Costa del Seafood
Spanish gastronomy varies greatly around the country as does the landscape, Green Spain is as pictured, lush, green and wet. The traditional fare is the local fare, more fish nearer the coast and meat dishes in the mountainous regions.
The summer months in the north of the country are stifling hot and see lighter cold dishes such as gazpacho soup and salmorejo. In the winter months these mountainous regions take on the opposite temperatures and reach out for hearty stews laden with chickpeas or beans, the inevitable chorizo and perhaps pork or rabbit meat.
With the Spanish coastline being nearly 8,000 km its hardly surprising that seafood figures greatly in the diet and there’s nothing better than locally and freshly caught fish barbecued on the beach or grilled at a sea-front restaurant.
Its been said that nowhere does better fried fish dishes than the Costa del Sol. It has to be on your holiday agenda at least once, to sit under the Mediterranean sun, watch the glistening azure waters of the Med from a rustic beachfront café.
Can there be any greater joy in life? Sun, sand sea and excellent, no food miles, repast.
Below is a translation of the more common fish dishes likely to be found at any seafront restaurant. But beware there are two words for fish in Spanish - pez or peces which is live fish or fishes, it then becomes the word pescado when its in the edible form.
Spanish to English translation for Fish - Pescado
- Aguja Azul - Blue Marlin
- Anchoa - Anchovies
- Anguila – Freshwater eel
- Angula – Elver or baby eel
- Arenque – Herrings
- Arencas – Salted and pressed sardines
- Arete – Red Gunard
- Atún - Tuna fish
- Bacalao - Cod
- Caballa - Mackerel
- Calamar - Squid
- Chipirón - Baby squid
- Choco - Cuttle fish
- Congrio – Conger eel
- Dorada – Sea Bream
- Lenguado - Sole
- Lubina - Sea bass
- Mero - Grouper fish
- Merlo – Wrasse
- Merluza - Hake
- Morena - Moray eel
- Pez Espada - Sword fish
- Pulpo - Octopus
- Rodaballo – Turbot
- Sardinas – Sardines
- Vieja - Parrot fish
Oily fish such as mackerel are best grilled and meaty fish like swordfish and tuna are good grilled too but will need painted with olive oil during cooking.
Good fishing, cooking or just eating!
