Cocinar con Fuego

Cooking With Fire

Appears in

MoVida Rustica: Spanish Traditions and Recipes

Published 2009

About

FIRE IS ELEMENTAL TO SPANISH COOKING. REAL FIRE — WOOD AND COALS AND STICKS AND SMOKE. THE SPANISH, MORE SO THAN ANY OTHER PEOPLE IN EUROPE, HAVE NEVER TURNED THEIR BACKS ON THE POWER OF FIRE. THEY UNDERSTAND HOW IT NOT ONLY DRAWS PEOPLE TO THE HEARTH BUT HOW THE DELICATE AROMA OF SMOKE IS IMPARTED TO FLESH AND HOW HEAT MAKES ITS INDELIBLE MARK ON MEAT.

I grew up with food cooked over fire, or to be more correct, food cooked over coals. I can remember Mum always berating Dad to hurry up and get the meat on the grill and he was always saying, paciencia, paciencia: Dad was waiting for the fire to die down. He would have built up a hardwood fire, probably from eucalyptus trees, and was waiting for the hot flames to burn themselves out and give way to the long-lasting embers. These embers cook without burning, release juices without drying out the flesh, and impart a flavour to the meat without overpowering it. His outdoor brick grill takes up a good part of the backyard and I’m still not quite sure if it doesn’t require a building permit.