Mercado bliss

In Malaga, I know exactly where to find top Axarquía produce At the far end of the Alameda, that leafy stretch of exuberant sub-tropical gardens, purple jacarandas, and towering magnolias sandwiched between the traffic lanes, I come to the port’s greatest foodie offering: the Mercado de Atarazanas. Once through its horseshoe gateway, I am blown away by the sheer abundance, variety, and quality of the market produce.

Dozens of herbs, dried fruits, nuts, almonds, Málaga raisins, figs (that centuries ago were exported to Baghdad), giant slabs of tuna, lethal-looking swordfish, slippery anchovies, and fat Gordal olives all seduce me Málaga’s constant sunshine and its blessed location between a sea alive with piscine joy and a fertile interior mean mangoes, custard apples, guavas, and avocadoes join more typical apricots, quince, medlars, grapes, and citrus fruits It is heartening to learn from a stall holder that despite the all-pervasive polytunnels along the coast, many Axarquía villages still use the terracing and irrigation methods of the Moors, and organic farming is spreading.