0:00:05 > 0:00:10I'm leaving Plymouth for Spain, the start of a culinary odyssey,
0:00:10 > 0:00:13where I hope to discover great food in places that many might consider
0:00:13 > 0:00:18are well off the well-worn path to the Costas.
0:00:20 > 0:00:24Well, I've got particular sort of soulful interest in Spain, really.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27I first went there when I was eight.
0:00:27 > 0:00:32My lasting memory was the food and the sort of strangeness of it
0:00:32 > 0:00:34and I have, at the back of my mind,
0:00:34 > 0:00:37a sort of sense of the remoteness of Spain but, of course,
0:00:37 > 0:00:39I've been there many times since
0:00:39 > 0:00:43and you have, at the back, the sort of memories of the civil war,
0:00:43 > 0:00:46the Catholicism, the austerity of it.
0:00:46 > 0:00:48But now a sort of... a lightening of everything
0:00:48 > 0:00:51and I'm really fascinated to go out there
0:00:51 > 0:00:54and see how the contrast works.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57Is it still the old Spain or is Spain becoming part
0:00:57 > 0:01:00of the sort of new Europe, and is the food changing?
0:01:00 > 0:01:04Is it still the old sort of bean stews and quite heavy peasant food,
0:01:04 > 0:01:08or is it the food of all those you know, Michelin starred chefs
0:01:08 > 0:01:11that are sort of ruling the world as far as food is concerned?
0:01:11 > 0:01:14It's just going to be so interesting.
0:01:50 > 0:01:54The ferry from Plymouth to Santander arrived at lunch time,
0:01:54 > 0:01:59our lunch time, not 2:30 in the afternoon, when the Spanish eat.
0:01:59 > 0:02:04I thought I could smell cooking from the nearby houses around the port.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07I was famished and so I made a beeline to the fisherman's quarter,
0:02:07 > 0:02:11a stones throw from where the boat comes in.
0:02:11 > 0:02:15Here, various restaurants and bars were vying for trade
0:02:15 > 0:02:19giving open cookery demonstrations outside their establishments.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23Most of them were making forms of paella...
0:02:23 > 0:02:27Something I've been thinking about all morning.
0:02:27 > 0:02:28Bravo!
0:02:28 > 0:02:30HE SPEAKS SPANISH
0:02:30 > 0:02:33OK, oh, yeah, no problem.
0:02:33 > 0:02:38He said come back in 20 minutes and I did and it didn't disappoint.
0:02:42 > 0:02:47As I thought, that's as good a paella as I've ever had. Lovely.
0:02:47 > 0:02:50I'm really looking forward to the next dish after the paella
0:02:50 > 0:02:53which is merluza a la plancha
0:02:53 > 0:02:56which is hake cooked on a griddle but doesn't "a la plancha" sound
0:02:56 > 0:02:58so much better than griddled hake?
0:02:58 > 0:03:01Spanish restaurants like this are a bit like Chinese restaurants.
0:03:01 > 0:03:05There's no decor anywhere. Stone floor, no carpets
0:03:05 > 0:03:08and one of the things that you always notice
0:03:08 > 0:03:12in Spanish restaurants - the telly is on all day, day or night.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15Nobody watches it, but it's there in the background.
0:03:15 > 0:03:17And also, the thing I like about it
0:03:17 > 0:03:21is that people are allowed to smoke in here. Now, I don't smoke myself,
0:03:21 > 0:03:23but there's a certain sort of freedom,
0:03:23 > 0:03:27a sort of bohemianism about Spain.
0:03:27 > 0:03:28You know, you can elect
0:03:28 > 0:03:31to have smoking in your restaurant or bar or not.
0:03:31 > 0:03:33Seems so much more sensible.
0:03:33 > 0:03:35Finally, have to mention the wine.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38I mean, they're so lucky on the North coast of Spain
0:03:38 > 0:03:43to have Albarino. It's actually from Galicia.
0:03:43 > 0:03:47It's got a lovely sort of lemony acidity, SO good with seafood.
0:03:49 > 0:03:50Yum.
0:03:54 > 0:04:01Just thinking really about, er, what British people think of Spanish food
0:04:01 > 0:04:04and I'm very much conditioned by my parents
0:04:04 > 0:04:08who used to say it was filthy. Everything's swimming in olive oil.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12And in literature, people like Byron, Virginia Woolf
0:04:12 > 0:04:13all said the same thing -
0:04:13 > 0:04:19Fatty meat, dry, old, stale bread, all that sort of thing.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22But if you think about it, in the last 40 years,
0:04:22 > 0:04:27British people have become much more aware of foreign food
0:04:27 > 0:04:31and I suspect the truth of it is that it's just foreign
0:04:31 > 0:04:35and I think when I find this food, the food I'm looking,
0:04:35 > 0:04:38sort of hidden dishes, the peasant dishes,
0:04:38 > 0:04:42then I'll find them very much more acceptable than my parents
0:04:42 > 0:04:45or Virginia Woolf or indeed Lord Byron.
0:04:45 > 0:04:51MUSIC: "El Cid" by Miklos Rozsa
0:04:51 > 0:04:56This music, by Miklos Rozsa, is really important to me
0:04:56 > 0:05:00because as a teenager, I saw El Cid around seven times
0:05:00 > 0:05:04and from that cinematic moment, I was hooked on Spain.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10Up until the 20th century, writers how came here
0:05:10 > 0:05:12were more like bold adventurers.
0:05:14 > 0:05:18They came for its wild and remote landscapes, spiritual sustenance
0:05:18 > 0:05:24and yes, the whole romance - duende, as they say - that is Spain.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27But not for its food.
0:05:30 > 0:05:35But the real everyday food of Spain and it's part in history
0:05:35 > 0:05:37will be the centre of my quest.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48I'm helplessly addicted to Monty Python.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50I remember that bit in The Life of Brian
0:05:50 > 0:05:53when this Jewish guy says, "What have the Romans done for us?"
0:05:53 > 0:05:56Well, you could imagine a Spaniard saying,
0:05:56 > 0:05:58"What have the Moors done for us?"
0:05:58 > 0:06:02Well, rice, oranges, lemons, saffron, almonds,
0:06:02 > 0:06:05spices like cumin and coriander, pomegranates,
0:06:05 > 0:06:09aubergines, melons, oh, and irrigation.
0:06:13 > 0:06:17And this is my secret valley, studded with olive trees,
0:06:17 > 0:06:19that lies in Andalucia.
0:06:19 > 0:06:24It's here, in a converted farm house which has a splendid kitchen,
0:06:24 > 0:06:28that I'll be cooking all the dishes I've discovered from my travels.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33Beautiful dishes like roasted red peppers
0:06:33 > 0:06:35stuffed with creamy salt cod and garlic,
0:06:35 > 0:06:39and fantastic meatballs, stewed with cuttlefish.
0:06:39 > 0:06:43And I love this dish of lentils made with Serrano ham.
0:06:43 > 0:06:45But all that is yet to come
0:06:45 > 0:06:51because my journey starts in the north west, Galicia.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53The Moors never really settled here.
0:06:53 > 0:06:56The Romans did and before them, the Celts.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59It's very much like Cornwall or the West Coast of Ireland.
0:06:59 > 0:07:06I've heard it said that Galicia is cows, Celts, fishing boats and fog.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09I borrowed this campervan off a friend of mine
0:07:09 > 0:07:11and he calls it Campy.
0:07:11 > 0:07:15It sort of reminds me a bit of a vehicle that a retired librarian
0:07:15 > 0:07:18and his missus might take touring Europe.
0:07:18 > 0:07:21No offence to librarians, you understand.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24But actually, it's quite useful.
0:07:24 > 0:07:26I'm sort of rather a fan of Don Quixote
0:07:26 > 0:07:29and it's a bit like, er, Rocinante,
0:07:29 > 0:07:34you know, the slightly tired old nag that he had to take him round Spain.
0:07:34 > 0:07:37This is the same and, d'you know what?
0:07:37 > 0:07:40I'm sort of thinking it's got quite a nice little cooker in the back
0:07:40 > 0:07:44and a fridge and some nice little worktops.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46When I'm staying in hotels most of the time
0:07:46 > 0:07:49I can probably buy some things from the market and do a bit of cooking.
0:07:49 > 0:07:52So, I'm actually beginning to rather like it.
