On a recent holiday to Andalucica we consumed vast amounts of pork, partly by choice and partly by fate. We had taken the Moro cook book with us to serve up some of the food from our favourite restaurant whilst in one of its countries of origin. At the same time, we were staying in a little, traditional townhouse that belongs to a friend of my parent’s, so mother and father kindly stocked the fridge for us – and pig was their preferred purchase. So the scene was set for a pork odyssey and consumption commenced.
Iberian hams
The Serrano ham comes from the high mountains of the Andalucia region of Spain. It is cured in perfect conditions, high up in the Andalucian hills, with hot summers, cold winters and low humidity. The hams are cured using a time honoured tradition, passed down through the generations and using traditional methods and recipes. Yum. However, far better than Serrano ham, in my opinion, is Pata Negra Bellota. Pata Negra simply means Iberian ham; the Bellota denotes that the big has been bread on acorns. According to Spain's Denominación de Origen rules on food products, jamón ibérico may be made from cross-bred pigs as long as they are at least 75% ibérico. These pigs are bred in the forests on the boarder between Spain and Portugal and so fall outside of the remit of this Andalucian post. But this ham is super-lush-arama. You can buy it in Borough Market but prepare for a wallet battering at £16.50 / 100g.
La Chinata
p111 of Moro’s first cook book brought our attention to this fine ingredient. This is a smoked paprika which is apparently used a lot in traditional Spanish cooking, although we found it hard to source while we were out there. Quoting from Moro, “before being ground the peppers are dried over oak fires to impart a distinctive smoky quality” and it adds a really subtle but distinctive flavour to your cooking. Again it can be purchased in Borough Market, but be kinder to your wallet, go to a decent sized Sainsburys.
Moorish skewers
Lurking on p108 of the Moro book are these delightful bbq numbers, perfect for the current weather. Using a really quick-to-assemble marinade, pork cooked over charcoal with this flavouring has a distinctive red wine vinegar, garlic and spices taste. We cooked them on a disposable bbq down by the beach. Happy days.
Why the obsession with pork?
Whilst on holiday I discovered why the Spanish love pork so much. This may be familiar to you but was certainly a learning for me. As we know, the Moors pushed from North Africa throughout Spain before Ferdinand and Isabella booted them out. The region benefited from the science and agricultural skills of this Islamic infusion and the magnificent impact can be seen in towns such as Ronda, Cordoba and Grenada. But of course, at the time, the Spanish objected to being invaded and subjugated, so they ate pork to spite their Muslim conquerors. How fascinating I say. So our vast consumptions of pork was well fitting – we even ate pork cheeks!
The bridge at Rhonda
Jamon Jamon
So what inspired me to start posting again, because admittedly I have been away for a while? Jamon Jamon is a little tapas place on Parkway in Camden. I really object to paying London prices for tapas food because it is over-inflated but I was pleasantly pleased by this place. With a retractable roof it’s a nice summer spot and has a great selection of Spanish wines (including white Rioja, which is worth exploring). If you search online for reviews you’ll receive negative comments so maybe our experience was not an accurate representation of the place, but we found the food to be great and the atmosphere relaxed. The one criticism was a lack of staff, which meant the two waitresses were super stressed and service was slow. But I reckon this place is good and I will be checking out their 7 quid lunchtime deal.
Oink and out
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