4 stars

Cocido

2:07 AM

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Cocido: ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩
Cocido is a very typical dish in the Galician area that is made up of different cuts and types of meat, chorizo, potatoes, chickpeas, and turnip greens. This is a somewhat special meal and there are special restaurants that only serve cocido. For example, we had this meal on All Saints Day and also Three Kings Day. This was another dish that my Indonesian family ate while here, and they loved it! The greens, potatoes, and chickpeas are boiled in the same water that the meat was cooked in, resulting in the tastiest and most flavorful vegetables, potatoes, and chickpeas. I've previously mentioned these turnip greens in an earlier post about Caldo. This vegetable is so popular here and used in many dishes. Cocido is a very diverse dish and can be served with so many different options. There are so many different variates of chroizo and meat to be used in this dish, it's really incredible. There's sure to be something that you like on the gigantic plate of food, so you're basically guaranteed to enjoy this meal! But I must mention that sometimes there will be pig ears or the snout as well. The first time, it completely shocked me! And if we're being completely honest, I didn't try either of those parts. My Spanish family was completely unfazed and they even enjoyed the ears and snout. Cocido deserves 4 stars in my opinion because it's basically a delicious food overload. Every time that we eat it, I always end up very full and very happy. It's such a delicious meal with so many different components that all go hand in hand. You can't go wrong with it! A very tasty dish that is worth looking for when visiting.
 

4 stars

Caldo

1:27 AM


Image result for caldo gallego
Caldo: ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩
Caldo is a delicious soup dish that contains potatoes, vegetables, beans, and sometimes chorizo or some type of meat. The broth is somewhat bland in flavor, in fact, when my relatives visited, they tried some caldo and they all agreed that it was almost flavorless. Being from Texas, we have some pretty hearty stews and soups, so this lighter and thinner soup was definitely somewhat new to me. I actually really enjoy this soup and I love the warmth it brings to me on a cold winter day. Vigo doesn't necessarily get too cold, but I always seem to be frozen here. The vegetables in caldo are very typical here and are known in English as turnip greens. They're used in another popular dish as well called cocido. I've awarded this dish four stars because I've definitely fallen in love with it, but I do agree that it's a little bland in flavor, which is something I can about most Spanish foods because I'm so used to eating very flavorful Asian and Italian cuisine. I really like soup and just about any type of soup, so this is probably one of my favorite dishes here. Check out this video on how to make it!

2 stars

Empanada

1:04 AM

Empanada: ✩ ✩

I personally do not like empanada all that much. I take that back, I do like empanada, but I'm a little particular about what is inside. Personally, fish inside the fried dough with raisins does not necessarily appeal to me all that much. Empanada is definitely not limited to just fish and raisins though, you can put literally just about anything inside an empanada. I swear, here in Spain, they have empanaderías, which translates to empanada store. Yes, there are stores that literally just sell empanadas stuffed with different things to your heart's content. I think that it is not a very flavorful food, mainly due to the outside fried dough component. The dough is pretty flavorless, sometimes lacking even salt, and it just acts as a filler in my opinion, serving no real purpose. Even the texture is quite dull, so I can't give empanadas anything over two stars. It deserves two stars because of all the amazing variety and I'm that there's at least one for everyone, but I really just don't like the seafood ones too much. Honestly, nothing about this food really excites me. But I think it's worth a try if you visit the area and it makes a quick and easy snack in between breakfast and lunch. Many people do really enjoy them and who knows, you might too.

3 stars

Percebes

5:00 AM

Percebes: ✩ ✩ ✩

While initially quite frightening, percebes, or goose barnacles in English, are actually quite a tasty snack or side dish. Harvesting percebes is a very dangerous and tough job for only the fearless, therefore making the goose barnacles quite expensive and more of a treat for special occasions. They're actually quite salty, which I don't love, but overall I think theyŕe pretty good. They are cooked very simply and not usually served with any sauce here in Galicia. The hardest part, in my opinion, would be eating them. The prehistoric-looking part isn't eaten and is a hard shell. The part that resembles "the stem" of the goose barnacles has the edible part inside. To reach the actual food, you have to do a little work, as with almost all seafood here in Galicia. The way I learned to do it, is by using your nail to puncture a small cut towards the top of the point part of the percebes. Then, wiggle the stem a little and the outer shell of the edible part should just slip off. Then. you bite off the meat and leave the top part. There is a part that you can eat inside of the sharp looking head of the percebe, but many people here, including me, don't like it because of the texture. I also really hate the way that part of the percebe looks, so I steer clear of that part.