0:07:55 > 0:07:57All over the landscape of Galicia
0:07:57 > 0:08:00are these tomb-like granaries for storing corn cobs.
0:08:00 > 0:08:05They're raised on stone mushrooms to keep out the damp and the rats.
0:08:07 > 0:08:11To me, time seems to move increasingly slowly in these parts
0:08:11 > 0:08:13as the rest of the world speeds up.
0:08:17 > 0:08:20This is one of the most common vegetables in Galicia.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24It's called grelos and thrives in the damp weather.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27It's like a cross between kale and cabbage
0:08:27 > 0:08:31and this is the House of Juan, a small restaurant,
0:08:31 > 0:08:34'where only traditional Galician dishes are cooked.
0:08:34 > 0:08:36'Here, the chef, Maria Jose,
0:08:36 > 0:08:40'is cooking the most famous Galician dish, Cocido.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43'The base of it is the pig's head.'
0:08:43 > 0:08:44Good lord!
0:08:44 > 0:08:47'Well, I did ask to see something really authentic.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50'Now in goes the grelos, straight from the freezer,
0:08:50 > 0:08:53'into the same stock the head was cooked in.
0:08:53 > 0:08:55'Notice she gives it a huge whack of salt.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57'Well, we're miles away from the salt police.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59'Lots of other cuts of the pig
0:08:59 > 0:09:03'are also cooked, with chickpeas and potatoes.
0:09:03 > 0:09:05'I'd arranged to meet up with John Barlow,
0:09:05 > 0:09:09'the food writer whose book Everything But The Squeal,
0:09:09 > 0:09:12'describes why he loves the place so much.
0:09:12 > 0:09:15'So I asked him, "What's the quintessential Galician dish?"'
0:09:15 > 0:09:17This is it, this is it, yeah.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20So there'd be a stew. Hog stew with grelos, that's it.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23That's the one thing, when there's like a festival
0:09:23 > 0:09:25or some sort of winter holiday,
0:09:25 > 0:09:27that's what everybody has on a Sunday, you know.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30Front shoulder of pork, the head,
0:09:30 > 0:09:33some grelos, potatoes, chickpeas, that kind of thing.
0:09:33 > 0:09:35All cooked for four hours, five hours.
0:09:35 > 0:09:36The number one thing.
0:09:36 > 0:09:40Because we were once filming in Wales, in Merthyr Tydfil,
0:09:40 > 0:09:43where they have a thing called cawl which is the same sort of dish
0:09:43 > 0:09:46but it's like an all-in-one-pot stew
0:09:46 > 0:09:51and we asked a few locals there whether they liked to eat this,
0:09:51 > 0:09:55and they just said, "No, no, no, it's all... We like McDonalds".
0:09:55 > 0:09:57Oh, no, no. That's our...
0:09:57 > 0:10:00it's something you notice straightaway about Galicia
0:10:00 > 0:10:02is they're still in contact with these recipes.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06No matter how much money you've got or how, you know, swanky you are,
0:10:06 > 0:10:09this is what you want to do to celebrate your Galicianess,
0:10:09 > 0:10:11would be to have a bit of shoulder of ham,
0:10:11 > 0:10:13some pig's head, some grelos.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17This is the big family thing on a Sunday. This is what people do
0:10:17 > 0:10:19when they spend three or four hours, perhaps, eating it
0:10:19 > 0:10:22and so it's very different from the rest of Spain.
0:10:23 > 0:10:28Just as a matter of interest, before we start, how many,
0:10:28 > 0:10:30ask Maria how many this would serve.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33THEY SPEAK SPANISH
0:10:35 > 0:10:36Seven or eight.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40- Seven or eight.- Yeah.- Big appetites.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43Well, I can't believe this. I mean, I've got every bit of the pig here.
0:10:43 > 0:10:47I've got the, the, I've got the ribs, I've got the shoulder,
0:10:47 > 0:10:50I've got the snout, I've got chorizas.
0:10:50 > 0:10:52I've got everything but the squeal!
0:10:56 > 0:11:02Well, I never expected in my wildest dreams a week ago in England
0:11:02 > 0:11:04to be slicing through a pig's muzzle...
0:11:04 > 0:11:07but it's utterly delicious.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11The whole thing is delicious. I mean this is great.
0:11:11 > 0:11:14Got every part of the pig. I've got the grelos.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17Will you just thank Maria and just say...?
0:11:17 > 0:11:20THEY SPEAK SPANISH
0:11:25 > 0:11:29- Gracias.- Salud. - Salud.- Salud.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31This is Oseira Monastery,
0:11:31 > 0:11:34where Graham Greene would come from time to time
0:11:34 > 0:11:37to help strengthen his belief in Catholicism.
0:11:37 > 0:11:41These somewhat depressing, dark and no doubt damp walls
0:11:41 > 0:11:46really do suit the mood of the melancholic world of Greene-land.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51But it's in nearby Santiago de Compostela
0:11:51 > 0:11:54that all the world comes to pay homage to St James,
0:11:54 > 0:11:59since his bones were found by a shepherd in a field,
0:11:59 > 0:12:01illuminated by stars.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04Since then, pilgrims have been making this journey on foot
0:12:04 > 0:12:07for over 1,000 years, from all over Europe.
0:12:07 > 0:12:10It was a great medieval tourist destination
0:12:10 > 0:12:13symbolised by a scallop shell.
0:12:13 > 0:12:15Nothing could match it.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18The great and the good, the sick and the not-so-good
0:12:18 > 0:12:21have paid homage to St James here.
0:12:27 > 0:12:32I love this, it's called a Botafumeiro.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34I remember a very excited Keith Floyd
0:12:34 > 0:12:36telling me about it years ago
0:12:36 > 0:12:41saying that it was the size of car and belching out perfumed smoke.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44In fact, it's the size of a milk churn
0:12:44 > 0:12:49and it's a medieval air freshener, because the pilgrims that came here
0:12:49 > 0:12:52weren't exactly the sweetest smelling bunch,
0:12:52 > 0:12:54after months on the trail.
0:12:54 > 0:12:56It's amazing how something so practical
0:12:56 > 0:13:00takes on a real religious significance
0:13:00 > 0:13:02Pilgrims have always been big business here
0:13:02 > 0:13:06and the little bars surrounding the cathedral
0:13:06 > 0:13:08make a great lunch time trade.
0:13:08 > 0:13:12The most popular thing on any menu here is empanada,
0:13:12 > 0:13:14a bit like our Cornish Pasty.
0:13:14 > 0:13:19But to see how they're made, I had to come here at 6:00 in the morning
0:13:19 > 0:13:22to see Trinidad, who's been making them for years.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25She covers the pastry with a sauce made with softened onions,
0:13:25 > 0:13:27peppers and garlic and loads of oil.
0:13:27 > 0:13:31Then strips of conger eel, cheap as chips straight from the market
0:13:31 > 0:13:34and a smattering of tomato sauce.
0:13:34 > 0:13:40Now even more olive oil and, finally, on goes the top.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44Incidentally, this isn't a short crust pastry.
0:13:44 > 0:13:48It's made more like a bread dough but because it's been made with oil,
0:13:48 > 0:13:51it has an elastic quality to it.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54On the dot of 8:00, the local baker lady comes round
0:13:54 > 0:13:57to take it to her oven which is cooling down
0:13:57 > 0:13:59from baking that morning's bread.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04The earliest records show that these little pies
0:14:04 > 0:14:07started to appear when the Moors invaded Spain.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10The most popular filling here in Santiago,
0:14:10 > 0:14:12being near the sea, is fish.
0:14:12 > 0:14:16This particular one has octopus in it, very Galician.
0:14:16 > 0:14:20Anyway, all I can say is that it's one of life's pleasures
0:14:20 > 0:14:26to taste a freshly baked empanada with a cup of local wine. Muy bueno!
0:14:29 > 0:14:31For hundreds of years,
0:14:31 > 0:14:35pilgrims have come to this street to have their first decent meal
0:14:35 > 0:14:38after weeks or months of being on the road,
0:14:38 > 0:14:42and even now it's still catering for the weary travellers.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45Just looking around here, it's really whetting my appetite.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48Everywhere I look there are appetising plates of food.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54There's a good little market near the Cathedral. It's called Abastos.
