15 traditional Spanish dishes you need to try

Gazpacho

Spain being such a hot country, where else could you like cold tomato soup? It tastes amazing and is even better when it’s home-made. Did you know that it arrived in Spain and Portugal with the Romans?

Paella

One of the best dish you can try in Spain. The “true” paella comes from Valencia. It’s actually the name of a lot of different rice dishes which have all some distinct ingredients. The one everyone knows has seafood but the Valencian one comes with chicken mixtures, rabbit and snails with beans! We believe the paella was created from the Moorish Period because of their rice cultivation.

Tortilla

If you’re wondering if it’s a quiche or an omelette, stop wondering. It’s delicious that what it is! Actually the Tortilla Española is a potatoe omelette made with onions and sometimes peppers. The legend said is was created during the siege of Bilbao as an easy and fast dish for the Carlist army to eat.

Gambas al Ajillo

We call this dish Garlic prawn in English, it tastes so good and it’s so simple to make it at home! You know what they say, the simpler it is, the better it is! You can try this dish in almost every bar in Spain (mostly South and Central Spain), it’s really famous!

Patatas Bravas

This dish varies depending on which city of Spain you are, but it also has fried potatoes and a red salsa due to the spices they add to it.

Turrón

This is an almond nougat that you usually eat around Christmas time. It mainly made in the small town of Jijona in the province of Alicante. Traditionally the almonds are mixed with honey and egg white. You can either buy the “soft” version or the “hard” one, both are delicious so try it out!

Pan con tomate

If you travelled a bit, you know that every country has its traditional breakfast, well there’s no exception for Spain! The “pan con tomate” (bred with tomato) is the common Spanish breakfast. It’s a slice of fried bread, with olive oil, garlic and smashed fresh tomatoes on top. You can totally eat this with your morning coffee or as a snack during the afternoon!

Churros

Ah! If you like sweet dish, this is for you. While visiting Spain you have to orden “churros con chocolate”! It’s really cheap and tastes so good! You can have it in the morning or in the afternoon, it always tastes amazing.  

Salmorejo

You could think it’s the same as the Gazpacho but not exactly. This is a tomato and bread purée which makes it more “dense”. This is a cold dish and it could be served with serrano ham. It comes from Cordoba, Andalusia.

Empanadas

This is a stuffed bread pastry with beef and potatoes. It’s not only famous in Spain but also in the United States and Latin America. Very tasteful!

Patatas Alioli

This is a very tasteful tapas made for Garlic lovers! It’s lightly fried potatoes with a garlicky mayonnaise sauce! The origin of this sauce would come from the Romans times, from Egypt and then Italia. Later on the Andalusian would have import it from the South to the North of Spain.

Croquetas

The “croquetas” is another famous Spanish appetizer dish, it has a fried paste filled with potatoes, ham and cheese. Of course you can find some other recipes with different ingredients. Originally this was created in order not to waste the scraps of meat.

Jamón Ibérico

This is a type of cured ham produced in Spain and Portugal. It’s called like that because it’s made from black Iberian pigs, from the Iberian Peninsula. The hams are labelled according to the pigs’ diet and its Iberian ancestry, the more it has Iberian origins the “purer” the ham is. When you wander the streets of Spain you can see a lot of cured ham hanging in the bars, even from the ceiling! Really typical.

Albondigas

There are Spanish meatballs, its name comes from the Arabic and the dish itself is thought to have originated as a Berber or Arab dish during the Muslim Period of Spain.

Very tasteful!

Pulpo A la Gallega

Have you ever tried octopus? Maybe it sounds distasteful but it’s really good and comes with a typical sauce from Galicia! If you’re a bit curious you need to try it!

It’s actually a really old dish because octopus is being consumed for centuries in this particular regions.

After your tour you can have some typical Spanish tapas, you only have to book it online before!