span> Culinary traditions of Spain

Spanish cuisine consists of the traditions and practices of Spanish cooking. It features considerable regional diversity, with significant differences between the traditions of each of Spain's regional cuisines.

<i>Chorizo</i> Pork sausage originating from the Iberian Peninsula

Chorizo is a type of pork sausage originating from the Iberian Peninsula. It is made in many national and regional varieties in several countries on different continents. Some of these varieties are quite different from each other, occasionally leading to confusion or disagreements over the names and identities of the products in question.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fabada asturiana</span> Asturian bean stew

Fabada asturiana, often simply known as fabada, is a rich Asturian bean stew, originally from and most commonly found in the autonomous community of Principality of Asturias, but widely available throughout the whole of Spain and in Spanish restaurants worldwide. Canned fabada is sold in most supermarkets across the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salvadoran cuisine</span> Culinary traditions of El Salvador

Salvadoran cuisine is a style of cooking derived from the nation of El Salvador. The indigenous foods consist of a mix of Amerindian cuisine from groups such as the Lenca, Pipil, Maya Poqomam, Maya Chʼortiʼ, Alaguilac and Cacaopera peoples and some African influences. Many of the dishes are made with maize (corn). There is also heavy use of pork and seafood. European ingredients were incorporated after the Spanish conquest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caparrones</span> Caparrón stew

Caparrones is a Spanish stew made of caparrón, a variety of red kidney bean, and a spicy sausage chorizo, both of which are local specialties of the Spanish La Rioja region. The shape of caparrón bean is shorter and rounder than common red kidney beans. The stew is regarded as one of the most important dishes in Riojan cooking.

Montenegrin cuisine is a result of Montenegro's geographic position and its long history and tradition.

Bosnian cuisine is the traditional cuisine of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is influenced by Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian and Balkan cuisines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mollete</span> Mexican refried bean and cheese sandwich

A mollete is an open-faced sandwich with refried beans and white cheese in Mexican cuisine, served hot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asturians</span> Celtic Romance ethnic group from Asturias

Asturians are a Romance ethnic group with Celtic roots, native to the autonomous community of Asturias, in the North-West of the Iberian Peninsula.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uruguayan cuisine</span> Culinary traditions of Uruguay

Uruguayan cuisine is a fusion of cuisines from several European countries, especially of Mediterranean foods from Spain, Italy, Portugal and France. Other influences on the cuisine resulted from immigration from countries such as Germany and Scotland. Uruguayan gastronomy is a result of immigration, rather than local Amerindian cuisine, because of late-19th and early 20th century immigration waves of, mostly, Italians. Spanish influences are abundant: desserts like churros, flan, ensaimadas yoo (Catalan sweet bread), and alfajores were all brought from Spain. There are also various kinds of stews known as guisos or estofados, arroces, and fabada. All of the guisos and traditional pucheros (stews) are also of Spanish origin. Uruguayan preparations of fish, such as dried salt cod (bacalao), calamari, and octopus, originate from the Basque and Galician regions, and also Portugal. Due to its strong Italian tradition, all of the famous Italian pasta dishes are present in Uruguay including ravioli, lasagne, tortellini, fettuccine, and the traditional gnocchi. Although the pasta can be served with many sauces, there is one special sauce that was created by Uruguayans. Caruso sauce is a pasta sauce made from double cream, meat, onions, ham and mushrooms. It is very popular with sorrentinos and agnolotti. Additionally, there is Germanic influence in Uruguayan cuisine as well, particularly in sweet dishes. The pastries known as bizcochos are Germanic in origin: croissants, known as medialunas, are the most popular of these, and can be found in two varieties: butter- and lard-based. Also German in origin are the Berlinese known as bolas de fraile, and the rolls called piononos. The Biscochos were re-christened with local names given the difficult German phonology, and usually Uruguayanized by the addition of a dulce de leche filling. Even dishes like chucrut (sauerkraut) have also made it into mainstream Uruguayan dishes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chilean cuisine</span> Culinary traditions of Chile

Chilean cuisine stems mainly from the combination of traditional Spanish cuisine, Chilean Mapuche culture and local ingredients, with later important influences from other European cuisines, particularly from Germany, the United Kingdom and France. The food tradition and recipes in Chile are notable for the variety of flavours and ingredients, with the country's diverse geography and climate hosting a wide range of agricultural produce, fruits and vegetables. The long coastline and the peoples' relationship with the Pacific Ocean add an immense array of seafood to Chilean cuisine, with the country's waters home to unique species of fish, molluscs, crustaceans and algae, thanks to the oxygen-rich water carried in by the Humboldt Current. Chile is also one of the world's largest producers of wine and many Chilean recipes are enhanced and accompanied by local wines. The confection dulce de leche was invented in Chile and is one of the country's most notable contributions to world cuisine.

<i>Cocido madrileño</i> Spanish chickpea-based stew

Cocido madrileño is a traditional chickpea-based stew associated to the Madrid region. It is most popular during the winter. Long-cooking cocidos are thought to be derived from Sephardic adafina recipes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Puchero</span> Spanish and South American stew

Puchero is a type of stew originally from Spain, prepared in Yucatán, Mexico, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Perú, south of Brazil, the Philippines, and Spain, specifically the autonomous communities of Andalusia and the Canary Islands. The Spanish word "puchero" originally meant an earthenware pot, before being extended to mean any vessel, and then the dish cooked in it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fabes con almejas</span>

Fabes con almejas is a clam and bean stew that originated in the principality of Asturias in the 19th century as peasant fare. It is a lighter variation of Asturian fabada whose primary ingredients are sausage, beans and pork.

María Luisa García Sánchez was a Spanish Asturian chef, cookbook author and leading expert on Asturian cuisine and the culinary traditions of Asturias. Her debut Asturian cookbook, El arte de cocinar, first published in 1970, sold half a million copies and became ubiquitous in home kitchens throughout Asturias. It remains the best selling Asturian cookbook in history. She published a second part of her landmark cookbook, El arte de cocinar in 1982. Her other best known works include Platos típicos de Asturias, released in 1971, and her collaboration with other chefs on El libro de oro de la cocina española, an eight volume encyclopedia of Spanish cuisine.

References

  1. Museo de la Sidra, Nava (Asturias), Spain.