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If there is one thing that characterises the Basque Country, it is its famous gastronomy, and not just because we enjoy eating it, we also love cooking. Many of today's typical recipes are dishes made for centuries and passed down from generation to generation, keeping the legacy alive.
The Basque Country is the region with the second-highest number of Michelin stars in the Iberian Peninsula: a total of 34 stars in 24 restaurants in the three provinces. This is the result of the prestigious cooking schools such as the Basque Culinary Center and the elite chefs we have in our territory.
Do you dare to prepare some of our most traditional recipes? Then grab a pen and paper and start practicing at home!
Bacalao al pil-pil
It is one of the most popular dishes in Basque gastronomy, but do you know what the expression pil-pil means? It refers to the onomatopoeia of the sound made by the sauce as it is being cooked in the pan, hence the name.
To make this recipe, you only need three ingredients and an earthenware dish: 4 pieces of boneless cod, 4 cloves of garlic and EVOO. Are you up for it? Then follow the steps that we indicate in the following link: Cod in pil-pil sauce recipe.
Alubias con sacramentos
In the Basque Country, we have always had the custom of saying that we work to "take the beans home", this saying reflects the importance that this legume has had in our environment, in fact, in the baserris (farmhouses) they used to eat them almost every day due to their high energy intake.
The best known are Tolosa beans or Pintas de Álava beans , so this recipe can be made with either of them. Just don't forget the sacraments! Here is the recipe: Beans with sacraments recipe
This dish was the star recipe on Basque fishing boats, as it fed the entire crew with just a few ingredients. And as it was prepared in a vessel called a marmita, it adopted the name marmitako.
At first, it was a potato stew, but over time, they added the tuna they caught while fishing, and, without realising it, they created a nutritionally complete dish. Here is the recipe: Marmitako.
Lamb chops grilled over a fire of vines
Lamb chops are the star dish of Rioja Alavesa, a delicacy that cannot be missed at any celebration.
It is a very simple recipe that can be cooked on the grill or in a frying pan and can be accompanied by chips, a salad, or whatever you fancy. Here are the steps to follow: Chuletillas al sarmiento.
We couldn't end this post without mentioning a dessert, and the one we are going to talk about next is the typical Basque dessert par excellence. Goxua, which means sweet in Basque, is a sweet from Vitoria-Gasteiz, although over time it has spread throughout the Basque Country.
It is a sponge cake base with layers of whipped cream and custard with sugar and cinnamon on the surface, part of which is burnt to caramelise it. Do you want to sweeten up your loved ones a little? Here is the recipe: Goxua.
In this post we have only shown a small part of our gastronomy, to find out more and to make all kinds of traditional Basque recipes, check out our website!
On egin! (Enjoy!).
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