It's CALÇOTS time!

Hi again!

Wintertime is the Calçot season in Catalonia: both a social event and a culinary experience for the locals!

Calçots are a special type of green onion that is harvested in the winter. Catalan people organize "calçotades" with their friends and families, that could be socially considered our equivalent to summer american BBQs.

We get together and buy litterally hundreds of units (one serving is around 10-12 calçots). We grill them in the barbecue until they are quite burnt outside, and they are traditionally served on roof tiles to preserve the heat.

Before starting to eat, you must remember to put on a bib (if you are eating them in a restaurant, they'll provide them for you). And now you are ready!

First of all, pinch the root end of your calçot with your fingers, and pull the burnt skin out. It's the easiest way to clean the calçot.

Then dip the white tender part of the onion in the calçot sauce (a local sauce very similar to romesco... another Catalan sauce).

Keep grabbing the calçot by the green leaves, lift up your arm and aim the calçot at your mouth. Be careful with the sauce drops!

So you see, this is a fun (but a bit dirty too) tradition!

If you are not lucky enough to be invited by local friends, you can still try the calçots in most good tapas bars and traditional Catalan restaurants, even in some market bars.

But if you have an extra day left, I reccomend you to take the RENFE train to Valls, the hometown of Calçots.

Have fun and good appettite!