Cantabrian cuisine includes seafood from the Cantabrian Sea, salmon and trout from the upper basins of the rivers, vegetables and dairy products from the valleys, and veal and game from the Cantabrian mountains.

Fish and seafood

Seafood is widely used, from the entire coast and the

Bay of Santander The Bay of Santander is both a ''comarca'' of Cantabria and the largest estuary on the North coast of Spain, with an extension of 22.42 km (9 km long and 5 km wide). Due to the influence of Santander and its metropolitan area, nea ...

in particular, including clams,

mussel Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and Freshwater bivalve, freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other ...

pod razor The pod razor (''Ensis siliqua'') is a coastal bivalve of European waters. It is edible and has been fished commercially, especially in Portugal, Spain, Ireland and Scotland. ''Ensis siliqua'' is also known as the razor fish, razor clam or gian ...

s, cockles,

crab Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (abdomen) ( el, βραχύς , translit=brachys = short, / = tail), usually hidden entirely under the thorax. They live in all the ...

barnacle A barnacle is a type of arthropod constituting the subclass Cirripedia in the subphylum Crustacea, and is hence related to crabs and lobsters. Barnacles are exclusively marine, and tend to live in shallow and tidal waters, typically in eros ...

crayfish Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the clade Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. In some locations, they are also known as crawfish, craydids, crawdaddies, crawdads, freshwater lobsters, mountain lobsters, rock lobsters, mu ...

snail A snail is, in loose terms, a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gastro ...

lobster Lobsters are a family (biology), family (Nephropidae, Synonym (taxonomy), synonym Homaridae) of marine crustaceans. They have long bodies with muscular tails and live in crevices or burrows on the sea floor. Three of their five pairs of legs ...

, and

squid True squid are molluscs with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles in the superorder Decapodiformes, though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also called squid despite not strictly fitting t ...

. Fish include

sea bass Sea bass is a common name for a variety of different species of marine fish. Many fish species of various families have been called sea bass. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, the fish sold and consumed as sea bass is exclusively the European ba ...

, hake,

scorpion fish The Scorpaenidae (also known as scorpionfish) are a family of mostly marine fish that includes many of the world's most venomous species. As their name suggests, scorpionfish have a type of "sting" in the form of sharp spines coated with venom ...

, anchovy, sardine, and albacore. The albacore or ''bonito del norte'' is used in one of the most typical dishes of the region: ''

marmita Tuna pot, marmitako in Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country and marmita, marmite or sorropotún in Cantabria is a fish stew that was eaten on tuna fishing boats in the Cantabrian Sea. Today it is a simple dish with tuna, potatoes, oni ...

'' or ''sorropotún''. Some of the most renowned Cantabrian dishes are hake in green sauce (''merluza en salsa verde''), squid with onions (''maganos encebollados'') and cuttlefish in its ink sauce (''cachon en su tinta''), and clam casserole. "Rabas" (Squid sticks deep fried) is the most popular snack in the coast, typically companied with a white wine or a vermouth. Processed anchovies from the town of

Santoña Santoña is a town in the eastern coast of the autonomous community of Cantabria, on the north coast of Spain. It is situated by the bay of the same name. It is from the capital Santander. Santoña is divided into two zones, an urban plain, and a ...

are highly appreciated and have a first class reputation worldwide.

Meats

Veal Veal is the meat of calves, in contrast to the beef from older cattle. Veal can be produced from a calf of either sex and any breed, however most veal comes from young male calves of dairy breeds which are not used for breeding. Generally, v ...

is widely consumed, often from the

Tudanca cattle The Tudanca is a traditional Spanish breed of cattle from Cantabria, in northern Spain. It takes its name from the village of Tudanca in the in western Cantabria.http://www.iberianature.com/material/cows.html Spanish cows and beefs In the pas ...

. The National Cattle Fair of Torrelavega, the largest cattle fair in Spain, is held in Cantabria. Game is also of high quality:

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

roe deer The roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus''), also known as the roe, western roe deer, or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe is a small deer, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapt ...

, and

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...

Pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...

is a key element for the ''

cocido montañés ''Cocido montañés'' ('highlander stew' or 'mountain stew') is a rich hearty Spanish bean stew, originally from and most commonly found in Cantabria in northern Spain. ''Cocido montañés'' is a warm and heavy dish whose origin is the 17th cen ...

'', literally 'mountain stew', with

bean A bean is the seed of several plants in the family Fabaceae, which are used as vegetables for human or animal food. They can be cooked in many different ways, including boiling, frying, and baking, and are used in many traditional dishes th ...

cabbage Cabbage, comprising several cultivars of ''Brassica oleracea'', is a leafy green, red (purple), or white (pale green) biennial plant grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. It is descended from the wild cabbage ( ''B.&nb ...

, and other ingredients.

Pastry

Cantabrian pastries include the traditional ''

sobao Sobao or sobao pasiego is a Spanish delicacy typical of the Valles Pasiegos and one of the signature delicacies of Cantabria. The ''sobao pasiego'' possesses Geographical indication since 2004. Variations In the first primitive recipes, the ingre ...

s'' and ''

quesada pasiega ''Quesada pasiega'' is a dessert typical of the region of Cantabria, Spain. It is one of the best-known dishes of Cantabrian cuisine Cantabrian cuisine includes seafood from the Cantabrian Sea, salmon and trout from the upper basins of the riv ...

''. Puff pastry is widely used, with different names in different regions: '' corbatas'' in

Unquera Unquera is a village with 803 inhabitants (INE 2005) in the municipality of Val de San Vicente, in the west of the province of Cantabria, Spain. Sitting on the ría de Tina Menor, at the mouth of the River Deva it borders Asturias. It is famo ...

and

San Vicente de la Barquera San Vicente de la Barquera is a municipality of Cantabria in northern Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English ...

