Cuisine of Catalonia

Catalonia's gastronomic map is full of contrasts. Its cuisine is "mar i muntanya," or surf and turf, with first-class local produce and a deep respect for tradition. And it is certainly cutting edge: the second great culinary revolution in Spain emerged from this region.

Then, there are fruits, such as pears from Lleida, apples from Girona, clementines from Terres de l'Ebre, and hazelnuts from Reus.

Produce made from livestock and poultry in the region includes Prat chickens and capons, Vic "longaniza" and "salchichón" cured sausage, and veal from the Pyrenees—an area that also produces excellent cheese.

With several Protected Designations of Origin, olive oil is another important product in the region.

Their vegetable gardens produce the delicious and delicate Llavaneres pea, and a wide variety of mushrooms are grown in the mountains. Catalans absolutely love mushrooms, which have always been a staple ingredient in their cooking.

Two environments—the sea and the mountains—are particularly evident in the region's cuisine, and some of its best loved dishes are clear examples of this combination, including meatballs with cuttlefish, or chicken with scampi.

Although Catalan cuisine has been shaped by the region's geography, it has also been significantly influenced by the Greeks, Romans, and Arabs. Another influence is French cooking, since it shares a border with France, and one of the typical dishes served in Catalonia at Christmas is cannelloni, which originates from Italy.

Dishes served in bowls and eaten with a spoon are a big part of traditional Catalan cuisine, including "escudella i carn d'olla"—their version of "cocido" stew, which can be found all over Spain.

Stews such as "fricandó" (fricassee) with mushrooms, rice and noodle casseroles, "botifarra" sausage with beans, and spinach with in pine nuts and raisins are also some of the region's most popular recipes.

Traditional "calçotadas" are held, during which the "calçots" are flame grilled over vine clippings and then wrapped in newspaper to finish cooking in their own heat.

To eat them, you remove the outer skins and dip them in "salvitxada," which is very similar to Romesco sauce—both great inventions of Catalan cuisine.

There is an all-out celebration of this gastronomic ritual throughout late winter and early spring.

A chef with a restless and creative mind, Adrià took over the El Bulli restaurant in the mid-1980s. He not only transformed it into one of the best restaurants in the world, but a place that would go down as a milestone in history.

The Catalan avant-garde was a revolution in applied knowledge, technology, innovation, and creativity. "El Bulli created a new language in haute cuisine," says chef Joan Roca from El Celler de Can Roca, another of the most acclaimed restaurants in the world, and an ally in the gastronomic revolution championed by Adrià.

Some examples of how avant-garde chefs are reinventing tradition can be seen in the late Santi Santamaría's shrimp ravioli with porcini mushrooms; Carme Ruscalleda's reverse cannelloni; or the Roca brothers' assortment of appetizers inspired by the flavors of their parents' restaurant. There too is a version of the Italian cannelloni, now so deeply ingrained in Catalan culture.

Albert Raurich, Mateu Casañas, Oriol Castro, and Eduard Xatruch, all protégés of Adrià, are today some of the most important figures of avant-garde cuisine in Catalonia.

This spirit is also kept alive in the initiatives led by his brother, Albert Adrià, in Barcelona's Parallel neighborhood. Some interesting and innovative concepts have taken root there, such as the acclaimed restaurant Tickets, and the Enigma dining experience.