0:14:54 > 0:14:58It's a bit like a farmer's market.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02And right amongst it is a tiny restaurant,
0:15:02 > 0:15:05run by a couple of young guys called Jargo and Marcos.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07Because their restaurant is so small,
0:15:07 > 0:15:10they've had to come up with novel ideas on how to use
0:15:10 > 0:15:14- all available resources to the best advantage.- Only ten seconds.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17Witness the first time I've ever seen cockles
0:15:17 > 0:15:19cooked in ten seconds...
0:15:19 > 0:15:22by the steam from an espresso machine.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25That's all you need for a tapas dish.
0:15:25 > 0:15:27The cockles couldn't be better.
0:15:27 > 0:15:31Sweet and firm and not a hint of coffee.
0:15:32 > 0:15:36Today we are going to choose, er, the best fish.
0:15:36 > 0:15:38- Yeah.- I think that we, er,
0:15:38 > 0:15:40there is a hake, a very good hake.
0:15:40 > 0:15:42And seafood.
0:15:42 > 0:15:44I love seafood. My, my passion.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46Let's go to the seafood.
0:15:46 > 0:15:47OK.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59THEY SPEAK SPANISH
0:16:01 > 0:16:02How much would they be about?
0:16:02 > 0:16:04HE SPEAKS SPANISH
0:16:05 > 0:16:07And how will you cook those?
0:16:07 > 0:16:11Yes, today. Er, pot of hot water.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15- And salt?- Yeah.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18- A laurel, laurel.- Laurel?
0:16:18 > 0:16:19- Laurel. - Oh, er, bay leaf.
0:16:19 > 0:16:21- Yeah.- Bay leaf.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29- Let's go?- Let's go.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32THEY SPEAK SPANISH
0:16:32 > 0:16:33He has to work now.
0:16:33 > 0:16:37He's gotta work, he's gotta work. OK. Fine.
0:16:37 > 0:16:41'Yes, he's gotta work and we'd held him up so much
0:16:41 > 0:16:44'I felt honour bound to give him a hand.'
0:16:44 > 0:16:46Well, I must say, I didn't know I was gonna get enrolled
0:16:46 > 0:16:50to doing a bit of prep when I turned up here this morning
0:16:50 > 0:16:53but they're so short. They've got this lunch for 12 people.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56They're gonna shut the restaurant,
0:16:56 > 0:16:58but it's really a very elaborate affair
0:16:58 > 0:17:00and of course I can only help them.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03They've only been open for three months.
0:17:03 > 0:17:04Basically it's such a good idea
0:17:04 > 0:17:07and it's so nice to see young people getting involved like this.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11I mean, gosh, if I was their age I'd be so excited.
0:17:11 > 0:17:13Set up in this lovely little restaurant,
0:17:13 > 0:17:17next to a lovely market and just going round the market every day,
0:17:17 > 0:17:19buying what you want for that day's cooking only.
0:17:19 > 0:17:21Changing the menu every day
0:17:21 > 0:17:24so you could just cook what's best in the market.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26I mean, it's like every chef's dream.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30HE SPEAKS SPANISH
0:17:37 > 0:17:39This sort of cooking is right up my street.
0:17:39 > 0:17:40I mean, first of all,
0:17:40 > 0:17:43he's just saying he's only cooking these clams "a la plancha" -
0:17:43 > 0:17:46which means on the griddle - for two minutes,
0:17:46 > 0:17:49and just saying that quite a lot of those Galician customers
0:17:49 > 0:17:50like them cooked longer
0:17:50 > 0:17:53but he just like likes them cooked as little as that.
0:17:53 > 0:17:58This is the sort of way that I think Spanish food is so perfect.
0:17:58 > 0:18:00It's sort of like Japanese food in a way.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03The best ingredients, cooked as simply as possible
0:18:03 > 0:18:07and now he's just adding a little bit of oil on top of there.
0:18:07 > 0:18:09Just look at those on the plate there.
0:18:09 > 0:18:11Just a little thin stream of oil
0:18:11 > 0:18:15and then just some fried parsley.
0:18:15 > 0:18:21I mean, that is just simple, perfect expression of great sea food.
0:18:21 > 0:18:22He's a clever boy, Marcos,
0:18:22 > 0:18:26because it's hard to do things simple like this. It really is.
0:18:26 > 0:18:28To sort of... You know, the way of most chefs
0:18:28 > 0:18:30is to make things difficult.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33It's the sort of Michelin Guide way, actually, as well,
0:18:33 > 0:18:35is to take something perfectly simple,
0:18:35 > 0:18:38made by God and muck it up
0:18:38 > 0:18:41and he hasn't done it and I love him for it.
0:18:42 > 0:18:44As I said at the beginning,
0:18:44 > 0:18:48this is where I'm going to cook the dishes I'm discovering on my journey
0:18:48 > 0:18:50and the first is a tapas of mussels.
0:18:50 > 0:18:54Well, before I start cooking this little tapas from Galicia,
0:18:54 > 0:18:56I just have to say that all the journey,
0:18:56 > 0:18:59throughout the whole of Spain, I was dreaming of being able to cook
0:18:59 > 0:19:02my own version of Spanish food in somewhere like this.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05I mean, you could not cook a duff dish
0:19:05 > 0:19:07with a view like that, could you?
0:19:07 > 0:19:10Anyway, I first had this mussel dish
0:19:10 > 0:19:15in a tapas bar in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia
0:19:15 > 0:19:18and what I really liked about it is the vinaigrette was quite tart.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21More vinegar, actually, than I'd normally put in,
0:19:21 > 0:19:22but it seemed to go terribly well
0:19:22 > 0:19:24with the ice cold Galician beer at the time.
0:19:24 > 0:19:28Well, first off, I'm going to open them
0:19:28 > 0:19:31with just a splash of dry sherry.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35And these will take about two or three minutes, no longer.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38Cos as soon as they've opened, I wanna take them off.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41And to help them cooking, I just put a lid on.
0:19:44 > 0:19:46So after a couple of minutes, they're done.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48Just strain them and serve them up.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51This is a great starter when you have loads of friends round
0:19:51 > 0:19:54and you're waiting for the main course to cook.
0:19:54 > 0:19:57They look so appetising.
0:19:58 > 0:20:02I keep reading in cookery books and elsewhere
0:20:02 > 0:20:06about how you should throw away mussels that don't open.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09I just think that's total rubbish, actually.
0:20:09 > 0:20:11You should throw away mussels that are open
0:20:11 > 0:20:13before you start cooking, are well open,
0:20:13 > 0:20:17in other words, when you give them a little tap, they don't close.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21Actually the ones that are still closed when you finish cooking
0:20:21 > 0:20:26are perfectly all right to eat. Total waste to throw them away.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29So to make this zingy dressing, you need peppers.
0:20:29 > 0:20:33I like those long gnarly ones called Romano Peppers.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36Cut them up finely, because you're not going to cook them
0:20:36 > 0:20:39and they mustn't be chunky in the finished sauce.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43What I like about cooking in Spain is it's all about the ingredients,
0:20:43 > 0:20:46all about the freshness of them and the colour of them
0:20:46 > 0:20:48and the cooking is simple and straightforward.
0:20:48 > 0:20:52I just remember a very early experience going into a tapas bar.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55Must have been about 16, I suppose. It was in Majorca
0:20:55 > 0:20:58and they'd just cooked some mussels a la plancha -
0:20:58 > 0:20:59it means "on a big griddle" -
0:20:59 > 0:21:03Threw the mussels onto the griddle, put an old tin,
0:21:03 > 0:21:06a sweet tin lid in top, I guess just to retain the steam,
0:21:06 > 0:21:09scooped them up, put them on a plate on the bar.
0:21:09 > 0:21:12Beer, mussel, fab.
0:21:12 > 0:21:16So now some salty capers and they go in with the chopped up gherkins
0:21:16 > 0:21:21I prepared before, and of course, there's a red onion in there too.
0:21:21 > 0:21:23Now chopped parsley.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26All you need to do now is to liquidise a skinned tomato
0:21:26 > 0:21:28with lashings of olive oil
0:21:28 > 0:21:32and that great Spanish invention, sherry vinegar.
0:21:32 > 0:21:34I just love it, I'm a convert.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37Out with the balsamic, in with the sherry!
0:21:37 > 0:21:40Season to taste. In my case,
0:21:40 > 0:21:43possibly a tad too much salt but that's me.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45And then give it good whiz
0:21:45 > 0:21:48because this liquid is the heart of the sauce.
