Spain's Top Traditional Dishes You Need to Try

The humble tortilla de patatas is one of the staples of the Spanish diet and this seems to be true regardless of region – quite an achievement in a country with such strong regional culinary divides. However, the dish isn’t entirely uncontroversial, as there is widespread debate over whether it should be made with or without onion. Regardless of whether it contains the allium or not, the best kind of tortilla is thick and moist – verging on slightly uncooked at its very heart.

Said to originate on the shores of a lake in the region of Valencia, paella is one of Spain’s most famous food. Its name literally refers to the dish it is prepared in: a large but shallow pan. The earliest versions of the dish are said to have included water vole and snails, but today’s mar y muntanya – surf’n’turf – is more likely to include a mixture of seafood and rabbit. Don’t be put off by the slightly burnt rice that appears around the edges of the dish: it’s called the socarrat and is considered by many to the best part.

Literally chickpeas with spinach, this dish has influences from the Moors and can be found in Andalusia. It is a kind of stew made from chickpeas, spinach and onions, and is flavoured with garlic. Sometimes pine nuts and raisins are also added. Recommended by Esme Fox.

If you’re ever in the North of Spain, this incredibly tasty bean and sausage stew is a must-try. A rich, heavy meal that’s ideal for winter nights, it pairs perfectly with crusty bread and sweet Asturian cider. Packed with all sorts of meat including sausage, black pudding, and chorizo, it’s perfect for those nights when you just want a hot meal – a delicious Spanish comfort food, ideal for those colder nights you’ll find up north compared to the sunnier south. Recommended by Becky Wyde.

Both a common ingredient in many traditional Spanish food and able to stand its own ground on any menu, jamón Iberico is the most noble of Spain’s cured meats. The finest variety, jamón Iberico de bellota, is prepared using specially raised pigs, fed on acorns in the later stages of their life to give the meat a distinctive nutty flavour. The hind legs are salted and air-dried for at least 36 months. The fat plays an important part in giving the meat its flavour and should always be savoured.

Lechazo Asado is a roasted lamb dish that is typical in Castilla y Leon or La Rioja. It is typically cooked in a clay pot and slow roasted in a firewood oven until it is so tender that it almost falls away from the bone. Recommended by Esme Fox.

Catalan fish stew is made with various types of fish including dorada and monkfish, as well as prawns, tomatoes, onions and potatoes. This is complemented by picada – a topping made from crushed almonds, garlic, bread crumbs, saffron and parsley. Recommended by Esme Fox.

This stew, prepared with chickpeas, has its roots in Jewish cuisine but has been changed and adapted over the centuries. A hearty meal, almost anything can be put into the cocido, depending on what you’ve got – from chorizo, blood sausage, pork belly, and a variety of vegetables. Tradition dictates that the cocido is served in three parts – with the meat, broth and vegetables all served separately. This is a Spanish staple, and it’s impossible to talk about Spanish cooking without mentioning it. Recommended by Becky Wyde.

Not so much a dish in its own right, but an essential accompaniment to any dish eaten during a meal, pan con tomate is a staple of the Catalan diet. It consists simply of bread rubbed with tomato, a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkling of salt. How good it tastes depends entirely on the quality of the ingredients used: an authentic pan de coca, rubbed with a tomaquèt de penjar, covered in virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt, gives the best results.

A meal usually prepared in Tenerife, it perfectly combines potatoes, meat and vegetables in a delicious sauce. Although it looks simple, the depth of flavor will deceive you, as the ribs, corn and salt-boiled potatoes bring out the flavors in each other. The green sauce (mojo verde) drizzled over the top of the ingredients was also brought over to Latin America and so has carved its own niche in the Latin American culinary landscape, including Cuba. Salt-boiled potatoes are particularly popular in Tenerife, and are included in many of the island’s most characteristic dishes. Recommended by Becky Wyde.

Not as highly prized as jamón Iberico, chorizo is much more common in Spanish food culture and more generally used in everyday cooking. Served cooked in stews alongside meat, potatoes and other vegetables, it gives a rich depth of flavour, smokiness and colour to dishes. Dishes such as patatas a la Riojana or chorizo a la sidra are classic Spanish staples that show off chorizo’s potential. The drier version is served alongside other cured meats as a tapas or snack in a sandwich.

