Catalan food is varied, interesting, and sometimes just a
little weird, which is part of what makes it so lovable . I experienced a good variety of it in
Barcelona six years ago and have also dabbled in cooking some dishes myself.
Catalan dishes show some Arabic influence from the Moorish occupation of Spain
in their combinations of sweet and savory. Some people don’t like the mix, but
I think dried fruits and nuts in main dishes are fantastic. A second
characteristic is exotic flavors in sauces, often a lot of paprika but also sometimes
hints of ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. A third unusual feature is the frequent
mix of meat and seafood in dishes, kind of like Catalan surf-n-turf. Chicken
with lobster, rabbit with snails, beef tenderloin with shrimp – it’s all
possible! Finally there’s the wide range of typical Mediterranean ingredients –
fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seafood of all kinds.

This makes for famous Catalan dishes like:

Spinach with raisins and pine nuts

Calcots (chargrilled spring onions)with Romesco Sauce
(ground nuts and paprika)

Perdiz amd Gambas (partridge with shrimp)

Crema Catalana (like Crème Brulee)

Pa amb Tomaquet (Country bread rubbed with garlic and
tomato)

Paella Valenciana (Rice with meat, seafood, and vegetables)

Esqueixada (Bacalao/salt cod salad with vegetables and
olives)

Butifarra (Catalan bratwurst)

Sarsuela (Spicy fish and seafood stew, similar to Cioppino)

One of the appeals of urban Spain is the big covered public
markets that feature the freshest ingredients and usually lots of small restaurant
stalls for tapas tasting. The most
famous one is La Boqueria on the Rambla in the heart of Barcelona, but I found
the Mercado Central in Valencia to be just as impressive in its selection of
both raw ingredients and prepared delicacies and much lest touristy as well.