Paws off my Spanish sausage...

We enjoy taking photos, a new found hobby if you like and rural Spain offers plenty of opportunity to capture images that you would not otherwise be able to achieve elsewhere, a cultural thing... people, landscapes, moments, tradition, food... as with any country. Running an online deli also presents its challenges - a picture speaks a thousand words right? Most of our photos are taken in our own garden, or under the somewhat winter and thunderstorm battered pergola which offers a nice dappled light over products and foodie dishes.

Ask any foodie and the best part of taking food images is eating the food afterwards! However we do on occasion get some interested visitors while snapping in the garden, this pic was taken a few weeks ago whilst photographing a new Spanish salchichon for the website.

This cheeky opportunist approached using typical Spanish "gato" stealth technology and you didn't even know he had arrived until he was on the spot. There was no way he was getting that sausage so we agreed to go our seperate ways after a few rapid shots when the sun came out during the same moment.

The shots obviously from the camera..

... and this is what he was so interested in ~ "Salchichon Campero"


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Hamming it up with Chilli and Chocolate

Chilli, Chocolate and Serrano ham? Odd combination? Well not this time as we delve into the blogsphere and discover "Chilli and Chocolate" ~ A Belfast food blog run by Niall and Kelly, great guys and lovely people to deal with. It was a few weeks ago when we started following @Chilli_and_Choc through Twitter, a few tweets later Niall and Kelly bought one of our front leg shoulder serrano hams for a tapas party they were organising. Knowing them both as prolific food bloggers we asked if they wouldn't mind taking a few pics of the ham and for a review of the ham itself.

What followed was an interview via email for thier local food heroes section - how could we say no!, in fact it appears that the ham was well enjoyed which, for us is always great to hear.

One of the tricks to enjoying and achieving the best from a Spanish ham is in the carving, even the pro's claim that you can to a certain extent determine the flavour through the carving. Wafer thin slices are always best and looking at the photo above it would appear that the guys at Chilli & Choc have it mastered - not bad at all for a first attempt, in fact pretty outstanding and certainly better than our own rather hectic disaster first time around! (well you have to start somewhere:)

Read the interview

If you don't already have Chilli and Chocolate bookmarked yet then why not pay them a visit for a whole different angle on all things food. You can even sign up to thier members area for special offers and a whole host of other foodie thoughts and information relating to local suppliers, produce, recipes plus much more.

Web: Chilli and Chocolate
Twitter: @Chilli_and_Choc

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A New Kind of Spanish Ham

Just when you thought it was not possible for Spanish serrano hams to get any better along comes a "jamon" that is just a little bit different. The guys at the secedero (curing house) call these hams "dulce" which literally means sweet, in a way the hams are on the sweet side in the fact that they are not salty hence the loosley used term. The key to these hams is their low salt content...

Having never seen a ham "washing machine" before it was quite impressive to see it in action. Normally hams are buried in salt, usually for one day per kilo of initial weight, the salt is then wiped off and the hams then hung to cure. These serrano hams from Granadul in the town of Guadix in Granada are fully washed, which means that the curing process from then on is much more of a natural affair and the resulting flavour is, well, sweeter than most.

The hams are hung over six high in a curing house which is closely monitored for humidity and circulated with fresh air - fresh being the word as when you approach the secadero the backdrop is the spectacular Sierra Nevada mountain range.

Its allways an experience going to these places, for the guided tour we were obliged to get kitted up in the usual plastic overalls, the biggest problem for me being my size 11 feet which allways prove too big for the plastic bags you have to wear! No cameras allowed, a bit of a shame but you have to respect the secrecy of the secadero who didn't want photographs taken. Reminds you a little of F1 motorsport where the competition are allways curios as to what goes on outside their own paddock.

One thing the Granadul business does have though is no less than three tapas bars in the town, the first of which is right beside the curing house itself. A typical Andalucian bar with a splendid atmosphere and great "menu del dia" with jamon serrano being at the top of the list. The place is crammed with hams - hanging from the ceiling by the dozen in true tapas bar style and on ham racks next to deli counters which display a range of cured embutidos such as chorizo, lomo tenderloin, morcilla and several sausages. A foodie heaven for the Spanish cured meat enthusiast.

Our visit was made all the more pleasurable when the secadero picked up the bill, great to work with local businesses that add those unexpected touches... Low salt hams from Granadul have previously only been available in Spain and Germany, there are 3 different types which are distinguished by how long they have been cured:

Reserva - 14 Months
Gran Reserva - 18 Months
Gran Reserva - 24 Months

The two year old gran reserva is a bit special, some longer cured hams can be salted for a few days more during curing as they tend to be bigger in the first place (hams lose up to 40% of their initial weight during curing) these low salt examples though do suprise with a sweet flavour and a great texture.