, ''

polkas Polka is a dance and genre of dance music originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though associated with Czech culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the Americas. History Etymology The term ...

'' in

Torrelavega Torrelavega ( Cantabrian: ''Torlavega'') is a municipality and important industrial and commercial hub in the single province Autonomous Community of Cantabria, northern Spain. It is situated roughly 8 kilometres from the Cantabrian Coast and 27.5 ...

, and ''sacristanes'' in Liérganes. Other notables sweets are ''s'' and ''canónigos'', both of Liébana; ''corazones'' of Liérganes, the ''palucos'' of Cabezón de la Sal; and the '' tortos'' and '' pantortillas'' of

Reinosa Reinosa is a municipality in Cantabria, Spain. , it has 10,307 inhabitants. The municipality, one of the smallest by land area in Cantabria, is notable for being one of the nearest towns to the headwaters of the Ebro River. It is surrounded by th ...

. Other desserts not of Cantabrian origin are rice pudding, ''

natillas () is a term in Spanish language, Spanish for a variety of custards and similar delicacies in the Spanish-speaking world. In Spain, this term refers to a custard dish made with milk and eggs, similar to other European creams as . In Colombia, th ...

'', ''

leche frita Leche frita (literally ''fried milk'') is a Spanish sweet typical of northern Spain. It is made by cooking flour with milk and sugar until it thickens to a firm dough which is then portioned, fried and served with a sugar glaze and cinnamon ...

'', and fruit

jam Jam is a type of fruit preserve. Jam or Jammed may also refer to: Other common meanings * A firearm malfunction * Block signals ** Radio jamming ** Radar jamming and deception ** Mobile phone jammer ** Echolocation jamming Arts and entertai ...

Dairy product Dairy products or milk products, also known as lacticinia, are food products made from (or containing) milk. The most common dairy animals are cow, water buffalo, nanny goat, and ewe. Dairy products include common grocery store food items in th ...

s include

Cantabrian cream cheese Cantabrian cream cheese (Spanish: ''Queso de nata de Cantabria'') is made from the milk of Friesian cows in Cantabria, an autonomous community in northern Spain. The cheese has a Protected Designation of Origin since 1985. The production of the ch ...

; ''

picón Bejes-Tresviso Picón Bejes-Tresviso is a blue cheese from Cantabria, in the north of Spain. It has been protected under Denominación de Origen (DO) legislation since 1994, prior to which it was traditionally known as ''Picón de Tresviso'' and ''Queso Picón ...

'' in

Tresviso Tresviso is a municipality located in the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain. :es:Anexo:Municipios de Cantabria The municipality is located above sea level within the Picos de Europa of the Cantabrian Mountains. The village is located o ...

and its neighboring town;

smoked cheese Smoked cheese is any cheese that has been specially treated by smoke-curing. It typically has a yellowish-brown outer pellicle which is a result of this curing process. Process Smoke-curing is typically done in one of two ways: cold-smoking an ...

s (named for specific places) such as Áliva or

Pido PIDO stands for Process Integration and Design Optimization. Process Integration is needed as many software tools are used in a multi-domain system design. Control software is developed in a different toolchain than the mechanical properties of a sy ...

; and the ', made with a mixture of cow and sheep milk.

Alcoholic beverages

Orujo ''Orujo'' is a pomace brandy (a liquor obtained from the distillation of marc, the solid remains left after pressing of the grape) from northern Spain. It is a transparent spirit with an alcohol content over 50% (100° proof). Its name comes fr ...

'' is the Cantabrian

pomace brandy Pomace spirit (or pomace brandy) is a liquor distilled from pomace that is left over from winemaking, after the grapes are pressed. It is called marc in both English and French, but " grappa" in Italian and "bagaço" in Portuguese. In Spanish it ...

. Historically,

cider Cider ( ) is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice of apples. Cider is widely available in the United Kingdom (particularly in the West Country) and the Republic of Ireland. The UK has the world's highest per capita consumption, ...

and ''

chacoli Txakoli (pronounced ) or chacolí (pronounced ) is a slightly sparkling, very dry white wine with high acidity and low alcohol content produced in the Spanish Basque Country, Cantabria and northern Burgos in Spain. Further afield, Chile is also ...

'' or ''txakoli'' wine were a specialty;"In fact, chacoli until the late 19th century a widespread product in the Cantabrian, and half a century and the production of the province of Santander-today, autonomous community of Cantabria, quite widely exceeded that of the Basque provinces, according to data collected Huetz Professor of Bordeaux Alain Lemps in his landmark study ''Vignobles et vins du Nord-Ouest de l'Espagne''.
"The txakoli of Burgos Valle de Mena wants OJ" (2005)
elmundovino.elmundo.es; retrieved 19 January 2008. after a major and long-term decline, they are recovering. Two

Spanish wine Spanish wine () includes red, white, and sparkling wines produced throughout the country. Located on the Iberian Peninsula, Spain has over 1.2 million hectares (2.9 million acres) planted in wine grapes, making it the most widely pla ...

s (''vinos de la tierra'') with '' denominación de origen calificada'' ( protected geographical status) from Canabria are

Costa de Cantabria Costa de Cantabria is a Spanish geographical indication for '' vino de la tierra'' wines located in the autonomous region of Cantabria, on the north coast of Spain. ''Vino de la tierra'' is one step below the mainstream '' denominación de origen' ...

and Liébana, named after the localities of their production.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cantabrian Cuisine Spanish cuisine