As the cold weather draws us indoors, the kitchen once more becomes a place for rustling up seasonal comfort foods. Autumn and winter in Catalunya are filled with much-loved culinary traditions and, from freshly-picked mushrooms to hearty meat dishes, there’s plenty to warm the body and soul.
They say that Catalan cuisine is based on three main ingredients: wheat, wine and oil. The origins of this trinity are more likely to be biblical than local, but Catalan cuisine certainly embraces Mediterranean ingredients that were long cultivated by the Phoenicians and Romans. The region’s culinary traditions are nuanced and determined by its landscapes and the flavours they produce. It can be separated into coastal and mountain cuisine, as well as the interior cuisine that hails from the high country (Terra Alta). Many recipes originated in the towns and villages across the region, making it harder to find dishes that are native to multicultural cities like Barcelona.
With the top restaurant in the world, El Celler de Can Roca, in its backyard, and establishments like Tickets and Disfrutar wowing crowds with crafty gastronomic techniques, Catalunya is no stranger to haute cuisine, either. So whether it’s traditional recipes you’re after or a more contemporary take, the following workshops will fine-tune your techniques and teach you all you need to know about the cuisine of fair Catalunya.
WINE AND DINE: Catacurian
Alicia Juanpere Artigas and Jonathan Perret understand how important viticulture is to Catalan gastronomy. For this reason, they have been offering cooking courses in the heart of Priorat wine country since 2003. Classes are kept small, each one celebrating a variety of regional dishes centred around key recipes, from classic paellas to more obscure recipes like clotxa, a peasant bread that hails from Tarragona.
Based in Gratallops, Catacurian offers all-inclusive single and multi-day tours that combine wine tastings at local vineyards with evening cooking classes and a stay at a local boutique hotel. Guests spend their days visiting local wine cellars, learning about the winemaking process and tasting wines from D.O. Montsant and D.O.Q. Priorat, the latter a region now in the forefront of Catalan winemaking. In the evenings, they participate in cooking classes of two to three hours followed by dinner.
Workshops from €150 per person.
Photo by Joan Sorolla
GET MEDIEVAL: Domus Sent Soví
In the scenic village of Hostalric, just an hour north of Barcelona, is Domus Sent Soví, a gastronomic centre devoted to maintaining Catalunya’s culinary heritage through the teachings of The Book of Sent Soví (1324), an anonymous work said to be Catalunya’s first book about its cuisine. According to the prologue, it was written in Catalan by a man who was once chef to the King of England and was intended for squires stationed with lords and gentlemen to gain knowledge of the appropriate recipes to cook for their masters. Aside from the first printed book of Catalan cuisine, Llibre de Coc (1520) by Robert de Nola, it is considered the foundational text of Catalan cuisine, and many of its recipes are still referenced today. For example, picada and sofregit, which form the basis of many of today’s sauces, are included—albeit sans tomatoes, which didn’t enter the culinary register until after they were brought from the Americas in the 16th century.
Domus Sent Soví was created with the aim of protecting and promoting this key part of Catalunya’s gastronomic past, and uses the text as its guiding principle in teaching the essentials of medieval cookery. In contrast to its traditional subject, the centre itself is a large sleek space perched above the town’s picturesque valley. It houses a number of different classrooms, an auditorium and a small shop featuring cookbooks and local products.
The centre holds workshops for individuals and groups and, while their classes are primarily centred on medieval recipes, they also run regular classes devoted to seasonal cuisine. In the autumn and winter, for example, they often feature a class focused solely on wild mushrooms.
Workshops from €15
FRESH CATCH: Espai del Peix
In the heart of Palamós, on the docks where fishermen bring in the daily catch, stands the Espai del Peix, a centre which teaches visitors about Catalunya’s fishing industry. Developed in collaboration with the Centre d’Interpretació de la Pesca—the maritime museum dedicated to Mediterranean fish and the local fishing industry—the Espai has one large classroom that runs cooking workshops and showcooking events all focused, of course, on fish. Their philosophy is that cooking is a way for people to better understand the natural products of the region and teaching is a way to preserve ancestral recipes. Instructing clients on traditional mariner cooking—recipes of humble origin that were developed and handed down by local fisherman—the Espai also explains the plight of the fishing industry and showcases lesser-known fish as a way to support responsible consumerism. Visitors can combine their workshop or museum visit with a trip to the fish auction, where they can take in all the piscine action from a salon overhead.
Fish Auction: €1.50
Espai, museum and tasting: €6
Workshops: €10 / €2.50 for minors under 10
Photo courtesy of Espai del Peix
HAUTE CUISINE: Hofmann
In addition to its culinary degrees, Hofmann teaches the tricks of the trade to anyone who wants to up their culinary game (think tempura fried egg yolk) through an impressive series of monographic courses that focus on many Catalan classics. They teach traditional fare by the book or spin it into haute cuisine. Learn straightforward techniques to make a fantastic coca bread or weave traditional canelons into something otherworldly with unusual ingredients like sea urchin, shiitake and miso. This is a chance to learn from top chefs like Carme Ruscalleda of Sant Pau and Hideki Matsuhisa of Koy Shunka.
Monographic courses from €75
MOUNTAIN MENU: Lo Pallar del Coc
Nestled in the region of Pallars Sobirà in northwestern Catalunya, Lo Pallar del Coc is a country house run by Mariano and Silvia, which offers visitors a space to relax while learning the ingredients and recipes of mountain cuisine. Former chef and Hofmann teacher, Mariano gives classes tailored to guests’ preferences. All food is local, seasonal and organic whenever possible, and guests have the opportunity to combine a cooking workshop with a visit to local artesanal producers. Additionally, Silvia runs a wellness space with massage therapy and teaches handicraft workshops. The house is divided into apartments, which are available for rent, making it a perfect getaway for the travelling chef.
Cooking workshops from €80
JUST DESSERTS: Patisseria Escribà
For those of us who prefer to skip straight to dessert, consider a pastry course in Barcelona, home to one of the best pastry shops in the world, Patisseria Escribà. With a window display best known for its weighty chocolate sculptures, their 100-year-old shop on Gran Via is a sweet treasure trove and a well-known fixture among the locals who descend upon it each Easter to purchase their chocolate Monas. The corresponding school offers one-day workshops and trimestre courses dedicated to the foundations of pastry-making and decorating, as well as special masterclasses by Christian Escribà and Patricia Schmidt.
Monographic courses from €110
Photo courtesy of Curso Escribà Academy
For a different kind of cutting edge, check out Espai Sucre, a unique space that functions as part-classroom, part-restaurant, and instructs in restaurant quality desserts. They have a range of one-day courses, including some suited to celiacs and lactose intolerants. In the restaurant you can try one of their dessert tasting menus with out-of-the-ordinary creations like coconut tapioca pudding with burnt egg yolk and orujo liquor.
Photo courtesy of Espai Sucre