0:21:51 > 0:21:55I really does make a lovely change from moules mariniere
0:21:55 > 0:21:57and it looks so deliciously summery
0:21:57 > 0:21:59but fresh mussels at home
0:21:59 > 0:22:03are at their tippy top best in the autumn and winter months.
0:22:03 > 0:22:06This is a fab way to brighten up those dark evenings.
0:22:06 > 0:22:11Mussels vinaigrette followed by a cold beer.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25Asturias is the neighbouring region to Galicia
0:22:25 > 0:22:30on my journey to the east, a hard mountainous place.
0:22:30 > 0:22:34This is the land the Moors who had conquered most of Spain gave up on.
0:22:34 > 0:22:37It was the mountains that defeated them.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40Although they had large, well-trained armies,
0:22:40 > 0:22:43this unforgiving landscape was too much.
0:22:43 > 0:22:46Well, that and the rebellious spirit of the Asturians
0:22:46 > 0:22:49who were widely known as fierce fighters.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52One Spanish writer, Jesus Fernandez Santos,
0:22:52 > 0:22:56on a journey from the plains of Castile to the Atlantic,
0:22:56 > 0:23:01described it as like entering the threshold of a promised land.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13Actually, my knowledge of Spanish is OK in the food department.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16I can get all this stuff.
0:23:16 > 0:23:19"Sidreria", well, that's a cider house, of course.
0:23:19 > 0:23:21"Casa Poli", that's the name of it.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24"Quesos", cheeses, obviously.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27"Tradicional Asturiana",
0:23:27 > 0:23:31obviously, traditional Asturian cooking.
0:23:31 > 0:23:33Just my sort of place.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36The chef at Casa Poli is called Luis
0:23:36 > 0:23:38and he's going to make a popular local dish.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41When I was looking down the list of dishes from Asturias,
0:23:41 > 0:23:44this one really caught my attention
0:23:44 > 0:23:48because we don't do a lot of fish with cider back at home
0:23:48 > 0:23:50but, of course, they do here
0:23:50 > 0:23:54and I think this is the most famous fish-in-cider dish,
0:23:54 > 0:23:56isn't it, Luis, very famous?
0:23:56 > 0:23:58Si, yes, it's muy famous.
0:23:58 > 0:24:02This is a typical way of cooking here in northern Spain.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05It reminds me of classic and basic French provincial cooking.
0:24:05 > 0:24:08We're not all that far from the border with France
0:24:08 > 0:24:10and so I bet there's been
0:24:10 > 0:24:14a little crossover of influences here over the years.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18There's fried onions, olive oil and flour to make a rue
0:24:18 > 0:24:20and then Luis adds fish stock
0:24:20 > 0:24:24and, on a low heat, he gently thickens it and cooks out the floor.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29I feel really privileged making these series
0:24:29 > 0:24:32because it is about coming into the kitchens in somewhere like Spain,
0:24:32 > 0:24:36particularly where the food is really simple
0:24:36 > 0:24:39and just seeing what the telling details are.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42Once you see something like that, like the degree he cooks the onion,
0:24:42 > 0:24:46like turning off the heat before he adds the flour so it doesn't burn,
0:24:46 > 0:24:50those are all the details you don't really get in recipes.
0:24:50 > 0:24:53Now he puts in some Asturian cider.
0:24:53 > 0:24:55This is really sharp and dry
0:24:55 > 0:24:58which will give the sauce a touch of acidity.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02It's not a bad thing when cooking fish, it's like lemon juice.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05And then he puts in fresh peas, but I suspect,
0:25:05 > 0:25:08given the right time of year,
0:25:08 > 0:25:12he could easily have used wild asparagus or tiny broad beans.
0:25:12 > 0:25:13Time to taste.
0:25:13 > 0:25:16Very acid. Very acid.
0:25:16 > 0:25:18- But now with the sugar.- OK.- Mmm.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20HE SPEAKS SPANISH
0:25:20 > 0:25:21OK.
0:25:23 > 0:25:27I think this is a seriously handy thing to know.
0:25:27 > 0:25:29I'll make sure my chefs get to see this.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33A really simple way, even with this huge knife,
0:25:33 > 0:25:36to cut hake into bone free steaks.
0:25:36 > 0:25:39He's actually cutting the bone out of each one of these steaks
0:25:39 > 0:25:43and just pulling it out. I've never seen that done before.
0:25:43 > 0:25:45It'd be quite easy to do with hake
0:25:45 > 0:25:48because they have a sort of plate structure around here
0:25:48 > 0:25:51rather than bone, so you can get them out easily
0:25:51 > 0:25:54but it produces a really nice, neat fillet of fish.
0:25:54 > 0:25:58Now you can see what I mean about poaching in a pre-made sauce.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01You put this on a stove with the minimum of heat
0:26:01 > 0:26:04and the fish adds flavour to the sauce.
0:26:04 > 0:26:07In fact, this area of Spain along with the Galicia,
0:26:07 > 0:26:10Cantabria and the Basque country is known as the Land of Sauces.
0:26:10 > 0:26:16In go clams, then some gambas, these large prawns.
0:26:16 > 0:26:18They'll cook in seconds, really.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21Then, finally, the fish is knapped with the sauce
0:26:21 > 0:26:25and finished off with a sprinkling of saffron.
0:26:25 > 0:26:29That's a new one on me, I've never used it as a garnish before
0:26:29 > 0:26:32and I don't think I will, but when in Rome...
0:26:32 > 0:26:35- Please. Very tasty.- Love to.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41Perfect way of doing the fish.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44And thank you very much.
0:26:44 > 0:26:46Mmm. Can't stop eating here!
0:26:52 > 0:26:55I thought cider was really popular from Somerset to Cornwall.
0:26:55 > 0:27:00I should know because I've drunk quite enough of it in my time,
0:27:00 > 0:27:02but here in Asturias,
0:27:02 > 0:27:06it is without a shadow of doubt, the most important drink in the region.
0:27:06 > 0:27:08Far more important than wine.
0:27:08 > 0:27:13This festival in Gijon is one of many to celebrate it.
0:27:13 > 0:27:17It's curious, but after a couple of glasses,
0:27:17 > 0:27:20you get quite used to the way that they pour things.
0:27:27 > 0:27:29Can we do another one?
0:27:29 > 0:27:32It's stronger than it looks. Whether a beer or cider festival,
0:27:32 > 0:27:35it's an amazing place to meet people.
0:27:38 > 0:27:41He's my husband, he's English, I'm Asturias.
0:27:41 > 0:27:43- How you doing?- I'm all right.
0:27:43 > 0:27:46Just tell us about Asturias.
0:27:46 > 0:27:51What does this cider, Asturias cider mean to you Asturians,
0:27:51 > 0:27:53people from Asturias?
0:27:53 > 0:27:56To me it means our culture, because, the way you pour it,
0:27:56 > 0:27:58you drink it straight from, er, bottle.
0:27:58 > 0:28:02- It's not the same, it's not broken. It has to break on the side.- Break?
0:28:02 > 0:28:05- We call it break, you break the...- Yeah.
0:28:05 > 0:28:06And it looks different.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08It's not as transparent. It's more...
0:28:08 > 0:28:10- Cloudy.- Cloudy?- Yeah, yeah.
0:28:10 > 0:28:13Has to be like that, then you're supposed to leave a little
0:28:13 > 0:28:15so that you go like that...
0:28:15 > 0:28:19- Why?- This is because you all drink from the same glass,- Uh-huh.
0:28:19 > 0:28:23So that when you drink, you throw it so it gets clean with the alcohol.
0:28:23 > 0:28:26- So where I drink there, I have to drop it here.- Right.
0:28:26 > 0:28:28Plus, it means a lot.
0:28:28 > 0:28:30We are always drinking cider and party, party.
0:28:30 > 0:28:35- Thank you.- Hello to Cornish people, I love Cornwall.
0:28:35 > 0:28:39It's was a rather rainy, cold, early Spring evening.
0:28:39 > 0:28:41It felt more like Shepton Mallet than Spain.
0:28:41 > 0:28:46I've just been watching three of those guys serving the cider,
0:28:46 > 0:28:50the cidre and I think macho comes very easily to the Spanish.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53The way they were standing there, hand held high,
0:28:53 > 0:28:57looking straight in front of them, pouring into the glass.
