Eat Like a Catalan

During our trip to Barcelona, we had the opportunity to sample (often, on multiple occasions!) some delicious traditional Catalan fare. For this post, I thought I'd list a few of these and give you some links so you, too, can enjoy fine Catalan cuisine and stop stewing in your jealousy, already. Sheesh.

Catalan Bread
This doesn't really require a recipe. Take some crusty white bread, slice it, rub a tomato over one side. Really, that's it. Still tasty though!

Paella
We went to the touristy restaurant, 7 Portes, that is supposedly known for its paella. It was a bit...underwhelming. Especially when the table next to us ordered the same thing, and theirs came with huge, honking crab craws, and mussels, and all sorts of massive seafood, and all we got were a couple clams and a single langoustine. The seafood was cooked well, and I liked that the rice was a little al dente, but it wasn't, overall, memorable--and not a HINT of saffron. I know, by weight, saffron is more expensive than gold, but COME ON. All you need is like 4 measly threads, which weigh like a microgram. Also, they ran out of black (squid ink) paella, which was what I really wanted, so I think I was a little disappointed from the get-go. In any event, here's a CL recipe for Traditional Spanish Paella. I don't think I've made this particular one, but it has saffron and proscuitto, so how bad could it be?!

Iberico Ham
Also no recipe. But it is delicious. Kind of like proscuitto. Actually, exactly like proscuitto. Although maybe a bit more expensive? You can get some here. On a related note, I had a sandwich for lunch one day that was made with "traditional Galician pork." which was fantastic. I don't know what makes pork Galician, but I did find a recipe for Galician Pork and Pepper Pie...

Patatas Bravas
These are like if home fries, regular fries, ketchup, and salsa had a delicious, spicy baby. I'm not sure how a four-way can make a baby, but my knowledge of such things is pretty prudish. In any event, they're delicious. Our first snack in Barcelona included them, and even though the potatoes were poorly fried and not crispy AT ALL, the sauce totally made up for it. On our last night we also had some...the restaurant kind of copped out by just using regular fries, but they added what seemed to be some sort of mayo or creme fraiche along with the sauce that made them delectable but also even worse for my guilt. CL's recipe for Patatas Bravas is pretty decent...I made it once for a football-watching party I think.

Yes, apparently they eat mostly carbs in Barcelona. I recommend you supplement these with a salad or some zucchini or something so your insulin levels don't go nuts and you don't end up like me, fiending so badly for some produce that you eat a really, really depressing iceberg lettuce salad or a disgusting spear of canned white asparagus.