Food stores are dressed up, restaurants are crowded with people, our tables at home are dyed red, gold and white, does this sound familiar?
In today’s article I would like to make a nod to the dates that are approaching so that our guests leave home speechless and our Christmas table is a success.
When we talk about different meals our imagination soars to the top, we have guests for dinner and of course we want everything to go perfectly. What will they like? What can I surprise them with?
This time I decided to take a risk with something different from every year. Here we go!
KAMTCHATKA CRAB OR ALASKA KING CRAB
This delicious delicacy originates, as its name suggests, from the Kamtchatka Peninsula, although later – around the 1970s – it was introduced by the Russians in the Barents Sea in order to provide valuable and important catches to the Soviet fishermen of the time.
This delicacy can be found relatively easily in “chatka” packaging and to eat it fresh, my suggestion in this case is to visit one of the renowned restaurants that serve it in Spain.
WAYGU BEEF
If we talk about Waygu beef you will probably not know this name, however, if we talk about “Kobe beef or Kobe beef” we will be more familiar.
Undoubtedly this meat is exquisite. Of Japanese origin, specifically from the Kobe region, I would dare to say that it is one of the best beefs in the world. The way they feed the cows, how they pamper them, results in a very tender meat that melts on the palate and hardly needs a knife to cut it. It is a meat that can be simply prepared on a griddle with oil and salt, in this way we will take advantage of all its flavor.
There is also what we could call the “rival” of this beef, much less known but for my taste, just as exquisite: it is the Hida beef that is raised in another region of Japan with the same care as Waygu beef.
ARENQUES
Let’s take a leap! We now move to Northern Europe to talk about herring. It is a fish that we have no tradition of consuming in Spain and yet it is one of my favorites.
It is usually found in the Atlantic Ocean and the Baltic Sea and it is a very common dish in the gastronomies of Poland, Estonia, Russia, Denmark, Iceland, Poland, Norway, Finland and I’m sure I’m forgetting some other country.
They are usually consumed marinated with different sauces: mustard, dill, tomato and a long etcetera and in Northern European countries it is normal to eat them accompanied by potato and boiled egg, chopped chives and sour cream.
Nowadays we can find them packaged in Spain in different gourmet stores and also in large supermarkets. There are not as many varieties as in the countries of origin, but we cannot complain about the options available in our market. Let’s herrings!
CANARIAN CHEESES
Yes, I’m not crazy. We have traveled from Norway to the Canary Islands traveling 5,000km to talk about the island cheeses.
When we talk about cheeses we tend to think of French, Italian and of course Spanish cheeses, from the Iberian Peninsula, because it is true that we have excellent cheeses: Manchego, Extremadura, Galicia.
However, we forget the cheeses from the Canary Islands and they are sublime.
Cheese is produced in the seven islands of the archipelago, mostly from goats, which is the most abundant animal in these parts.
We find cured cheeses, semi-cured, made with raw milk, smoked, made with gofio […] Hundreds of varieties that are often unthinkable but delicious and that it is impossible for me to list one by one.
I am going to highlight one of my favorites, the Maxorata. This delicious and award-winning cheese is made in Fuerteventura and in July 2015 was named Cheese of the Month at Sant Pau Restaurant, run by the very famous Carme Ruscalleda.
Another example, the smoked herreño cheese-from El Hierro-made with raw milk and smoked. Extraodinary.
Finally, I must mention the almogrote, a very special and different cheese from La Gomera that can be spread and, in whose preparation, paprika comes into play.
GALETTE DES ROIS
We already have all our appetizers and savory dishes for the table but… What about the sweet?
I want to propose something different, the Galette des Rois. This typical French dish is very common to find it on Epiphany, it would be the equivalent of our roscón de Reyes but in flavors and textures have no resemblance.
Everyone knows the delicacy of French pastry and here we are not far behind. The Gallete des Rois is prepared with puff pastry and almonds, although I recommend if you know any French pastry shop in your city that you order one, it will not disappoint!
JIJONA NOUGAT CREAM AND JIJONA NOUGAT CAKE
We return to Spain because I do not forget our nougat, of course not! However, I want to propose an alternative to the typical nougat, I suggest a nougat cream and a nougat cake, both from Jijona that you can find in delicatessen stores and that will not disappoint either.
Finally, and continuing with the thread of nougat, have you tried the stone-baked nougat? I leave it for you to investigate, but I am sure that once you try it you will not want to go back to the traditional nougat.
Here ends our gastronomic trip around the world; I hope these different ideas help you to surprise your loved ones and above all that you can enjoy everything in the best company.
And you, what do you prefer?
