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Basque Cooking by Joan Brick A cuisine of tradition, a cuisine of change: whether a reflection of the past or a departure from it, Basque cuisine is based on the sea and the mountains. Inspired by the peasants as well as the bourgeoisie, it has recently become a dynamic, constantly evolving cuisine. Never losing its unique identity, it is deeply revered by the Basques. The cuisine within the provinces of the Spanish state, as within the provinces of the French state, shows slight variations. Historically, the most notable difference between each country has been that the former, although incorporating inland fare, is most characterized by its creation of seafood dishes. The latter is mainly an inland cuisine, relying on produce and meat dishes. Traditional Basque cuisine is mainly home and family cooking, passed on from one generation of women to another. Men, however, tend to do the majority of cooking outside the home, professionally or in gastronomic societies. Today, Basque food preparation is in a state of transition. Automation, a decrease in domestic help, the ready availability of prepared and precooked foods--these and similar factors create a tendency toward simplicity and less time spent in food preparation. However, many epicureans stress the need for patience and reliance on traditional methods. Fish and Seafood Squid in its own ink sauce is very popular. The ink is toxic when fresh but becomes harmless when cooked. Shrimp, langostino, and crab are welcome additions to fish soups. Basques enjoy tuna, salmon, trout, cod, spider crab and eels. A savory dish, bacalao, features dried salted cod. Marmitako is a classic stew made with tuna. The most common methods of preparation for fish are cooking on the stove with sauces or baking in the oven. Roasting over wood coals is also a possibility. Meats and Poultry Favorites include beef (preferably of young animals), sheep and lamb, pork, and fowl (chicken, quail, partridge, woodcock). A common Basque sausage, chorizo, is made from meat and pork fat, seasoned with paprika, salt, and garlic. It is then stuffed into casings and dried. It can later be fried or cooked. Hams are cured, care being taken to avoid too much salt. French Basques take pride in their confit d’oie, or goose fried in its own fat. Vegetables and Fruits The Basque Country’s significant diversity in climate and terrain has resulted in a great variety of available vegetables and fruits. Peppers are very popular and are widely grown. Used green, ripe, and dried, they are a key ingredient in the well known Basque egg dish piperrada. Garlic is another favorite, prized in cooking not only for its taste, but for its ability to trap oils in meats and gravies, thus enhancing the flavor. The most popular methods of vegetable preparation are 1) stews, such as leek stew (porrusalda) or bean stew (cocido) and 2) soups, such as vegetable soup (menestra)--a springtime delicacy--or garlic soup. Desserts Sweet desserts do not appeal to the Basque palate as they do to many other cultures. Fruit and cheese are popular endings to a meal. Vitoria, however, excels in pastry making, and the Basque Country has a large chocolate industry. Our discussion is not complete without mention of the “new Basque cuisine,” a creative movement begun in 1976 by Basque chefs. By combining traditional elements with the more modern, universal culinary and dietetic principles, new Basque cuisine better satisfies today’s needs and tastes. In Europe it is more expensive than the traditional Basque fare and places more emphasis on visual appeal. Marcelino “Marc” Ugalde does not see a current trend in the western United States toward this type of Basque cooking. However, he cites New York and other East Coast cities and Chicago as areas in which the most authentic new Basque cuisine may be sampled, but adds that it can certainly be found elsewhere. Cooking Class Last spring I enrolled in the Basque cooking class taught by staff member Ugalde. What began as a desire for one night a week out to do something enjoyable and informative culminated in ten weeks of camaraderie and palate-pleasing cuisine. Beginning with tapas, those wondrous appetizers for which the Basques are noted, to soups, entrees, and desserts--garnering recipes from Basque cookbooks and enjoying demonstrations from Basque cooks--we ate, drank and made merry--never mind the calories picked up along the way! One of the unique characteristics of Basque cooking seems to be a heavy dependency on olive oil. Regarding this as undesirable to both taste and diet, some class members decided