What to eat Canary Islands? culinary specialties and gastronomy

As in the rest of Spain, tapas are very common in the Canary Islands. There are of course the classic olives, potato tortillas, vegetables in oil, bread rubbed with tomato and other seafood, either pickled or fried. Of course, cold meats are also very popular, although the archipelago produces less of them than the rest of the country. Nevertheless, we find the amazing morcilla dulce, a sausage similar to our black pudding, filled with almonds, dried fruits and flavored with mint. Or the chorizo de Teror, a very melting chorizo, which is split in two before spreading the stuffing on bread.

On the cheese side, several varieties - most often goat and sheep's milk tomatoes - are usually eaten as tapas. One of these is queso flor de guía from the island of Gran Canaria, whose curd is made from the juice of the thistle flower(guía in Spanish). Or the queso majorero from Fuerteventura, whose exceptional taste comes from the marjoram (or oregano) on which the goats feed. It is often left to macerate in olive oil. On Lanzarote is produced the pañuelo de uga, whose leathery brown rind and tied up reveals a pure white heart with a delicate taste. Finally, the queso herreño has the particularity of being smoked. It is made on Hierro, the smallest island of the archipelago. Thealmogrote is a sauce made with melted cheese, chili, garlic and olive oil that is spread on bread.

Among the most common appetizers are the potajes, which, unsurprisingly, are thick peasant soups, including the traditional and very popular potaje de berros (watercress soup). The caldo de pescado is usually made with fish common in coastal waters, such as grouper, sea bream or cherne. The more hearty rancho canario is a soup made of chickpeas, vermicelli, potatoes and meat. Finally, the caldo de papas, with potatoes and a little coriander, is very popular.

In fact, potatoes are very popular in the archipelago and are the main accompaniment of Canarian cuisine. Here they are called papas, as in Latin America, and it was in the Canary Islands that they were first cultivated in Europe. Canary dishes, both meat and fish, cannot do without papas arrugadas (" wrinkled potatoes" literally). These are actually potatoes in a dress traditionally cooked in sea water which, when it has completely evaporated after cooking, leaves a crispy film of salt on the skin. They are often served with another emblem of Canarian cuisine: the mojo. This sauce made of olive oil, garlic and vinegar is consumed throughout the archipelago. There are two types of mojo: the mojo verde, typical of La Gomera, which owes its green color to parsley and coriander, and the mojo rojo or picón, widely used in La Palma and El Hierro, whose red color and spicy flavor come from chili peppers and cumin. These sauces are unsurprisingly very common in Latin America and the Caribbean as well.

Another icon of Canarian cuisine is the gofio, a legacy of the Guanches. This very nourishing paste of roasted corn, barley or wheat flour once played the role of bread, at a time when the local populations did not know the existence of yeast and therefore of leavened bread. However, the tourist can only taste it in some traditional restaurants or during festivals. Gofio is served as an accompaniment to certain dishes, especially soups, or - more strangely - as a dessert.

Among the meat dishes, we can mention the very popular conejo en salmojero, a rabbit stew with a sauce made of chili peppers, garlic, bay leaves and white wine. Pork is also common in the archipelago. It is often found in restaurants; chuletas de cerdo or pork chops or costillas con piña, are pork chops served with corn, a food very present in the Canary Islands. The ropa vieja - a dish of shredded beef in a bell pepper and tomato sauce - was imported throughout Latin America and is now emblematic of Cuban cuisine. The hearty puchero canario is a kind of stew with chickpeas, corn, vegetables and several types of meat (pork, beef, etc.). Goat meat has been consumed in the Canary Islands for thousands of years and is readily available in restaurants, grilled or in a sauce such as carne de cabra compuesta, flavored with white wine and chili pepper. Finally, the liver is also appreciated as in the recipe for carajacas, made of cow liver, cooked in a spicy sauce.

Archipelago entirely bathed by the Atlantic Ocean, the fish and other seafood are very consumed there. The sancocho is the most typical Canarian fish dish. It is often based on cod marinated with onions and garlic, then seasoned with olive oil, vinegar and chili peppers. It is served with potatoes and gofio, all accompanied by mojo. The only drawback is that it is a dish that is mostly prepared with the family and is rarely offered by restaurants. We also enjoy sole/lenguado, hake/merluzo, bonito, tuna/atun, swordfish/pejeespada, mackerel/chicharro, sardine/sardina and of course anchovies/boquerón. And if you have trouble choosing between them all, ask for a parrillada de pescados: an assortment of grilled fish.