0:28:57 > 0:29:00And I was just watching, they were getting it as close as they could
0:29:00 > 0:29:02to their chests and I was thinking,
0:29:02 > 0:29:03a bit like a matador in a bull fight.
0:29:03 > 0:29:06Not quite so dangerous, I have to say.
0:29:06 > 0:29:10You know, when they stand there and the bull's horn goes so close
0:29:10 > 0:29:11to their really smart chest.
0:29:11 > 0:29:15It's like that, it's the same sort of seriousness on their face.
0:29:15 > 0:29:18Love it. Love this too.
0:29:20 > 0:29:24One of the things I really like at these local festivals
0:29:24 > 0:29:27is to go and buy some of the food that everybody eats
0:29:27 > 0:29:30sso I've got some, at some cost to me, I can tell you -
0:29:30 > 0:29:33the queue was enormous - some local food.
0:29:33 > 0:29:36I just find it so appetising, you know,
0:29:36 > 0:29:40much as I like the odd hotdog, this is much more attractive to me.
0:29:40 > 0:29:46First of all we've got fabada, that's their sausage, ham and bean stew.
0:29:46 > 0:29:48Beans being the most important.
0:29:48 > 0:29:52In here we've got tripe. A lot of people don't like tripe but I love it.
0:29:52 > 0:29:56Particularly with this is sausage and pimenton, really good way of eating it.
0:29:56 > 0:30:02Here we've got more chorizo, well it is Spain, but this time done in cider. I really like that.
0:30:02 > 0:30:04It's really nice and acid.
0:30:04 > 0:30:11And finally, or course, cabrales cheese, just on a slice of very nice bread. I've tried some already.
0:30:11 > 0:30:16Cabrales, the second most famous cheese in all of Spain after manchego.
0:30:16 > 0:30:20Number one cheese in Asturias, made from three different milks.
0:30:20 > 0:30:24Goat, cow's and ewe milk. Ewe's milk, sorry.
0:30:24 > 0:30:27Matured in caves, fantastic.
0:30:35 > 0:30:39This is one of the best known cabrales cheese makers in Asturias.
0:30:39 > 0:30:41Pepe Barda.
0:30:41 > 0:30:46His village of Tielve lies in the heart of the mountains.
0:30:49 > 0:30:57And it's the mountains, the Picos de Europa, that is the secret of great success of cabrales.
0:30:57 > 0:31:03This is where the cheeses are stored and the limestone is quite porous, so the wind blows through them.
0:31:03 > 0:31:07The Spanish call this the "soplao" which means breath.
0:31:07 > 0:31:10Good lord,
0:31:10 > 0:31:12this is really amazing.
0:31:12 > 0:31:17You know, I thought there was going to be some sort of stainless steel here
0:31:17 > 0:31:21or something or some vestiges of, er, modernity but it's, it's just a genuine cave
0:31:21 > 0:31:27and it's, it's running with water which I'd always heard about these cheeses
0:31:27 > 0:31:30like Roquefort, because they need the dampness for the mould to grow.
0:31:30 > 0:31:36But it's just amazing up here in the Picos mountains there's still bears out there and wolves.
0:31:36 > 0:31:41I mean this is, this is as hidden, as hidden a thing as you can get.
0:31:41 > 0:31:44It smells so ripe.
0:31:44 > 0:31:48I have to say, cabrales is a cheese for serious cheese lovers.
0:31:48 > 0:31:52The first time you taste it you may not quite get it.
0:31:52 > 0:31:57It's acidic and has a parmesan-like graininess.
0:31:57 > 0:31:59If I saw it on the menu now,
0:31:59 > 0:32:05I wouldn't hesitate to be reunited with it and it goes so well with cider.
0:32:14 > 0:32:19A friend of mine said I had to be in Oviedo for Easter.
0:32:19 > 0:32:25When I see a procession like this and feel its emotional impact,
0:32:25 > 0:32:28I yearn for a time when everybody believed.
0:32:28 > 0:32:30It's so powerful.
0:32:30 > 0:32:34The conical hoods the hard tap, tapping of their staves
0:32:34 > 0:32:38echoing through the narrow streets, the flickering faceless eyes.
0:32:38 > 0:32:43Everything is designed it seems to put the fear of god in you.
0:32:44 > 0:32:51But the adoration of the Madonna and the procession of the penitent is at the heart of this celebration.
0:32:53 > 0:33:00They say that god moves in mysterious ways and it doesn't get more mysterious than this.
0:33:04 > 0:33:07I've been here a few days and I feel really at home here.
0:33:07 > 0:33:11There's something really relaxing for British people about Spain.
0:33:11 > 0:33:15It's, well if you compare it with Italy, Italy's all about style,
0:33:15 > 0:33:19about the way you look, about the food, about e-everything.
0:33:19 > 0:33:22It's gotta be the best pasta, the best tomatoes.
0:33:22 > 0:33:30I love all that, don't get me wrong, but there's something relaxing about here a-and the food is understated.
0:33:30 > 0:33:34There is great food here but you have to sort of go out and find it.
0:33:34 > 0:33:36They don't shout about it.
0:33:36 > 0:33:39If you say to them, what do you think of fabada?
0:33:39 > 0:33:43It's always like hand on heart, this is where you're really touching me
0:33:43 > 0:33:47but you go into restaurants, things are put down in front of you.
0:33:47 > 0:33:53There's not a big effort to make it look beautiful but when it's good, it is really good.
0:33:53 > 0:33:58And that's what's so exciting to me. It's, it's just going out and finding all those hidden dishes
0:33:58 > 0:33:59that you don't really know about.
0:33:59 > 0:34:05It really, it really appeals to the sort of explorer in me.
0:34:05 > 0:34:13It's impossible here it's seems to me, for an hour to pass without someone mentioning the word fabada,
0:34:13 > 0:34:19and here the cook Maria, at Las Penas restaurant makes it virtually every day.
0:34:22 > 0:34:27She starts off with chorizos, cured belly pork and a lovely beans,
0:34:27 > 0:34:32followed by black pudding and that's cooked gently for three hours.
0:34:34 > 0:34:40She adds saffron and butter and it's taking on the colours of the Spanish flag.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44It's nearly ready so a quick taste and a tad more salt.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47Oh, by the way, you never stir it.
0:34:47 > 0:34:52You only shake the pot, otherwise the beans would break up and the black pudding would burst.
0:34:52 > 0:34:55This is a sight to gladden the eye of any Asturian.
0:34:55 > 0:34:59I've see it in motorway service stations round here...
0:34:59 > 0:35:04Fabada Asturiana, the culinary soul of the region.
0:35:17 > 0:35:22I know very little, I must say, I'd never heard of Oviedo before I came here. It's a lovely place.
0:35:22 > 0:35:25I'm so enjoying the Easter procession.
0:35:25 > 0:35:31Turns out Oviedo is the capital of Christian Spain for 200 years.
0:35:31 > 0:35:37I didn't know that. I've also just found out that the Prince and Princess of Asturias
0:35:37 > 0:35:40are like our Prince and Princess of Wales
0:35:40 > 0:35:48and also, get this, the Princess of Asturias comes from Oviedo and her name is Leticia, there you go.
0:35:56 > 0:36:02Another iconic dish and one I've cooked many times, is patatas bravas.
0:36:02 > 0:36:05It's a dish popular all over Spain and I love it.
0:36:05 > 0:36:08Boil some potatoes and drain them.
0:36:08 > 0:36:11Then fry a couple of onions with a clove or two of garlic.
0:36:11 > 0:36:15Cook till soft and add pimenton.
0:36:15 > 0:36:20Well, this is another one that's looking like the Spanish flag. I just can't get over it.
0:36:20 > 0:36:25It's just these colours, the colours of Spain in the flag and in the food.
0:36:25 > 0:36:28Actually this is, er, bravas sauce, patatas bravas.
0:36:28 > 0:36:31It doesn't actually mean "brave potatoes".
0:36:31 > 0:36:34It means sort of, er, fierce potatoes.
0:36:34 > 0:36:38I think like the Cornish say, it's a brave old storm or it's, it's brave and hot.
0:36:38 > 0:36:41It means it's fiercely hot and this is fiercely hot, too.
0:36:41 > 0:36:44I've just put loads of chilli in there.
0:36:44 > 0:36:48Now I put in chopped tomatoes, tinned are OK,
0:36:48 > 0:36:53and then a bit of water and three or four dried bay leaves.
