My Favourite Spanish Foods

My Favourite Spanish Foods

• March 06, 2016

Hands up who loves Spanish food? I am so in that camp. 

A trip with my husband and friends to Barcelona back in 2008 was filled with stereotypical paella and sangria, and whilst my taste buds have been treated to so much more since, it was definitely this holiday that introduced me to delicious Spanish food. Each time I visit a new country, I always learn lots about the local foods and come back home wanting to eat more of the foods, and eventually try to cook it at home too.

I have great memories of that holiday in Barcelona. We visited local markets, people watched our way down La Rambla, hung out on the beach, visited all the Gaudi architecture, climbed a mountain that we hadn't meant to (most of us were in flip flops/flats and between the 6 of us, we had 1/2 bottle of water) for 5 hours and almost missed the last train leaving the mountains...!

The beginning of a 5 hour hike and we thought we were just going for a walk!

Ham, ham and more lovely ham in the Spanish markets.

My favourite Spanish restaurants in London include Iberica, Angels & Gypsies and Barrafina, and when it comes to eating out it's so hard to not over order since I usually want everything off the menu. From patatas bravas to Iberico ham, Spanish food is so simply cooked yet has so much depth of flavour.

Alpha Rooms* have some great Spanish recipes and posts on hunting for the best tapas bars in Barcelona and beyond, so make sure you give them a visit! If you're ever in need of ideas of what to order in a Spanish restaurant, these are my absolute favourites to order every time. 

Iberico ham
The ham comes from black Iberian pigs fed on a diet that includes acorns. The ham is nutty, sweet, full of aroma and has the right amount of fat for waves of flavours that hit you with each chew.

 
Serrano ham croquettes
These are so, so moreish. Much like a potato croquette, but instead of using potato mash, Serrano ham is mixed with bechamel sauce, rolled in breadcrumbs and then fried.

Spanish meatballs
Meatballs are a universal food and Spanish meatballs are tops.

Patatas bravas
Much like the meatballs, potatoes are loved by all and the spicy sauce coating the diced potatoes are a must order every time. 

Fried chorizo
The Spanish are super at curing meats, and chorizos are just irresistible whether they are on their own or in a dish.  

Garlic prawns aka gambas al ajillo
When you have fresh seafood, there is no need to complicate the seasoning and these prawns are just heavenly because of the simple use of butter, garlic, paprika, lemon juice and parsley.

Padron peppers
Fried until the skin is blistered and served with a good sprinkle of Maldon salt, it's the ultimate veggie nibbler, like edamame is to a Japanese meal. 

*This post is in collaboration with Alpha Rooms. Some images are taken from Google.