 

5 stars

Tortilla Española

4:57 AM

Tortilla Española: ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩

Tortilla Española. Just the name of this dish makes my mouth water. I have to say that this is one of my favorite dishes, if not my favorite, that I've tried here. I realize that this isn't a dish typical to only the Galicia area, but this totally deserved to be mentioned. Tortilla Española is made up of three simple ingredients; egg, potato, and onions. After combining all the ingredients, the tortilla is then cooked in a pan and ready to serve. Such a simple recipe, yet it has everything that you could want in a dish. Tortilla Española is basically served whenever and wherever. For tapas, for lunch, for dinner, in a sandwich, you name it! I can even remember the first time I tried a tortilla Española, which was at a taparía. It was probably one of the first Spanish foods that I had tried in Spain, and it still pretty much reigns my favorite. I really want to learn how to cook this and take this recipe back home to make for friends and family. This is a super great Spanish dish to try while visiting or even to cook in the comforts of your own home. If you'd like to make this recipe for yourself, check out this link. It's a great dish for somewhat pickier eaters and smaller kids as well. Personally, I prefer that there be more egg in the tortilla than potato, resulting in a less dry tortilla. The best tortilla that I've had here has been from a small taparía in the city of Santiago, and all I had to do was buy a drink! The tortilla came free with the drink as a tapa. It was made exactly the way I like it and it was the most satisfying tortilla I've ever had. Whether you visit Spain or not, I completely recommend that you try this easy-to-make and delicious dish.

3 stars

Churrasco

7:56 AM

Churrasco: ✩ ✩ ✩

A pretty yummy dish that consists of pork ribs sometimes topped off with a tasty red sauce that consists of olive oil and paprika called chimichurri. Churrasco is a very common dish in the summer, in fact, I first tried churrasco after a long day at the beach last summer. This is one of the few rare dishes in Spain where it is acceptable to ditch the silverware and use your hands. I have rewarded this dish three stars because, just being completely honest, it definitely does NOT beat my uncle's barbecue Texas-style ribs with BBQ sauce. Being Texas born and raised, I have very high expectations and standards of meat. Although these aren't quite comparable to Texas ribs, churrasco is a delicious meal that I would recommend to anyone visiting the Galician region who might not exactly be brave enough to try something like the octopus. I think that they are a bit flavorless without the sauce, but being from Texas, I think anything is pretty tasty if it's meat. Churrasco initially threw me off when I had my first bite because I was expecting that smoky barbecue taste that I know and love. I've grown to love this new flavor of ribs as well and I look forward to every time we go to have churrasco. The best churrasco I've tried here has been from a family friend that we usually go visit about once a week or once every two weeks. They serve it with chorizo and another type of sausage and patatas fritas, or french fries! French fries are a pretty typical side dish here, but prepare to be shamed and given dirty looks if you reach for them with your hands like any sensible American would!
 

5 stars

Pementos de Padrón

1:50 AM

Pementos de Padrón: ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩

 These delicious peppers make a tasty addition any meal and I get excited every time I see them out on the table. This dish is made up of small peppers that are fried and salted. Pementos de padrón are not spicy... like everything else here in Spain. I'd love for these to spicy, but that's just not really ever the case. Regardless, these peppers are basically everything that I want in a little side dish. The reason this dish has earned five stars in my eyes is because of how tasty and fun it is. I fondly remember my first night and Spain and the barbecue that I attended with my new family. There were pementos de padrónes and I remember how funny it was to watch people get a "spicy pepper". I guess it was somewhat of a bonding experience and definitely a conversation starter. They remind me a bit of shishito peppers, which is a food that I am very familiar with and love. Winter is not the season for these peppers, which makes me so sad because I can't find them too often anymore, but in the summer, almost every restaurant has pementos de Padrón. A must try when visiting the Galician area!