0:36:53 > 0:36:56Some sea salt and to balance that, some sugar.
0:37:00 > 0:37:04A splash or two of sherry vinegar, I love sherry vinegar,
0:37:04 > 0:37:07and that as far as the sauce is concerned, is it.
0:37:07 > 0:37:12All that remains is to saute those parboiled potatoes in olive oil.
0:37:15 > 0:37:22I had a feeling that shortly after Columbus brought back these things like tomatoes, potatoes, chillies,
0:37:22 > 0:37:29little cafes opened mainly in Seville serving up the food of the Americas,
0:37:29 > 0:37:36and I wouldn't mind betting that dishes like this were on the menu, obviously minus the food processor.
0:37:36 > 0:37:41What better way of showcasing the vegetables and spices of the New World.
0:37:41 > 0:37:43What did we do without tomatoes?
0:37:43 > 0:37:47Did we all live on turnips like Baldrick in Blackadder?
0:37:54 > 0:38:01So driving further eastwards, thinking of the Mediterranean and seeing what appears to be Austria,
0:38:01 > 0:38:02how could this happen?
0:38:02 > 0:38:07I didn't envisage this when we were planning this trip and it's so blinking cold.
0:38:07 > 0:38:11I'm going to see a friend, Chris Hadlington,
0:38:11 > 0:38:15a chef from Plymouth who now owns a house in the Cantabrian mountains.
0:38:15 > 0:38:21He's spoken fondly about the village where he now lives and I had warm expectations.
0:38:21 > 0:38:23So here we are in the village.
0:38:23 > 0:38:27- It's, it's not very picturesque. - It's beautiful, isn't it?
0:38:27 > 0:38:31- What? Is very historic I must say. - It's very high up. Nearly a thousand metres up here.
0:38:31 > 0:38:35- Really?- Yeah.- God it's cold. - Very cold, especially for May. Yeah.
0:38:35 > 0:38:38- So where's this bar, then? - Here is, this is the bar. - Looks like a, a shed.
0:38:38 > 0:38:45Well, literally the guy that runs it, it, he owns, he owns the barn and this is a community bar so it's
0:38:45 > 0:38:50not licensed, it has no taxes and it's literally run for the people in the village.
0:38:50 > 0:38:53- Gosh.- It never closes.
0:38:53 > 0:38:58If there's nobody here you just help yourself to a beer and pop the money on the counter.
0:38:58 > 0:39:02- My gosh!- Here we go.- This is wonderful.- It's a magic bar.
0:39:02 > 0:39:04This is a real boy's bar.
0:39:04 > 0:39:08- And here we are, always a nice bowl of, er...- That is it?
0:39:08 > 0:39:10Yeah, that's the caldo.
0:39:10 > 0:39:14Caldo is literally, er, they'll give you a shot, just to warm you up,
0:39:14 > 0:39:19but it's made with the, the bones from, these are beef bones.
0:39:19 > 0:39:22And garbanzos which are the chickpeas.
0:39:22 > 0:39:28Pimientos, the peppers, carrots, and onions and you drink it
0:39:28 > 0:39:33in a little cup or a little glass and they'll just give you the, the clear broth and the stock is just stunning.
0:39:33 > 0:39:36- Well, you'll taste it in a minute. - So it's called caldo.
0:39:36 > 0:39:38Called caldo, caldo is just stock.
0:39:38 > 0:39:40It's the Spanish word for stock, yeah, caldo.
0:39:40 > 0:39:43All the time there, it'll warm you up.
0:39:43 > 0:39:45Fernando, Fernando looks after the bar.
0:39:45 > 0:39:47Very, very nice to meet you, Fernando.
0:39:47 > 0:39:48Can we have something to drink?
0:39:48 > 0:39:53- I would have thought some... - Dos vinos, por favour.- Vino.
0:39:53 > 0:39:55Well, I mean it's unbelievably fabulous.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58I had no idea. I just thought it was all going to be neat and tidy.
0:39:58 > 0:40:01- No, no.- This is rougher, rougher than I could have imagined.
0:40:01 > 0:40:06It reminds me, like in Cornwall, you've got all these like pretty villages full of holiday cottages.
0:40:06 > 0:40:10Then there's a few villages left that got these disused cars,
0:40:10 > 0:40:15you know, the wheels off on blocks or it's just like this.
0:40:15 > 0:40:16This is very much a working village.
0:40:16 > 0:40:20This is where the people look after the cattle, look after...
0:40:20 > 0:40:22Would you ever get any tourists up here?
0:40:22 > 0:40:24- Never see a tourist up here. - I'll bet.
0:40:24 > 0:40:28- That's the joy of coming up. - And what about the food then?- Oh, the food in this part of the world.
0:40:28 > 0:40:33Well it's, it's you know, living amongst the mountains is fantastic.
0:40:33 > 0:40:35They hunt wild boar, they hunt venison.
0:40:35 > 0:40:38The rivers are full of fresh brown trout.
0:40:38 > 0:40:43In fact my neighbour, last night when I got home, had just fished out two brown trout for my supper.
0:40:43 > 0:40:46How fantastic's that, straight out of the river that day.
0:40:46 > 0:40:49This sounds like Ernest Hemmingway, sounds like...
0:40:49 > 0:40:51- It's great. - So what, what would you eat?
0:40:51 > 0:40:55I mean, presumably there's no restaurants around here.
0:40:55 > 0:40:58No restaurants up here. Down in the valley you'd get restaurants.
0:40:58 > 0:40:59You eat whatever's available.
0:40:59 > 0:41:02When I first arrived here you think the food's fantastic
0:41:02 > 0:41:07and then you find you go to a restaurant and it's the same food and the same food the next restaurant.
0:41:07 > 0:41:13But what you realise is that they only eat a) what's local and b) what's in season.
0:41:13 > 0:41:17So in the end you start to become very, very picky. Who cooks the best casido?
0:41:17 > 0:41:20And, and how important is food and eating to the locals.
0:41:20 > 0:41:22Oh, they, it's, it's, it's a religion.
0:41:22 > 0:41:24- It's very important.- It's a religion.
0:41:24 > 0:41:28I tell you, these people, whatever happens, it's one o'clock, it's lunch time.
0:41:30 > 0:41:33For a snack, Fernando fries fatty, salted belly pork
0:41:33 > 0:41:38which goes really well with the wine, and then slices of black pudding.
0:41:38 > 0:41:43This was made by Audelina in the next village down the valley.
0:41:43 > 0:41:51I know this is not to everyone's taste but it is to mine and it may not be around for much longer.
0:41:51 > 0:41:53Aude's just been mixing some rice
0:41:53 > 0:41:58which she's boiled and cooled in this lovely terracotta pot and then she's added, er, fat.
0:41:58 > 0:42:00Onions fried in fat.
0:42:00 > 0:42:02Twice as much onion to the fat.
0:42:02 > 0:42:07And I think the onion, the very, very slow cooked onion in the lard
0:42:07 > 0:42:12is, apart from the blood which is about to go in, that's what makes really good morcilla.
0:42:12 > 0:42:14It's got that slightly sweet taste of onion in it.
0:42:14 > 0:42:19Now she's adding, er, sweet paprika, dulce.
0:42:29 > 0:42:31That's very good.
0:42:33 > 0:42:38So the mixture of rice, onions fried in lard, blood and pimenton
0:42:38 > 0:42:41is forced into these casings made from intestines,
0:42:41 > 0:42:48and they are gently put into a caldo, similar to what we saw in the bar up the road and poached.
0:42:48 > 0:42:53She just said they'll be boiling for 20 minutes just to cook the blood and the blood's like,
0:42:53 > 0:42:56it's a bit like egg yolk, really. It just sets the whole sausage.
0:43:02 > 0:43:05Aude's said that she learnt how to make, black pudding, morcilla,
0:43:05 > 0:43:11when she was, when she's a child but she's been making it for about 40 years, mainly for her family.
0:43:11 > 0:43:16She's had seven children, but every time she makes it, she makes a lot of it
0:43:16 > 0:43:19and if any of the neighbours want some, she, she'll give it to them.
0:43:19 > 0:43:24And she says she's still, if she wants some, some black pudding, she'll still stop and make it.
0:43:24 > 0:43:30She said loads of people make black pudding around here because, er, it's what they do.
0:43:30 > 0:43:34Make morcilla, but, er, but she said they're all a bit different.