If the Canary Islands are not necessarily known for their desserts which, it is true, are generally quite simple, there are some interesting products and especially fruits of excellent quality. It must be said that with a particularly mild climate almost all year round, the choice is vast. Melons, strawberries, figs, citrus fruits, but also mangoes or papayas are frequently served as dessert. Many bars offer excellent freshly squeezed fruit juices (zumo ) or milkshakes, batidos, made of fruit juice and milk. The Canary Islands have been the place where many tropical fruit trees were introduced to Europe. This is the case of the banana tree, several species of which - especially from Africa and then Asia - were cultivated there before being planted in the Spanish colonies in America. Today, bananas from Tenerife and Gran Canaria are rarer, suffering from competition from Brazil, Ecuador or Costa Rica, although they are still very popular in the archipelago. The same story applies to sugar cane, which originated in India and was introduced by the Moors, and was one of the first crops grown in the Canaries before being sent to the American continent. The sugar cane plots are still small on the islands, but the cane is still appreciated, as juice, molasses, as caña honey and especially as rum. Not to be confused with palma honey or palm syrup, a product used both in the Canary Islands and in South America.

Canarian desserts often use simple ingredients such as honey, anise, almonds and palm sugar. Among the most famous is the bienmesabe, an almond cream flavored with lemon zest and cinnamon, often served with ice cream or cat's tongues. The frangollo is a pudding made of corn flour, almonds and raisins, while the quesadillas herreñas are small cakes made with cheese. The polvito uruguayo, a surprising dessert that despite its name does not originate from Uruguay, but from Gran Canaria, nevertheless borrows a typical South American product: dulce de leche. It is served in the form of a verrine alternating several layers of cookies, whipped cream, dulce de leche, all sprinkled with meringue powder(polvo in Spanish). The gofio mousse - prepared with the famous toasted cereal paste - is as popular in the Canary Islands as it is in Latin America, as are the leche asada and the quesillo which are two types of egg and caramel flans. Finally, the príncipe Alberto, a dessert from La Palma, is a chocolate mousse with almond, hazelnut and cookie pieces.

Many pastries and other sweets are prepared for religious holidays. This is the case of the truchas de Navidad, which are made at Christmas. These fried turnovers are filled with a cream made of almond and sweet potato, flavored with cinnamon. Other specialties such as rosquetes canarios, ring-shaped doughnuts rolled in sugar, are prepared especially during the carnival of Tenerife from the end of January to the end of February.

Very famous until the ^seventeenth century, the Canary Islands wines, especially those made from the malvasía grape variety - producing rich and sweet wines - lost their popularity. In the ^18th century, the courts of Europe preferred lighter wines from France or Portugal. The reasons are also political. Spain and England often fought fierce wars and the Canary Islands were regularly prevented from trading with the rest of the continent, especially at the end of the ^18th century. However, wine production on the island did not disappear. The most authentic Canarian wine is the malvasía, produced in La Palma, El Hierro, and especially in Lanzarote. In La Palma there are also more classic wines, mainly reds/tintos: at the southern tip of the island, the vines grown on the slopes of the San Antonío volcano give the appellation Teneguía, named after the volcano from which the last eruption of the archipelago came in 1971. The wines of Lanzarote are often considered the best in the archipelago. The vines are grown in arid conditions, on volcanic sand, using a technique called " modo lanzaroteño " which consists of building a small stone wall that protects the vines from strong winds while retaining the humidity of the air. There are 33 different grape varieties on the archipelago - 14 reds and 19 whites - of which 11 have a DO(Denominación de Origen): abona (Tenerife), Tacoronte-Acentejo (Tenerife), Valle de Güímar (Tenerife), Valle de La Orotava (Tenerife), Ycoden-Daute-Isora (Tenerife), El Hierro, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera and Gran Canaria. The Canarian wine production is entirely distributed locally, however, the local wines are sometimes relatively expensive compared to Spanish wines, which are also present on all menus.

For those who are less fond of wine, or at least prefer it mixed, we can only recommend a surprising, even somewhat questionable cocktail, the calimucho. This typically Spanish drink is a mixture of red wine and Coca-Cola to be dosed yourself. To be drunk well chilled. Otherwise there is also beer(cerveza). In the Canary Islands it is made in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, under the name of La Dorada. It is a classic blonde beer. Also marketed are La Reina, Tropical of Gran Canaria and many others.

Thanks to its exceptionally mild climate, which allows the cultivation of sugar cane, the Canary Islands are one of the only regions in Europe able to produce rum. The only difference is that the archipelago produces honey rum, which contains at least 2% honey, resulting in a very rich and syrupy amber rum with an alcohol content of between 20 and 30 degrees. As in the rest of the country, many bars serve chupitos, understand shooters, and of course in the Canary Islands they are often made from ron miel, sometimes decorated with a nut of whipped cream.

Another alcohol, Licor43, although it originates from Cartagena, Murcia, is extremely popular in the Canary Islands. Its name comes from the 43 herbs that make it up, including citrus fruits, vanilla, aromatic herbs and other spices. It is used in the composition of the emblematic cocktail of the Canary Islands and more precisely of Tenerife: the barraquito, also known as zaperoco. It is a drink nicely served in straight glasses allowing to highlight the different layers that make up the cocktail, namely condensed milk, followed by Licor43, then espresso, a little lemon peel and to top it off, milk foam, sprinkled with cinnamon.