When it comes to Spanish cuisine, I have been lucky. Friends here in Spain have told me horror stories of tentacles floating in their food and pigs’ legs sitting on the kitchen counter for weeks. While my señora cooks a variety of typical Spanish dishes for an authentic Spanish food experience, it hasn’t been anything too peculiar or disgusting.
In this blog entry, I want to take you on a tour of Spanish dining customs, typical foods and share my señora’s recipe for an authentic Spanish tortilla that you can cook in your dorm room.
Dining Customs
Perhaps the most difficult thing to adjust to in Spain is the meal schedule. Spaniards eat the largest meal of the day, almuerzo, around 2:30 p.m. Dinner is a smaller meal usually served at 9:30 or 10:00 at night.
Since the largest meal is midday, at about 2 p.m. stores close down and everyone returns home from school or work to eat together. Almuerzo is followed by siesta, or naptime, and then everyone goes back to work around 5 p.m.
With such large gaps in between meals, it’s difficult to refrain from snacking. Unlike the United States, in Spain people usually don’t snack in between meals because the courses are much larger. Food is strictly prohibited in our school and if I do bring food, I have to eat it at a cafeteria outside the school that also serves coffee and toast.
Occasionally I skip meals with my host family and go out for tapas with friends. Tapas, small portions of meals, are very popular in Spain. Typical tapas bars display eight to 12 choices behind a glass case on the bar. They are either served as appetizers with drinks or combined to make a meal.
Typical foods
Spanish food includes a lot of eggs, meat and potatoes. The Spanish tortilla, which is somewhere between a quiche and an omelet, is a typical dish served at most restaurants in Spain. Another typical Spanish food is paella, a rice dish made with a mixture of meat including calamari, clams, shrimp or chicken. Albóndigas, Spanish meatballs, can be served either as a tapa or a main dish. Chorizo, a spicy pork sausage, is served on sandwiches or as part of a meal. A typical salad from southern Spain is topped with cold corn, tuna and a large amount of salt.
Tortilla Recipe
Try my señora’s simple tortilla recipe for an authentic Spanish dining experience right in your dorm room.
Ingredients:
6 medium potatoes, thinly sliced
6 eggs
Olive oil
Directions:
1. Place potatoes in a large frying pan and drench with olive oil. Fry on medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until the potatoes can be easily cut.
2. Meanwhile, break the eggs into a medium bowl. Beat with a fork or a beater until frothy.
3. Cut potatoes into smaller pieces with a spatula. Then pour potatoes into the bowl of egg. Mix well.
4. Pour potato-egg mixture back into the frying pan and cook on medium heat until golden brown.
5. Place a large plate on the tortilla and flip the tortilla onto it. Return to pan and fry the other side until golden brown. Repeat if necessary.
6. Enjoy your authentic Spanish tortilla by cutting into pie pieces. Serves four.