0:43:34 > 0:43:38Everybody has their little personal touch, but I bet hers is the best.
0:43:38 > 0:43:42I mean just by watching her and talking to her, she puts everything into it.
0:43:44 > 0:43:49I'm fascinated. I'm, er writing the recipe, possibly only for my own benefit cos I,
0:43:49 > 0:43:54I can't believe you could buy, er, bottles of blood from your local supermarket, but you never know.
0:43:54 > 0:43:59If they see this, they may be encouraged to, to start stocking it.
0:43:59 > 0:44:03Can just see it on the shelves - fresh blood, pigs.
0:44:03 > 0:44:06This is the food I set out to find.
0:44:06 > 0:44:10Ordinary people cooking dishes that have been here with them for centuries...
0:44:10 > 0:44:14but who knows how long they'll last in this supermarket fuelled world.
0:44:14 > 0:44:17Oh, gracias.
0:44:18 > 0:44:21That's really lovely and what I love about it is the rice.
0:44:21 > 0:44:25It's just gives it plenty of body. You would have no idea there is blood in here
0:44:25 > 0:44:29and people get squeamish about black puddings, but it's just there
0:44:29 > 0:44:31to bind it together and the lasting flavour
0:44:31 > 0:44:37is the sweetness of the onions and that, er, and the chilli heat from the pimentons.
0:44:37 > 0:44:40It's really good.
0:44:40 > 0:44:43After watching that, I needed to cook and campers are
0:44:43 > 0:44:48brilliant things if you get the urge to create something you fancy.
0:44:48 > 0:44:52I'm going to cook tortas con heuvos he .
0:44:52 > 0:44:59Basically, that's corn pancakes, eggs and fried meat from chorizo sausage trimmings.
0:44:59 > 0:45:02But first to make the pancakes or tortas.
0:45:02 > 0:45:04Using maize flour, salt and water.
0:45:04 > 0:45:09Mix it all into a stiff paste like a pastry and set it aside.
0:45:09 > 0:45:11Now for the Eheas.
0:45:11 > 0:45:15I quite often pick up dishes when I'm after something else.
0:45:15 > 0:45:17Er, we were at this restaurant called Casa Poli
0:45:17 > 0:45:22filming hake cooked in Asturian cider, very nice it was too.
0:45:22 > 0:45:26But after I'd finished watching it being cooked and tasting it, they invited me to sit down
0:45:26 > 0:45:31and have lunch, and I just chose this really simple thing cos I was not really very hungry after eating
0:45:31 > 0:45:38all that hake so I, I bought some chorizo sausage, this and bought some corn and am making it all up.
0:45:38 > 0:45:44I've got everything in the camper except a rolling pin so I'm going to have to beat the living daylights
0:45:44 > 0:45:46out of this between two tea towels.
0:45:46 > 0:45:50While I was having lunch, I was talking to the girl that, our translator,
0:45:50 > 0:45:53and I said I'd really like this for breakfast.
0:45:53 > 0:45:56She said, "Oh, no, no, not for breakfast."
0:45:56 > 0:46:00You know we only have coffee and a, and, and a piece of bread or something like that, but being
0:46:00 > 0:46:07British, also actually being rather a fan of the Mexican dish, Uvas Rancheros, which is quite similar,
0:46:07 > 0:46:11I really like something, I would really like something like this for breakfast.
0:46:12 > 0:46:16In height of summer back in Cornwall, I'd get shouted at
0:46:16 > 0:46:20and told to get back into a camp site where I belong... but not here.
0:46:20 > 0:46:23Er, it's just so nice sitting here in, er, Campy,
0:46:23 > 0:46:30er, with a lovely sunny day out there and doing a bit of cooking. It's very, very peaceful.
0:46:30 > 0:46:33Mind you, I don't want you to think I'm camping all the time.
0:46:33 > 0:46:37I'm not like doing a sort of Ray Mears, you know, living it rough.
0:46:37 > 0:46:42It's just occasionally, I like a bit of a, a bit of a cook.
0:46:42 > 0:46:44The tortas are done.
0:46:44 > 0:46:49I'll dry them off in a kitchen roll and start to fry the eggs.
0:46:49 > 0:46:54I know the Spanish wouldn't agree but I think this would make a great breakfast at home once in a while.
0:46:54 > 0:46:57A change from bacon and eggs.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00One of the things I'm quickly finding out is that cooking
0:47:00 > 0:47:05in a landscape in a camper one gives one a serious appetite.
0:47:05 > 0:47:10As soon as I smelt the chorizo cooking, I couldn't wait.
0:47:12 > 0:47:14Well, it's absolutely delicious.
0:47:14 > 0:47:19Er, I know I say it myself, I'm quite pleased with my, er, corn pancakes.
0:47:19 > 0:47:21They're really, really quite good.
0:47:21 > 0:47:26I mean they're a little bit heavier than I remember them in the restaurant but they're very tasty,
0:47:26 > 0:47:32and delicious, just tastes, tastes like chorizo and of course the eggs are so good.
0:47:32 > 0:47:37I don't know, you never seem to get a bad egg in Spain.
0:47:38 > 0:47:41You don't get bad bread either, wherever you go.
0:47:41 > 0:47:45Even the Romans, who cared about what they ate, noticed how good the bread was here.
0:47:45 > 0:47:49This is a little bakery in Orzales in Cantabria.
0:47:49 > 0:47:53I think bread in Spain is an understated marvel.
0:47:53 > 0:47:56I can't recall ever being disappointed.
0:47:56 > 0:47:59It's rough and unrefined and full of wheaty flavour.
0:47:59 > 0:48:05To me it epitomises the straight forwardness of Spain.
0:48:05 > 0:48:08It's not the stuff of trendy boutique bakeries.
0:48:08 > 0:48:12It is what it is and always will be.
0:48:12 > 0:48:17Well, I've noticed loads of signs here in Cantabria and in Asturias for artisan bakers.
0:48:17 > 0:48:20You can't get more artisan than this.
0:48:20 > 0:48:26Everything obviously is, is done by hand but I sincerely believe it's not gonna change.
0:48:26 > 0:48:28These sort of places will not die out.
0:48:28 > 0:48:32Certainly not around here, because everybody believes in their bread.
0:48:32 > 0:48:39So we won't be seeing any of those sort, supermarket bakeries with sort of dough with accelerators and
0:48:39 > 0:48:45decelerators to make it all speed up and slow down when we want it. It's all gonna be like this, natural.
0:48:45 > 0:48:48Just noticing what they're doing with their hands here.
0:48:48 > 0:48:53They're first of all making a, a dent in the middle. That's to show that it's this bakery.
0:48:53 > 0:48:55A little squiggle with a knife.
0:48:55 > 0:48:58That's just to stop the bread rising too much.
0:49:01 > 0:49:07They also make empanadas here filled with bacon and chorizo, and it's fashioned very much like a pasty.
0:49:09 > 0:49:14I wouldn't mind betting, although I suspect my Cornish friends would be
0:49:14 > 0:49:16harrumphing at this, that the Cornish pasty
0:49:16 > 0:49:24is somehow linked to the empanada and as I said in Santiago, that goes right back to the days of the Moors.
0:49:24 > 0:49:28In fact they had similar looking pastries filled with chickpeas.
0:49:31 > 0:49:37I guess from my amateur baking days, er, they're knocking the bread just to see if it's cooked or not.
0:49:37 > 0:49:40If it gives a nice hollow sound then it's cooked.
0:49:40 > 0:49:42Just been fascinated watching the whole process.
0:49:42 > 0:49:45I mean, they, they're craftsmen.
0:49:45 > 0:49:50I mean... I just love watching people do things that they've been doing
0:49:50 > 0:49:53all their lives and doing so well without even thinking about it.
0:49:53 > 0:49:56Just thinking about that expression, bread is the staff of live.
0:49:56 > 0:50:01It's almost like, bread is the sort of centre of our existence and
0:50:01 > 0:50:06when you think about bakers, bakers like this, what's a job worth?
0:50:06 > 0:50:13What's a job worth, what's a banker worth, what's a, what am I worth, as a cook or maybe as a TV celeb?
0:50:13 > 0:50:17One thing that is certain to me, is that these, these guys are worth something.
0:50:17 > 0:50:21All the people that buy this bread in the villages and the towns all around here
0:50:21 > 0:50:28really, really like their bread and I just imagine what it, it would be like if this bakery wasn't here.
