Famous Spanish Dishes

• Catalonia: Alongside Valencia, Catalonia has a long tradition of rice-dishes and seafood. In addition, cooked and cured sausages from Vic are famous. Perhaps the most well-known dish is the Catalan cream, similar to crème brûlée. Catalan cuisine is rich, pa amb tomàquet and botifarra are typical food of Catalonia.
• La Rioja: above all its international Rioja wines, as well as its vegetable soups and its pepper and potato dishes.
• Extremadura: Cocido extremeño (a rich stew of bacon, fowl, ham, meats, and vegetables), embutidos of Iberian pork, such as Jamón serrano and Lomo, cheeses (including the indispensable torta del casar, a close relative of the Portuguese queijo da serra), pitarra wine and Migas Extremeñas.
• Andalusia: (Andalucia) fried fish (Málaga), salmorejo and gazpacho. Seafood, especially shrimp, squid, mackerel and flatfish. Jabugo ham and Sherry wine. Olives and olive oil (special in Andalucia)
• Aragón: Somontano, Borja and other wines. Jamón serrano (cured ham) in Teruel. Migas, very typical in small villages. Nuestra Señora del Pilar sweets in Zaragoza. "Ternasco con patatas a lo pobre", one of the most popular dishes in Aragón. "Borrajas", vegetable typical of this zone. Peaches with red wine (from Calanda, in Teruel). And "chiretas", very popular in "Ribagorza" and "Somontano de Barbastro".
• Murcia: The products of its rich market gardens, such as zarangollo; fish and lamb stews; and the wines of Jumilla, Yecla or Bullas. There are also the Murcian migas.
• Valencia: The Valencian region, specialises amongst others in the famous Paella, and is its birthplace. This dish is very popular, and it's common to cook one each Sunday for family lunch. In fact, in Valencia, during Falles, one of the biggest holidays there, it is quite normal to find big paellas being cooked in the street. The typical Valencian paella contains meat and vegetables, but many other variants of rice-based dishes can be found, with shellfish, meatballs or just covered in egg ("Arròs amb crosta").
• Balearic Islands:A typical island-based diet of seafood and simple, vegetable-based dishes as well as Sobrasada. Samfaina (Ratatouille) and Cocas are typical of Catalan cuisine generally. Majorca's biggest export is the Ensaimada, a pastry.
• Basque country: skillfully cooked dishes such as "txangurro relleno" (spider crab) "marmitako" and hake and clams. Idiazabal cheese and a distinctive wine called "txakoli". Piquillo peppers, filled with cod or tuna.
• Navarre: vegetable stews, Tudela's lettuce hearts with anchovies, salmon, or a simple vinaigrette (oil, salt and vinegar); piquillo peppers, which are often stuffed with meat; trout à la Navarra (cooked stuffed with bacon and cheese), Roncal and Idiazabal cheeses, curd from Ultzama, claret wine, and patxaran liquor.
• Galicia: Caldo gallego; an array of seafoods, especially octopus, cod and goose barnacles; Tarta de Santiago, a tart made of almonds and lemon; empanadas; Albariño wine from the Rias Baixas.
• Castilla y León: Morcilla from León, Burgos or Valladolid (black pudding made with blood and different spices), Judión de la Granja, Sopa de Ajo (Garlic soup), Cochinillo asado (little roast pig), Lechazo (Roast Lamb), Botillo del Bierzo, Hornazo from Salamanca, a great variety of sausages like Salchichas de Zaratán and cheeses like Cheese of Serrada or Burgos's Fresh Cheese, and various of the best wines in Spain
• Ribera del Duero wines. Don't forget Jamón de Guijuelo (Spanish cured ham from Guijuelo (Salamanca))