Category: Seasonal Food

Seville | Snail Season

WeLoveTapas

For most English speaking people at least the eating of snails is associated with the French and their escargots, but in fact snails are eaten all around the Mediterranean, and Spain, where they are known as caracoles (the small ones) and cabrillas (the big ones), is no exception. Snail season, which runs through mid-April to late-June, is eagerly awaited, and announced by many bars with a drawing of a snail and “hay caracoles!” (there are snails!).

Caracoles are prepared by cooking them in a broth, usually with garlic and black pepper, and the quality of the broth is generally accepted as central to the quality of the dish served to customers. Cabrillas tend to be cooked in a thicker tomato-based sauce. Bars have their own “secret” recipes, so if you want to enjoy some snails while you are in Seville, knowing where to go is essential. These are 5 of our favourites.

 

Casa Antonio – Bar Los Caracoles
Perez Galdos, 13
Tel: +34 954 213 172

A small family run bar just off the Plaza Alfalfa, Casa Antonio – Bar Los Caracoles is one of the best for snails served with a side of broth, and also specializes in great fish and seafood tapas.

 

Bodega La Mina
Cuesta del Rosario, 7
Tel: +34 954 214 092

Another small traditional bar near the centre where you can be assured of a warm welcome and a cold beer or glass of manzanilla. Also famous for its mojama (cured tuna) and chicharrones it’s a great place to start your tapeo.

 

Casa Ruperto
Santa Cecilia, 2
Tel: +34 954 086 694

Triana, the working class neighbourhood across the river, is famous for almost everything traditionally Sevillano – flamenco, bullfighters, seafood – and snails. Casa Ruperto is a no frills kind of a place but is justly renowned for its snails (also for its quail, but that’s another story).

 

Casa Diego
Alfarería, 5
Tel: +34 663 520 221

Also in Triana, not far from the market, Casa Diego serves up some great caracoles, which you can enjoy with a chilled manzanilla or a cold beer from their unique beer pump in the form of the nearby Santa Ana Church.

 

Bar Alfonso – El Rey de Los Caracoles
Santas Patronas, 5
Tel: +34 954 225 960

Alfonso Pérez was dubbed “The King of the Snails” in 1988 and his bar, now run by son Manuel, offers both caracoles and cabrales in season. Both are delicious and can be ordered to eat in or take-away.

 

Hola!

Mushroom Season

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amaritasamanitas cesáreas

Autumn is here, even in Spain, and among the things this season brings with it are wild mushrooms. Country people have always gathered mushrooms for the pot at this time of year, but in Spain in recent decades harvesting mushrooms has become a popular weekend pastime, taking advantage of the temperate weather to get out and about in the woods and fields. It goes without saying, of course, that you should only do this if you are, or are with, an expert in the identification of mushrooms, as although there are only about 50 toxic species out of more than 2,000, half a dozen of these are deadly, and some are easily mistaken for those tasty specimens you’re looking for.

modestoseasonal mushroom selection at Restaurante Modesto

Although in the English language the term mushrooms is reserved for edible varieties, the rest being usually described as toadstools, they are all fungi, neither animal nor plant, but an entire separate kingdom of organisms, of which the visible mushroom or toadstool is only the fruiting body of a network of filaments that draw their sustenance from living or decaying matter. Remarkably, some of the largest living creatures on earth are actually fungi.

wild mushroomswild mushrooms at Mercado de la Encarnación

Many mushrooms are grown commercially, and are available all year round, but in the autumn a wide variety of wild mushrooms, broadly known as setas in Spanish, though this word is also used for certain specific varieties, too (the common, mainly commercially produced button mushrooms are champiñones), make their appearance in bars, restaurants and markets. Each of them has its own distinct taste and texture, and its own preferred uses.

amaritas azoteagrilled amanitas cesáreas with pesto and parmesan at La Azotea

Boletus (also known as porcini) is one of the most prized. It has a large brown cap that can grow up to 35cm in diameter, though smaller ones are preferred. It has a meaty taste and creamy texture. Most used in soups, pastas and risotto, and is also great in croquettes.

Amanitas cesáreas (Caesar’s mushroom) was a favourite of the Roman emperors. It has a distinctive orange cap and yellow gills and a delicate texture.

Setas, or oyster mushrooms, come in a variety of species, all wide, flat gilled mushrooms, often without a stem. They are normally torn or broken up rather than sliced, and are particularly good for stir fry or sauté.

Níscalo, also known as saffron milk-cap or red pine because of its colour, is often fried whole with garlic and parsley.

Gurumelo is one of the most prized of all wild mushrooms, and is unique to southwestern Spain. Claimed to improve almost any dish, it can be braised, or added to stews or omelettes.