Fabada asturiana, often simply known as fabada, is a rich Asturian bean stew, originally from and most commonly found in the

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Principality of Asturias Asturias (, ; ast, Asturies ), officially the Principality of Asturias ( es, Principado de Asturias; ast, Principáu d'Asturies; Galician-Asturian: ''Principao d'Asturias''), is an autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensiv ...

, but widely available throughout the whole of Spain and in Spanish restaurants worldwide. Canned fabada is sold in most supermarkets across the country. Fabada is a hot and heavy dish and for that reason is most commonly eaten during winter and as the largest meal of the day, lunch. It is usually served as a starter, but may also be the main course of the meal. It is typically served with Asturian cider or a red wine.

Ingredients

Fabada is made with

fabes de la Granja ''Fabes la granxa'' ( Asturian, beans of La Granja, a town in Spain) are a type of white runner bean cultivated in the autonomous community of Asturias. It is primarily used as an ingredient of Fabada Asturiana. For beans (legume A legume () ...

(a kind of large white beans from Spain) soaked overnight before use, lacón (shoulder of pork) or

pancetta Pancetta () is a salt-cured pork belly meat product in a category known as salume. In Italy, it is often used to add depth to soups and pastas. (in Italian). Uses For cooking, it is often cut into cubes (''cubetti di pancetta''). In Italy, ...

or bacon (''

tocino Tocino is bacon in Spanish, typically made from the pork belly and often formed into cubes in Spain. In Caribbean countries, such as Puerto Rico and Cuba, ''tocino'' is made from pork fatback and is neither cured nor smoked but simply fried un ...

''), morcilla (a kind of blood sausage from Spain), chorizo, olive oil, sweet paprika, garlic and salt.

History

The consumption of "fabes" goes back in Asturias to the 16th century, in which it is known with certainty that they were planted in the territory and consumed. The variety used in fabada is called "de la Granja"; it is a smooth and buttery variety appropriate for this dish. The cultivation of this variety occupies about 2,500 hectares in Asturias. The ingredients of the fabada recipe reveal a humble origin. Scholars think it may have been born in the 18th century, although there is no evidence to support this. Despite the fact that fabas are a purely rural ingredient, the belief that fabada is born in the cities is maintained. There are no written literary references to fabas in any of the works of the time. One of the best known, La Regenta, does not mention it despite making an exhaustive description of the customs of the region. Other authors mention its resemblance to the Languedoc cassoulet from French cuisine that could have reached Spain thanks to the Camino de Santiago via the French route in the Middle Ages. The first written reference to fabada appears in the Asturian newspaper of Gijón El Comercio in 1884 but does not mention the recipe. Later appearances in Asturian culinary literature relate the dish to the Asturian pot, authors such as Armando Palacio Valdés when describing the characteristics of Asturian shepherds in his work "Pastoral Symphony" (1931) does not mention the dish. According to the research of different experts, fabada is born in an undetermined period between the 19th and 20th centuries. Some authors lean more towards the twentieth century, but today it is already a well-known dish, not only in Asturias but throughout the Spanish territory. Recipes appear in the literature of the beginning of the century. Asturian emigrants around the world noticed this dish in other places, in this way there are variants of this dish in some places, such as in the areas near the American city of Tampa. In Colombia, the paisa tray is a Creole adaptation of the fabada, replacing the fabas with red ball beans (soaked for 16 hours) cooked with pork leg, garlic onion and salt, accompanied by chorizo, pork rinds, cooked ground meat, fried egg, sliced avocado and white rice.

Variations

Outside Asturias, the Spanish

olla podrida (, also , , ; literally "rotten pot", although ''podrida'' is probably a version of the original word ''poderida'', so it could be translated as "powerful pot") is a Spanish stew, usually made with chickpeas or beans, and assorted meats like pork ...

, southern French

cassoulet Cassoulet (, also , ; ; from Occitan and cognates with Spanish: ''cazoleta'' and Catalan: ''cassolet'') is a rich, slow-cooked stew containing meat (typically pork sausages, goose, duck and sometimes mutton), pork skin () and white beans () ...

, and Brazilian

feijoada ''Feijoada'' () is a stew of beans with beef and pork. The name ''feijoada'' comes from ''feijão'', 'bean' in Portuguese. It is widely prepared in the Portuguese-speaking world, with slight variations. The basic ingredients of feijoada are bean ...

are similar to fabada asturiana.

Images

Image:sunnyFabada.jpg, A prepared fabada Image:MyFabada.jpg, Fabada prepared in a traditional clay cazuela Image:Fabada 3.jpg, Fabada prepared with the traditional recipe Image:Compangu de fabada.jpg, Accompanying meats with the fabada

References

* References in Spanish Wikipedia *Aris, Pepita. Spanish: Over 150 Mouthwatering Step-By-Step Recipes. London: Anness Publishing Ltd, 2003. p 203. *Chandler, Jenny. The Food of Northern Spain. London: Pavilion Books, 2005. p 95. *Klöcker, Harald. Culinaria Spain. Cologne: Könemann Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, 1998. p 208. {{Legume dishes Asturian cuisine Spanish soups and stews Spanish pork dishes Spanish legume dishes

Ingredients

History

Variations

Images

See also

References