Restaurant Review - A Regional Journey of Discovery
A Regional Journey of Discovery
A Regional Journey of Discovery A Regional Journey of Discovery
GILLAINE HATHAWAY MOVES AWAY FROM THE SOUTHERN MEDITERRANEAN COASTLINE TO WANDER THROUGH SPAIN AND SAMPLE FAMOUS DISHES FROM THE VARIOUS REGIONS OF A COUNTRY WHICH DELIGHTS IN FINE FOOD - AND USES LOCAL INGREDIENTS AND RECIPES IN DISHES DATING BACK THROUGH THE CENTURIES.
Let's begin this month at the start of the meal with the first course, and visit Galicia, Cataluña, the Balearics and Valencia. Next issue we will return for main courses and in October enjoy some of their deserts...
Galicia is a quiet, unspoiled part of Spain where the fruits of the sea are of supreme importance. And what better way to start a meal than with a sopa de mariscos which I enjoyed at a restaurant on the Canaliñas beach by Portonovo. A visit to your local fishmonger is essential as you need a fish head, preferably merluza (hake), to make this dish.
Seafood soup
Ingredients
(serves 4 to 6)
1 fish head (preferably merluza)
200 gr skate (raya)
500 gr mussels
500 gr prawns
250 gr clams
4 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 leeks, cleaned and chopped
10 ml sunflower oil
4 or 5 saffron threads
2 tablespoons cornflour (semola de trigo)
salt and pepper
- Put all the fish into a pan, barely cover with cold water, bring to the boil and immediately remove the prawns.
- As soon as you can handle them, remove the heads and peel the prawns. Return these left-overs to the pan to continue to cook at a simmer in order to create the soup stock.
- Remove the skate when it is cooked and leave with the prawns, returning any bones and skin to the stock pan; then the mussels and clams, which you remove from their shells and reserve with the other fish.
- Meanwhile, in another large saucepan cook the vegetables slowly in the oil, and add the saffron threads, a teaspoon of salt and plenty of freshly ground pepper and a little of the stock water.
- When really soft, liquidise with a mini primer or food processor.
- Add the flaked fish and shellfish to the mixture and the rest of the strained cooked stock.
- Taste and add more salt if required, and finally stir in the cornflour.
- Serve with fresh bread.
Cataluña's position at the historic crossroads with France and Italy ensures its cuisine is one of the most sophisticated, complete and richest in Spain. Its capital, Barcelona, is famous for its gastronomy, which mixes flavours, combines sweet and salty, fish and meat and possesses a wealth of rice dishes. The following tasty oven-cooked pasta dish highlights the Italian influence in its cuisine, and was taught to me by a lady I met when visiting Barcelona who invited me to her home to show me exactly how to prepare the dish.
Catalan canalons
Ingredients for the filling...
(serves 4)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion and 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
250 gr tomatoes, preferably plum tomatoes, skinned, de-seeded and chopped
- Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan over a medium heat and when hot add the onion, reduce the heat and cook for 25 minute, stirring occasionally until the onion is golden and slightly caramelised.
- Add the garlic and cook for a further five minutes, then add the tomatoes and cook for a further 15 to 20 minutes, stirring regularly until the tomatoes have completely broken down.
You now have a sofrito (sofregit), the basis of so many Catalan recipes.
For the stuffing...
375 gr finely minced pork
175 gr chicken livers, finely chopped
1 teaspoon salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 pinches nutmeg.
l large egg beaten
30 gr fresh white breadcrumbs
- Turn the heat in the pan of sofrito sauce down to medium and stir in the meats and cook for 10 minutes, stirring regularly to break up the meat until it is evenly cooked.
- Then remove and stir in the egg, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper and nutmeg.
For the canalons...
16 pieces of lasagna pasta
100 gr butter, plus more butter to grease dish
60 gr plain flour
1/2 litre full cream milk
100 gr freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the lasagna wrappers for five minutes, Remove and drain and space out on a tea towel.
- Preheat the oven to 180ºC and grease an earthenware dish with butter.
- Melt the 100 grams of butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and cook over a low heat for three to four minutes, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon until the roux is light brown.
- Meanwhile, warm the milk and slowly pour into the roux, stirring all the time until you have a smooth sauce. Allow to bubble for around three minutes, stirring all the time.
- Lay some of the meat mixture in each wrapper. Roll up and place join side down in the oven dish. Pour over the white sauce and sprinkle the Parmesan over the top.
- Bake for 45 minutes until the surface is nicely browned and the sauce is bubbling, and serve at once.
Traditionally, if this dish were prepared on a Friday the canalons would be stuffed with spinach and salt cod instead of the rich pork and chicken liver mixture.
For a tasty vegetable starter we move on to the Balearic islands, and specifically to Mallorca. Based on pork, fish and vegetables, with a generous use of garlic and olive oil, Mallorcan cuisine is hearty peasant fare steeped in tradition and rooted in local ingredients such as this Mallorcan-style ratatouille which can also be served in larger quantities as a main dish if you prefer or are entertaining vegetarians.
Tumbet
Ingredients
(serves 4)
400 gr all-purpose potatoes, peeled and finely sliced
400 gr aubergines, finely sliced
2 red peppers, cut into long thin strips
5 tablespoons olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the sauce...
500 gr tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 sprigs oregano
- First prepare the sauce by heating the olive oil in a large pan and lightly frying the garlic just until they are beginning to turn golden. Add the tomatoes and oregano.
- Bring to the boil, stirring well, then turn the heat down, cover the saucepan and leave to simmer for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Heat the oven to 180ºC
- In a frying pan heat two tablespoons of the olive oil and gently fry the potato slices in batches, until golden on both sides. Put into a baking dish and season with salt and pepper.
- Add the remaining olive oil to the frying pan and fry the aubergines until well browned. Arrange over the potatoes and season.
- Fry the red peppers and then layer on top of the aubergines. Spoon the tomato sauce over the top of the vegetables and bake for 20 minutes in the oven until bubbling.
- Remove and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving with some crusty bread.
Back across the water to Valencia, a region famous for its production of rice and the home of the paella. It is a region that produces so many wonderful vegetables it is natural that many recipes combine these with the all-important rice. The following recipe requires the biggest, freshest peppers you can find and an oven that is really hot before you cook them.
Red peppers stuffed with rice
Ingredients
(serves 4)
4 large red peppers
1 medium-sized onion, finely chopped
8 tablespoons sliced tomatoes
300 gr rice
250 gr minced meat (equal mixture of beef and pork)
I tablespoon sweet red pepper (pimenton dulce)
150 ml olive oil
150 ml stock
a few strands of saffron
- Heat the oven to 200ºC
- Wash and dry the peppers and with a sharp knife cut off each "crown", leaving a hole big enough to allow the stuffing to enter. Remove and discard the seeds but keep the piece of pepper to use as a top once it is stuffed.
- Heat the oil in a deep frying pan or casserole and gently cook the onion for approximately five minutes. Then stir in the minced meat.
- When brown add the tomatoes and leave to cook for a further five minutes. Add the pimenton, saffron and rice and, stirring all the while, cook for a further minute before adding the stock. Continue cooking until the liquid has evaporated.
- Remove from the heat, salt the peppers inside and out and, using a spoon, fill with the stuffing. "Seal" with the saved crown.
- Place on a greased baking sheet and cook in the oven for 35 minutes.
