What I ate in Spain and Portugal

Octopus carpaccio with green apples with microgreens (Blood beet seeds… had to research it). This one was very memorable, very light and flavorful.

“Food is everything we are. It’s an extension of nationalist feeling, ethnic feeling, your personal history, your province, your region, your tribe, your grandma. It’s inseparable from those from the get-go.” — Anthony Bourdain

My mom and I will eat any food and try to deconstruct what ingredient it has, how it was made, why they added the ingredients they added, talk about how we might do it differently, etc. It drives my dad insane because he argues that we’re being critical instead of simply enjoying the food. We do it as part of the appreciation of food. To a large extent, anyone in my family who is serious about cooking also does this. My sister now does this and I think it’s cool because then you can get creative with new recipes.

I can actually do that with music as well. I don’t really hear lyrics. To me, they just become another percussion instrument. What I do notice is when chords resolve, songs modulate, rhythms vary their patterns, pianos add cool licks, etc. I’m a musician at heart and it’s also something I love doing because I appreciate what it takes to do these things.

One of the reasons why I love traveling is that I get to experience other cultures. The more I travel (and I often say this) the more I realize how similar we all are in this world. To create conflict and establish yourself in power, you create chaos so you can divide and conquer. Look at world politicians for this tactic as they seek to stay in power. But in an everyday context, people are actually pretty similar. They want to love and feel loved. They want peace. They want to be healthy. And I think they want to enjoy a really good meal. I can learn so much from other cultures simply from how they make their food. Or what ingredients they use.

Recently I learned that Italians (I never thought to ask until I did) use tomatoes, cook large batches of tomato sauce and store them because when they were in serious poverty, this was their way to ensure they had enough to eat and that whatever crops of tomatoes they had wouldn’t go to waste. I now see Italian cuisine as one of the most influential in the world. Just in Latin America alone, I see how everyday foods have branched off from Italian cuisine.

Back in May of this year I went to Portugal and Spain. And I took a lot of pictures of foods. And I loved every meal. Some more than others but I loved them all. Here they are.

These croquettes were really good. The sauce underneath was kind of sweet, the croquettes were crispy on the outside and smooth in the inside. The red pickled onions broke the sweetness of the sauce and richness of the croquette.

This one we ordered because it said salmon and potatoes. We didn’t know it was going to be potatoes sticks and that the salmon would be covered in truffle, dill powder, and a crazy hollandaise-looking sauce (it wasn’t) that wasn’t as heavy as we thought it would be. It was actually lighter than it looks and not salty. Sometimes I liked not knowing what I’m ordering in menus. It’s the best.

I’m actually not a sweets guy but this dessert was so well done. Banana bread that was moist without being mushy, caramelized bananas, salted cookie crumble (and this was crucial because everything else was so sweet), vanilla ice cream over caramel. It really hit the spot. Not in the picture, I had a porto that was meant to counter the sweetness of the dessert. Porto wine is usually sweet but the one I had balanced this dessert nicely.

Here’s another octopus carpaccio that was so light and fresh. I’m not usually a fan of raw green and red peppers in this manner but with the cilantro, delicious olive oil, touch of acid (I think it was lime but it could have also been a vinagrette) and the Jackie Chan kick of hot peppers. I pretty much licked the plate (no I didn’t, I have more class but was tempted to).

Anyone that knows me understands how much I love soup. And this was a tomato-based seafood soup. I had a taste (or three or four) and wished I could have ordered it.

This is proof I am really doing this blog for fun because this image has the aftermath of my destroying the salmon over the potato sticks. So this was what tasted like Chinese rice with finely sliced smoked something (pretty sure it’s fish but the first question I have is why is it that dark). It also had finely chopped scallions and the white sauce was like a garlic sauce. I can’t remember if it was milk or some type of yogurt base (if it was yogurt it didn’t taste like it and/or at least I don’t remember it).

I’ll be honest… (not that I haven’t been until this point but I mean at the risk of sounding ignorant) I love seeing creativity in plating but when I saw this one initially, I didn’t understand why one side had food and the other didn’t. I first thought it was a mistake but then I wondered if that’s what the chef wanted us to think. Then I tried the grilled octopus and I forgot I asked the question. The potatoes were crispy outside and the perfect “fries” consistency inside. To boot, it had a nice chimichurri sauce. I’ve never had chimichurri on grilled seafood so it was a new experience for me. The microgreens are always fun.

Croquettes over a thicker garlic sauce.

Burrata with pickled red onions, arugula, pine nuts and something I’ve never seen, chimichurri (I’ve only seen this on steaks but on this trip, I saw it a lot. Same for mojitos. But only in Portugal).

Another dessert that I felt I wouldn’t be crazy about and wanted to get a second one. It was a lighter strawbery sherbert (I think…. I’m fairly sure). I’m not a big fan of powdered sugar (I know… I know) but I contemplated getting another one. I believe this was on top of vanilla ice cream and in the back, it’s mascarpone.

Near our Airbnb, we found a craft cocktail bar with a small but incredible menu. This salad had peaches and tomatoes, mint, a light vinaigrette, croutons and a light cream (may have been homemade cottage cheese or something along those lines). It was so delicious.

At the same bar, we had beef tartare. It was really light and the capers and olive oil were such a nice touch.

Porto got me hooked on sardines. They were so fresh, not salty and really paired well with the crushed tomato and red pepper relish.

Another beef carpaccio. Each different than the last one. The “me” from 15 years ago would not have let me eat raw meats, seafood, sushi, etc. I’m glad current “me” does.

These mussels were fire. They were bathed in a garlic butter sauce and finished with cilantro. Not pictured is all the bread we ate to dip into the broth.

Probably the only way I’d eat liver is paté or foie gras. This was so good and made me appreciate red peppercorn. Also served with a sweet onion chutney.

This was a straight forward dish. Steak over grilled veggies, basted with butter and rosemary. Lots of flavor.

This was a really welcomed vegetable soup. It was really chilly that day and this warmed us up. The cracker was served with beef tartare and peppers.

Every time I go outside of the US, I get poached eggs because I know places like Portugal, Mexico or Spain will get it right. I should have taken pictures when we split it down the middle. The yolk was orange and it was beautiful especially with the avocado trifecta over toast: mashed avocado, chopped avocado and an avocado sauce. Surprisingly very filling.

Following the poached egg theme for breakfast, this egg Benedict over french toast and salmon was so good. I always love the balance with pickled onions and greens. Potatoes were also good.

There’s that chimichurri again. The eggs were good and the salmon was smoked nicely.

Croquettes in Madrid

Something I love about Madrid is that the ingredients are so fresh. Tapas: something so simple like a piece of bread, cream cheese, salmon, oil and greens and yet it’s so flavorful.

I do love me some benies.

I’m not sure where I had my first shakshuka (may have been Chicago) but this one was so good. The eggs were over easy, the cheese gave it a nice acidity and paired well with the ripe tomatoes. I always appreciate the Italian parsley.

And that’s it for now. If I find more food pictures, I may add them later but I’m having trouble remembering everything I ate. Still, one of the more memorable foodie experiences I’ve had. I did take a lot of pictures of drinks in this trip and may post in the future.