Jamon Jamon! The three examples are now available after much deliberation and various trips to other curing houses - Granadul hams were by far the best. Need some Manchego to go with that? This May every customer who purchases a serrano ham from the online deli will receive a 1kg wheel of Manchego cheese from La Mancha with our compliments so if you fancy a Spanish ham paired up with Spain's most famous cheese this Spring bank holiday why not pop into the delicatessen and take advantage of the offer.

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Lost your Mojo?

Mojo sauce or Moho sauce? Lets just call it Canary Island salsa to be safe. Anyway...its back! Re-launched after a long awaited absence the famous "Mojo" hits the virtual shelves once again. So what is so special about mojo sauce you might ask? Well, its all about flavour and this one is bursting with it. There are two differnet types of this sauce from the Canary Islands - "Picon" ~ thats your hot one (and quite fiery too) and "Canario" or salsa verde/green salsa which is milder but still has a great unique depth of flavour.

The red "picon" mojo sauce is commonly used with red meats although it goes very well with chicken dishes as well.

The green "canario" mojo is best used with white meats, again chicken but also fish. Good examples would be hake, cod, dogfish etc.

This particular brand has been worth the wait as neither type contain any preservatives or artificial colouring, they are also gluten free. Each sauce is a careful blend of olive oil, herbs, spices, vegetables and lemon. Delicious.

Mojo is an incredibly versitile sauce, it can be used as a simple dressing on meat dishes or a simple dip to go with your tapas or bread sticks. One favourite though is to use the sauce as a marinade which adds a very noticable but not overpowering flavour to meat and fish. Salads are another top contender but a firm favourite for the spicy version is to tumble a generous serving with roast potatoes, a match made in heaven - or even the Canary Islands...


More Spanish Salsas

Orce Swimming Pool

Taking a break from the office and taking a break on a Sunday morning its often nice to get yourself down to the outdoor swimming pool in Orce. The pool itself is situated just off the roadside between Orce and Galera and is a natural spring. The pool is also full of fish who are quite happy to swim along side you. Not everyone's cup of tea and certainly different. The situation of the pool is very tranquil with a small car park, barbeque area restaurant and chiringuito. Open throughout the summer months the pool is very popular with people walking the half mile from the village with towels under arm.

Sunday mornings however are a quite quiet of you go early for a cool dip, also good for teaching junior to swim who always takes his goggles as the fish are a major attraction...

The pool, when packed with people makes you realise the culture difference of these rural Spanish villages. People of all ages from young kids to grandma's are in the pool, sunbathing and enjoying tapas or paella from the on site restaurant. There is no litter, the bins are always used and particularly where youngsters are concerned the elders are always keeping a watchful eye out. Atmosphere is always jovial, typicaly loud (in true Spanish style) but at the same time very welcoming, once you get past the inquisitive eyeballing so everyone knows who you are and if they recognise you.

Orce pool is one of the only "free" pools in the area so you won't see any life guards or car parking fees. The pool is subsidised by the town hall as well as rental from the drinks kiosk where you can buy ice cold cans of lager and soft drinks which are very welcome in the heat of the summer. The pool is also surrounded by trees which offer some well appreciated shade over the grass, restaurant and outdoor eating areas.

If you fancy a swim with the fish then Orce pool is just the ticket, a definate attraction and somewhere you could spend a very long lazy Spanish afternoon.

Lamb Salad on Potato Cakes

Andalucia, although not famous for it actually produces some of the finest lamb in the world. "Cordero Segureno" is a rare breed of sheep which over many years and generations has become accustomed to the harsh rural Andalucian conditions. In fact the breed is so adapted to the long dry summers and cold winters of Spain a flock sent to the south of France a few years ago for breeding didn't flourish, seems the French countryside was too kind, green and forgiving for what must be the toughest sheep in Europe!

Orce village and surrounding areas are famous for their "Asado de Cordero" a slow baked lamb dish with potato, garlic onions and herbs. These tradaitional dishes are served in the center of the table in an enourmous metal baking tray - everyone of course then gets stuck in, crusty bread and red wine ready to mop up and wash down.

You can of course make an asado yourself, there are usually leftovers so here is what to do with them, that garlic and herb infused meat makes a great summer salad. Leftovers from a roast leg of lamb in rosemary also work equally well. Lamb salad on potato cakes, nice and easy.

Ingredients:

Leftover potatoes
Leftover swede or turnip
1 Onion, diced
Cracked black pepper
1 Garlic clove, diced
Squeeze lemon juice
Olive oil
Leftover roast lamb
Fresh salad, peppers, Tomatoes etc

Cooking:

1. Combine the swede, potatoes and diced onion in a large cazuela and mix well along with the seasoning.

2. Add the garlic, and a splash of milk, continue to mix then shape into patties or “potato cakes”.

3. Fry each cake until golden brown on each side then set aside onto a plate.

4. Cut the lamb into thin strips and arrange over the potato cake then add the mixed salad.

5. Drizzle generously with extra virgin olive oil.