Cáceres’ traditional gastronomy is characterised by simplicity and good taste; a cuisine employed during centuries by shepherds and farmers adapted to the most discerning palates, with highly exquisite and refined recipes, born in the triangle formed by the monasteries of Alcántara, Guadalupe and Yuste. In addition to important lamb stews or tasty cured pork or pork preparations, it is worth mentioning dishes prepared with tripe and entrails from pigs and other animals, as well as bread, which is the main ingredient in soups or breadcrumbs.
Other natural and spontaneous products stand out, such as wild asparagus, truffles, tench, frogs, etc. There is also elaborate cooking, which is employed in some of Extremadura’s monasteries, where the quality and variety of the delicacies are combined with the refinement of the recipes.
Soups are mainly made with bread, along with other ingredients that provide them with flavours and their own names: tomato soup with figs, garlic soup with ham and egg, called “spicaldo”; “sopas canas” or “sopa de cachuela”, with pork fat and liver. Common meals in many homes were, and still are, stews, potatoes cooked in all sorts of ways, omelettes or scrambled eggs with wild asparagus or truffles.
Fried breadcrumbs have been defined as a pastoral dish. They were eaten for breakfast in order to use hard bread left over from previous days, which was cut up into small pieces and accompanied by fried garlic, rashers of bacon and peppers.
The countless varieties of gazpacho make for a refreshing dish. Cáceres’ gazpacho is different from Andalusia’s in that tomato is added in small pieces; it also contains onion, unlike Andalusian gazpacho. The presence of pepper and tomato gives it its characteristic red colour, although white gazpacho, called “ajoblanco”, also exists. It is made with the crumb of the bread, boiled egg, garlic, vinegar, oil and salt, to which pennyroyal is sometimes added.
Meat is best presented in the form of lamb and, above all, pork. Lamb is used to make one of the most representative dishes: “frite”, fried pieces of lamb that are then cooked with potatoes and paprika, which is finally flavoured with lamb’s liver, garlic and peppers, all very thick. |
But the pig is the animal that provides countless preparations: “pestorejo”, ground pork, “prueba”, “moraga”, pig’s tail, trotters and ears, rolled in batter, in a sauce or with tomato.
Special mention should be made of cured meats prepared using traditional homemade recipes, which after the slaughter and winter curing become part of the larder for year-round use. Namely, chorizo, loin, “salchichón”, white chorizo, fresh black pudding or “patatera”. However, undoubtedly the most appreciated piece is “jamon de pata negra” (Parma ham from a special breed of pig with black legs), among which those cured in Montánchez and Piornal stand out.
As regards fish, very tasty dishes are prepared with fried or pickled tench, or with trout from the Jerte or from Pinofranqueado. Another highly appreciated dish is “mojo de peces” (fish in garlic and oil-based sauce), especially “mojo de tencas” (made with tench) from Brozas.
Special mention should be made of frogs rolled in batter or cooked with tomato. Lizard has a similar taste, cooked in parsley sauce or rolled in batter, although today it is very difficult to find a place that prepares such dishes. In relation to cheeses, the most famous ones are called “Tortas del Casar”. There are also excellent farmhouse sheep and goat cheeses, as well as green cheese made with cow’s milk.
Homemade desserts are traditional, from those eaten with a spoon, such as “huevecillos”, to sweet things and confectionery: “bollos de chicharrones”, “perrunillas”, “repápalos” from Torrejoncillo or “monumentales” from Alcántara.
There are important “pitarra” wines, produced in small quantities using traditional methods. These include white wines from Sierra de Gata, cloudy wines from Cañamero and excellent wines from Montánchez and Miajadas.
Throughout the entire province of Cáceres, you will find numerous restaurants and bars where you can try the region’s traditional cuisine. |