0:50:28 > 0:50:32They, they'd be the worst for it, they'd be the sadder for it
0:50:32 > 0:50:35and that, that... It means something to people around here.
0:50:46 > 0:50:53So to the Basque country and this is the Basque's beloved Don Estia or San Sebastian.
0:50:53 > 0:50:58One food writer said that the Basques are famous for their appetites.
0:50:58 > 0:51:02They'll eat three times the amount of the average Andalucian.
0:51:02 > 0:51:06Even their tapas are heartier than the southern equivalent.
0:51:08 > 0:51:13Here they call it pinchos, and at lunchtime the whole town goes crazy for it.
0:51:13 > 0:51:18Pinchos refers to the cocktails stick or pincho that holds
0:51:18 > 0:51:22the various elements together. This one's called a gilda.
0:51:22 > 0:51:30It's curvaceous and hot, named after a character played by Rita Hayworth in a Hollywood film of the '40s.
0:51:30 > 0:51:34The whole idea of pinchos or tapas for that matter is that you
0:51:34 > 0:51:39go from one bar to another, each will have its own speciality.
0:51:39 > 0:51:46The Basques are extremely convivial people and will think nothing about giving four or five bars a go.
0:51:46 > 0:51:49I mean just look at this variety here.
0:51:49 > 0:51:54I mean you just come in here and you think oh, what am I gonna have, you know, you're spoilt for choice.
0:51:54 > 0:51:59And over here we've got green peppers with octopus, onion and olive oil.
0:51:59 > 0:52:04Here we've got anchovies with garlic, parsley and olive oil.
0:52:04 > 0:52:06Here we've got some anchovy fritters.
0:52:06 > 0:52:09Here we've got a Spanish tortilla. Love that. Ordered one myself.
0:52:09 > 0:52:11Another tortilla with anchovies in it.
0:52:11 > 0:52:18Of course some fried hake and here, some fried peppers from Guernica which is their speciality.
0:52:18 > 0:52:20They take it really seriously.
0:52:20 > 0:52:28There's about just under 200 pinchos bars in, in San Sebastian, but some of the top ones compete every year
0:52:28 > 0:52:34to do the best possible pinchos and they've just won it with that dish at the end there, the Pincher,
0:52:34 > 0:52:38which is a horn of pastry filled with cream cheese and anchovy.
0:52:40 > 0:52:41Very nice.
0:52:41 > 0:52:44Very nice.
0:52:44 > 0:52:45It's really quite civilised.
0:52:45 > 0:52:51At weekends the Spanish will often have a family lunch and come to a tapas bar
0:52:51 > 0:52:56before going on to lunch and just have a couple of tapas, not five or six.
0:52:56 > 0:52:59I like that idea because I love my food and the thought
0:52:59 > 0:53:03of just coming to have a couple of spicy little things like that before lunch
0:53:03 > 0:53:06would be really, really acceptable to me.
0:53:06 > 0:53:12Find it a bit hard to start lunch at 2.30pm, 3pm but I could get used to it.
0:53:12 > 0:53:18If I was making a documentary about fishing, I'd have to include this place.
0:53:18 > 0:53:23It's said that the Basques discovered the shores of American before Columbus.
0:53:23 > 0:53:29They sailed to where they knew there were plentiful shelves of cod, off New Foundland on the Grand Banks,
0:53:29 > 0:53:31but they didn't tell anybody.
0:53:31 > 0:53:34Canny people the Basques.
0:53:34 > 0:53:36I'm a great fan of San Sebastian.
0:53:36 > 0:53:40It's just a very elegant city right on the sea. It's quite special.
0:53:40 > 0:53:44Couldn't resist just coming down near the quay for a few sardines but actually I'm here
0:53:44 > 0:53:47to go to one of the Gastronomic Societies.
0:53:47 > 0:53:53Now the Gastronomic Societies, most of them founded about a hundred years ago and they started
0:53:53 > 0:53:55with a group of fisherman wanting to go out
0:53:55 > 0:53:58and cook food amongst themselves and, and drink quite a lot
0:53:58 > 0:54:03and apparently it was very much encouraged by their wives.
0:54:03 > 0:54:08You could imagine they'd been out at sea for three or four days, come back and were loafing around at home
0:54:08 > 0:54:13and the wives would be going, "Get out there, get out there with all your mates. Leave us alone."
0:54:13 > 0:54:16Of course they'd then go out with all their mates, drink too much,
0:54:16 > 0:54:18come home and fall straight to sleep.
0:54:18 > 0:54:23Which was also well liked by the wives, if you catch my drift.
0:54:29 > 0:54:31SINGS TRADITIONAL SONG
0:54:38 > 0:54:40Nowadays there's not so many fishermen,
0:54:40 > 0:54:46but they're still passionate about cooking and singing, and while we're at it, drinking.
0:54:46 > 0:54:50Paco, the only one that could speak English explains.
0:54:50 > 0:54:54- In San Sebastian there are more than a hundred clubs like this. - What sort of food do you cook?
0:54:54 > 0:55:00- Traditional Basque food or...? - Yes.- Experimental?
0:55:00 > 0:55:04No, no, not experimental because we are not, we are not, er, professional.
0:55:04 > 0:55:07This is, er, our restaurants, eh?
0:55:07 > 0:55:13No, no, no this is, er, nice food, er, like at home more or less.
0:55:13 > 0:55:17Like at home. We have fish, of course,
0:55:17 > 0:55:21because we are in San Sebastian but also meat
0:55:21 > 0:55:26or eggs or, er, vegetables, everything.
0:55:26 > 0:55:29Most men in kitchens, women say, make too much mess.
0:55:29 > 0:55:32Yes, in here, too. In San Sebastian, too.
0:55:32 > 0:55:36That's the reason that they, er, they don't cook a lot at home.
0:55:44 > 0:55:48They're very enthusiastic these guys, er, so they wanted me to put some pass on.
0:55:48 > 0:55:52Yeah, you're right, yeah, it makes it look better. OK, thank you.
0:55:54 > 0:55:58But what these are, are, er, cod or hake throats...
0:55:58 > 0:55:59this bit...
0:55:59 > 0:56:03and apparently years ago when fishermen were very poor,
0:56:03 > 0:56:07it was the only bit they could take off the fish to eat themselves,
0:56:07 > 0:56:11because you took the throat out, you can't see when you look at the whole fish in the market,
0:56:11 > 0:56:16nobody would have noticed and they'd eat, they'd eat the throats.
0:56:16 > 0:56:17Now, I love this.
0:56:17 > 0:56:23It's, it's a bit like so many sort of peasant foods suddenly becomes really expensive.
0:56:23 > 0:56:29They are really expensive. A kilo of these throats are now 60 or 70 Euros.
0:56:34 > 0:56:37Just thinking with them bursting into spontaneous song like this,
0:56:37 > 0:56:39actually they're a bit like the Welsh.
0:56:39 > 0:56:43I mean if you said to a Welshman you know, where do you come from?
0:56:43 > 0:56:46They'd, no way would they say from Britain.
0:56:46 > 0:56:48They'd say from Wales and it's the same with the Basques.
0:56:48 > 0:56:55Also, similarly, they've got a pretty serious rugby club here in San Sebastian as well.
0:56:58 > 0:57:04These hake throats are called cocochas and if you're ever in these parts, make sure you try them.
0:57:04 > 0:57:09They're really silky because they've been cooked really slowly and they're sweet, too.
0:57:09 > 0:57:12Well, you know, manna and all that,
0:57:12 > 0:57:16I mean we arrived here at eleven o'clock, er, to start cooking.
0:57:16 > 0:57:22It's now, er, four o'clock and we're only on the third course.
0:57:22 > 0:57:28Er, it's been a delight, I mean you know, they, they know what life's all about to be honest.
0:57:28 > 0:57:31I'm really enjoying it.
0:57:31 > 0:57:36These fritters are made from hake which the Basques call "legatza"
0:57:36 > 0:57:40but I suspect that although the food's important here, it's the singing that comes first.
0:57:45 > 0:57:51They're singing a song that only has one word, "hambre", and that not surprisingly means hungry.
0:58:23 > 0:58:28Next time its Rioja, Navarra and the blue shores of the Mediterranean.
0:58:28 > 0:58:30Can't wait.
0:58:36 > 0:58:39Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:39 > 0:58:42Email: subtitling@bbc.co.uk