to reduce the amount of oil when cooking these recipes at home. One woman described the dishes we prepared as “bland.” She is Basque but said she had never eaten any of these dishes before. Others enjoyed the tastes imparted to the dishes by vegetables (especially garlic), but said they would prefer a bit more spices. It seems that our “Americanized” palates demand more spices than are used in Basque cuisine. Ask anyone about the imported canned red peppers we pureéd for our sauces. After conjuring up a mental picture of the dish and smiling broadly, they said the discovery of this wondrous food was one of the highlights of the class. Not only do these peppers impart a heavenly flavor to the sauce, but they are already peeled and seeded! And this is important, because roasting the peppers and then attempting to peel them is a deplorable chore, but a necessary one since the skin and seeds impart a strong, bitter taste. We experienced diverse methods of food preparation. Lengthy simmering for soups and stews brought out their flavor. Stovetop preparation before baking, as with the lamb chops, decreased cooking time. Shaking the pan (rather than stirring its contents) on top of the stove is often desirable. For example, when making garlic soup, shaking mixes the olive oil and water but does not cause the thin slices of bread to break apart. Many dishes could be prepared ahead and later reheated, a definite plus in our often hectic lifestyles. We found that advance preparation often increased the flavors, especially in the vegetable soup. And we learned that recipes are adaptable to the times: the sheepherder’s bread, traditionally made in a dutch oven over hot coals, can be baked in the kitchen oven. One woman noted that although familiar foods are used, they impart different flavors to each dish. So, too, do the great variety of sauces, which, according to Mr. Ugalde, “turn ordinary cooking into Basque cuisine.” One unexpected feature of some sauces was that even those used over meat may contain other meats--such as the sauce for the lamb chops which contained sliced ham and chorizos. I mentioned the thin slices of bread used to thicken the garlic soup. This method, as well as the use of bread crumbs, is also used to thicken sauces. Everyone felt the class offered a fine representation of the diversity of Basque cuisine. We all left with something new: a better knowledge of the Basque people, a recipe collection, new friends, and perhaps a few extra pounds that snuck up on us on “dessert night,” when we ate flan and the luscious gateau Basque! Gateau Basque Dough: 300 grams flour 2 egg yolks 1 whole egg 200 grams sugar 200 grams butter a pinch of salt grated peel of 1 lemon rum or almond extract to taste Filling: 1/4 liter milk 2 egg yolks 60 grams sugar 25 grams flour rum or almond extract to taste For dough: Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat. Add lemon peel and flavoring. Stir in flour and salt. (Although it's possible to use the dough right away, it's more manageable if chilled.) For filling: Combine flour and sugar. In a saucepan, combine egg yolks with flour-sugar mixture. Add flavoring and mix well with eggs, flour, and sugar. Add milk and stir well until lumps are gone. Stir constantly over medium heat until thick. Roll 1/2 the dough out and place it into bottom of mold. Spoon filling in. Roll out other half and place on top. Seal edges. Brush with egg white. Bake at 350° until golden brown on top. From Artizarra in Donibane Garazi; instructions and translation by Lisa Corcostegui. Piperrada Vasca 6 eggs, beaten 2 lbs. tomatoes (peeled, seeded, sliced) 2 lbs. green peppers (anaheim or bell) 6 slices Bayonne ham (like boiled ham) or similar 2 onions 12 tablespoons olive oil 3 garlic cloves salt to flavor thyme (optional) Bake peppers in hot oven until they can be peeled easily, seeded and sliced. Set aside. Place chopped onions and garlic in heated frying pan with olive oil. When the onions are tanslucent, add green peppers, which have been salted already, and thyme and cook until water given out by the peppers is evaporated. While the onions and garlic are frying, in a separate fry pan sauté the ham slices in small amount of olive oil. Remove the ham for later use and slowly cook the tomatoes. Add tomatoes to the peppers. The mixture should be left to cook until it has thickened. Lastly, add the well beaten eggs to the mixture, stirring gently and slowly heating them. Serve the piperrada on a hot platter over ham slices. Serves 5. From: Juan D. Echevarria, Gastronomia vasconum (Bilbao, 1979). |
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