Small and dark, big and green – olives come in all shapes and sizes. Spain is one of the leading producers of olive oil in the world, and is responsible for 56% of global production – so it’s no surprise that olives feature heavily in Spanish food culture. They are commonly eaten as a snack alongside other preserves, and are found stuffed with anchovies, almonds and other ingredients. Gordal olives are large and bright green, with a mild, fruity flavour. Arbequina olives are small and dark brown, with an intense, nutty aroma.

Salmorejo is the cousin of Andalusia’s most famous food, gazpacho, but there are some crucial differences. Slightly heavier than the vegetable-based soup as it typically contains bread, it’s nonetheless a very tasty meal that will leave you refreshed and energized after a day under the strong Andalusian sun. Often containing jamón serrano and egg or flakes of tuna, it’s a cool, creamy delight that’s packed full of protein and flavor. Recommended by Becky Wyde.

Arròs a banda is another of Spain’s delicious rice dishes and is typically found in the Valencia and Alicante areas, but is also popular in Catalonia and Murcia. It is rice cooked in a fish stock, but is different from paella because it’s served in two courses with the rice separate from the actual fish. Learn how to make your own paella with this chef cooking class! Recommended by Esme Fox.

Caldereta de langosta, or lobster stew, is the national dish of Menorca in the Balearic Islands. Strictly a summer meal, as it is forbidden to catch lobsters from September to February, the stew is famed throughout Spain. Cooked with tomatoes, garlic, peppers and onions, this tasty Mediterranean dish is said to be the favorite meal of the former King of Spain, Juan Carlos I. Recommended by Becky Wyde.

There are not many vegetarian dishes in Spain, but pisto is a rare exception. It’s similar to a ratatouille and features aubergines, courgettes, onions and peppers, cooked in a thick tomato sauce. It is sometimes served with a fried egg on the top. Pisto comes from the La Mancha region, south of Madrid, but can also be found across Andalusia, too. Recommended by Esme Fox.

If you ever visit the city of Segovia, then this flavorful pork dish encapsulates the cuisine of the Castilla y León region. Suckling pig roasted to perfection, the tender, juicy meat is hard to resist. Cooked with a mixture of herbs and spices including oregano, bay leaves and salt, this is a Spanish classic that can easily be prepared at home – although for authenticity’s sake it’s still well worth trying if you ever take a trip to the region. Recommended by Becky Wyde.

So-called because they are traditionally accompanied with a spicy tomato sauce only palatable to the hardiest of eaters, patatas bravas are Spain’s answer to chips. And just like the chip, they vary widely in quality. Ideally, medium-sized chunks of potato are well fried, so that the skin crisps up, before being topped with generous lashings of sauce. Don’t put up with ketchup and mayonnaise; look for a home-made aioli and a fiery tomato relish to appreciate the dish at its best. These are a must try in any tapas!

Bordered by two seas, the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, Spain is rich in fish and seafood. However, just like fruit and vegetables, fish have their seasons, and fishermen have long searched for ways to preserve their catch after a particularly bountiful trip. Tinning is one of the most common ways to preserve fish and seafood in Spain and, far from the bad reputation it has in some places in the world, tinned produce in Spain is regarded as a delicacy. Mussels, clams, cockles… nearly every type of seafood can be found in tinned form, either in oil, brine or an escabeche sauce. The tinned seafood can also be put into paella and enjoyed like that!

Migas is a dish typically from Andalusia, Spain’s southern region. It is made from either fried flour or fried bread crumbs mixed with garlic, green peppers and pieces of chorizo (spicy sausage). Recommended by Esme Fox.

Catalonia‘s most famous dessert is Catalan cream. It is similar to French crème brûlée and is made from milk, egg yolks and sugar. It is usually flavoured with lemon or orange and has a burnt sugar topping. Recommended by Esme Fox.

