Canarian cuisine
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Canarian cuisine refers to the typical dishes and ingredients in the cuisine of the Canary Islands, and it constitutes an important element in the culture of its inhabitants. Its main features are the freshness, variety, simplicity, and richness of its ingredients (which may be a result of the long geographical isolation the islands suffered), the mix of seafood and meat dishes, its cultural influences and the low knowledge of it by the rest of the world. Canarian cuisine is influenced by other cultures, especially that of the aboriginal inhabitants of the islands (Guanches), and has influenced Latin American cuisine (after the 20th century Canarian migration to Latin America).[citation needed]
Sauces and appetizers
Many small dishes are presented in the Canary Islands as appetizers, or snacks (tapas), which are known locally as enyesques.
One very typical
Local varieties of
First courses
Traditional Canarian meals usually start with soup, in order to prepare the stomach for the meal. Among the best-known soups are:
- Potaje] is a kind of chunky vegetable soup with potatoes, one of the main ways Canarian people consume vegetables. Ingredients can vary largely, depending on the island. One of the most popular is the potage de berros (watercress soup). They can be machine-blended into purees, more suitable for children.
- Caldo de papas (potato soup) is a humble soup made mainly of potatoes and coriander.
- Caldo de pescado (fish soup) usually features popular fish of the islands, like the mero (grouper), sama (common dentex) and cherne (wreckfish).
- Rancho canario is a soup with chickpeas, lard, thick noodles, potatoes and meat.
Fish
Waters around the Canary Islands are rich with a great variety of
- Sancocho canario , boiled fish with potatoes, sweet potatoes, gofio and mojo. In Tenerife, it is served in a pot.
- Pescado seco (dry fish), which can include tollos (school shark strips served with sauce) and jareas (open and dried fish, similar to bacalhau, that are often eaten roasted).
Meats
The most widely consumed meats are pork, chicken, rabbit and goat.
- Puchero canario is a meat-rich soup which is the Canarian equivalent to Spanish cocidos. Chicken, beef and pork meat are combined with chickpeas, corn cobs, sweet potatoes, potatoes and other vegetables (such as carrot and cabbage).
- Goat meat has been eaten in the islands since pre-Spanish times.
- Ropa vieja (literally, 'old clothes') is a dish consisting of chicken and beef mixed with potatoes and garbanzos (chickpeas). Canarian ropa vieja is the father of Cuban ropa vieja through Canarian emigration.
- Conejo en salmorejo is a traditional rabbit stew[2] marinated in coriander sauce (not to be confused with mainland Spain's salmorejo).
- Pork is the main ingredient of dishes such as carne fiesta (literally, 'party meat') and costillas con piña (ribs with corn cobs)[clarification needed].
Sweets and desserts
Canarian desserts often use simple ingredients, such as cane sugar, honey, matalahuga or matalauva (
In El Hierro there is a cake named quesadilla which is made with cheese. Other specialities include rosquetes (ring-shaped fried pastries), quesillo (tender cheese cake), rapaduras (cane sugar candy), Príncipe Alberto (chocolate cake from La Palma) and leche asada (milk cake). Gofio is also employed in some desserts such as huevos mole, pella de gofio (milk and gofio patty) and mousse de gofio (gofio cream).
Tropical fruits, especially bananas, are widely grown and consumed in the islands, even if they are not native species.
Wines and liquors
The wine from the malvasia grape was a product of Canarian export since the 17th century, immediately after the decline of sugar plantations and until its commerce was blocked by the British Royal Navy in the late 18th century. Nowadays the islands produce ten protected geographical indications. Canarian Denominación de Origen wines are:
- Abona (Tenerife)
- Tacoronte-Acentejo (Tenerife)
- Valle de Güímar (Tenerife)
- Valle de La Orotava(Tenerife)
- Ycoden-Daute-Isora (Tenerife)
- El Hierro
- Lanzarote
- La Palma
- La Gomera
- Gran Canaria
Licor 43 is not made on the Canary Islands, but is an ingredient commonly used to make the barraquito/zaperoco, a multilayered drink made of Licor 43, coffee, condensed milk and frothed milk.[4]
References
- ^ Juan Carlos, Rosario Molina (2007). La alimentación: el dominio invisible de las mujeres canarias en Cuba [Food, the invisible domain of Canarian women in Cuba] (in Spanish). Ediciones IDEA. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
- ^ Islands Magazine. Vol. 14, No. 3. May-Jun 1994. p. 178. ISSN 0745-7847
- ISBN 978-1-4165-7961-8.
- ^ "Barraquito Coffee Recipe & Where to Find It in Tenerife". Guidetocanaryislands.com. Retrieved 2019-06-19.
External links
Further reading
- Vera, Felisa; Sosa, Remedios; Leal, Ana; Díaz, Yurena (1987 - 2004 [seventh edition]). Lo mejor de la Cocina Canaria. Centro de la Cultura Popular Canaria (CCPC). ISBN 978-8479263621.