The Spanish answer to cheese fondue, this sheep’s milk cheese has a beautifully gooey and creamy texture that is ideal for cheese lovers. Either eaten as an indulgent treat by itself or used as a dipping sauce with tapas, the cheese should appear as if it had melted slightly. The cheese has a salty, herby taste and this particular Spanish treat originates from the town of Casar de Cáceres in Extremadura. It’s also rare: requiring a whole herd of sheep to produce just 1 kilogram of the stuff.

Bacalao, or salted cod, is a staple of Basque cuisine. The accompanying sauce is fragrant, redolent with herbs and spices, providing just enough of a kick to tickle the tastebuds without overwhelming them. Containing cinnamon, capers, cloves and garlic, this dish is popular not only in the north of Spain but all over the Spanish-speaking world: including Mexico, where it is served on New Year’s Eve. Recommended by Becky Wyde.

Don’t be fooled by the name: the Russian Salad is very much a Spanish classic, just as likely to be found in the kitchens of Barcelona as those of Moscow. Found on tapas menus across Spain, the Russian Salad is usually composed of tinned tuna, egg, potato, mayonnaise and a vegetable. Today, modern chefs have invented contemporary takes featuring prime tuna or fish eggs. But the classic version comes as a large dollop on a plate topped with a few small breadsticks known as picos, and nearly always tastes better.

Another classic tapas dish, croquetas are deep-fried, bread-crumbed balls stuffed with a mixture of a thick Béchamel-like sauce and meat, cheese or vegetables. Traditional fillings include jamón Iberico, chicken or oxtail meat, but it’s not uncommon to find vegetarian options such as blue cheese and broccoli, or fusion flavours. It’s easy to tell a home-made croqueta from their usually wonky shape and irregular size. One of the easiest ways to make croquetas is to freeze them before frying them and this isn’t frowned upon, so long as the chef gets the timing right and the centre is cooked through.

While calamares a la Andaluza are found in nearly every tourist trap across Spain, this doesn’t detract from their status as an Andalusian staple. They are rings of squid which, like much of the fish and seafood in Andalusia, is battered and deep-fried. They’re traditionally served with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, although it has become common, probably as a result of the influence of tourists, to serve them with mayonnaise or tartar sauce.

This sweet cake is Galicia on a plate. Generally decorated with powdered sugar with the shape of a cross with picks on top, this religious symbol represents the pilgrim city of Santiago de Compostela. The laws protecting this cake are incredibly stringent: to officially be deemed a Tarta de Santiago the cake must be made in Galicia and be made up of 33% almonds. If you’re ever in Santiago, this cake is dense, sweet and generally delicious. Recommended by Becky Wyde

Literally rice with milk, this dessert is similar to rice pudding. It’s always served cold and is flavoured with cinnamon and lemon. It’s made with a risotto-type rice, which is slightly chewy. Recommended by Esme Fox.

In Spain, anchovies come in broadly two kinds: smaller, black anchovies and larger, white anchovies. The black ones are the kind you might find on a pizza, and are generally very salty. These are commonly found stuffed inside olives or served in salads for an intense burst of flavour. The other type of anchovy are called boquerones in Spain, and are much milder in flavour, more like a white fish. They are commonly preserved in olive oil and eaten as a tapas, or eaten fresh in bread-crumbs or off the grill. These are best found in Malaga on a foodie tour!

The Catalan version of paella, fideuá (which is also found in Valencia) is made with short noodles instead of rice. There are different versions of fideuá, just like with paella, but one of the most typical is made with squid and squid ink and is served with aioli (a garlic mayonnaise). Recommended by Esme Fox.

A Catalan delicacy, escudella is another soup (this time a warm broth) with a variety of meat and pasta. Typically containing two large meatballs called pilotas as well as butifarra, a sausage that’s a staple of Catalan cuisine, the broth also includes a special form of pasta and any vegetables you’d like. Escudella has the honor of being the first soup in Europe that was referenced in history, and was consumed as early as the fourteenth century. Recommended by Becky Wyde

Pulpo a la Gallega is Galician-style octopus. The octopus is usually boiled, placed on top of slices of potato and sprinkled with paprika. It is typically served on a thick wooden plate. Recommended by Esme Fox.