- treasures of aroma and colour

In Spanish cuisine, as in the rest of the Mediterranean countries, seasonings and spices play a leading role. In Spain they are omnipresent in cold cuts and are also a fundamental element in the renowned Mediterranean diet

In olden times, spices were considered treasures, mainly because of the old belief that they possessed magical, aphrodisiac and healing properties. Currently, even though the magic and mystery has long since disappeared, they are still highly valued for their stimulating character and their therapeutic qualities, as well as their function as an instrument to preserve foodstuffs.

Seasoning products have gone from being treasures more expensive than gold to being within the reach of anyone who wants to enhance the flavour of a dish. In Spanish cuisine, as in the rest of the Mediterranean countries, seasonings and spices play a leading role. In Spain they are omnipresent in cold cuts and are also a fundamental element in the renowned Mediterranean diet and dishes inherited from the Arabs.

Of all seasonings and spices, the most commonly used are, without a doubt, “pimentón”   (paprika, cayenne or red pepper) and saffron. Both these seasonings are also the only ones which currently fostered by a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) recognised by the European Union. In Spain, there are two types of “pimentón” and one kind of saffron with a PDO: Pimentón de la Vera (Red Pepper from La Vera), Pimentón de Murcia (Red Pepper from Murcia) and Azafrán de La Mancha (La Mancha Saffron).

LA MANCHA SAFFRON (AZAFRÁN DE LA MANCHA)

Spain leads the European saffron market, both from the point of view of exporting as of the production. The process of obtaining and manufacturing this spice is very long and complicated and it requires a high qualification level, increasing the costs of this product. It begins with the sowing of bulbs, which in La Mancha is traditionally carried out from the second half of June to the first half of September. Subsequently, when the saffron blooms, the open flowers are picked daily before they wither away, during an approximate period of thirty days, generally speaking between the months of October and November, depending on the climate conditions of that year. Sectioning these flowers requires a great ability and it must be a clean and precise cut to avoid the stigmas from separating or coming loose. Once they are cut, the flowers are transported to the place where they will be peeled, taking care of not crushing or overheating them, and so they are spread out in thin layers, without piling them, over sacks, canvases or firm ground allowing them to ventilate. The peeling or flaking of the flower is always done on the same day its picked, no later than twelve hours after. It is carried out by cutting the stigmas which are joint to their style at the point where they begin to whiten. Then in order to roast them, the flaked stigmas are placed in layers of a maximum of 1,5 cm thick in thin wire mesh flour sieves or silk cloths. La Mancha saffron is protected by the Designation of Origin since 1998. The main difference in regards to others is physical, as its red stigmas clearly stand out from the flower and the style is very short. Another differentiating peculiarity is the process of manufacturing, carried out by roasting them over a low flame for 25 to 45 minutes approximately, as opposed to being sun dried, as is done in other places. More than 250.000 flowers are needed to obtain a kilo of saffron, and the roses must grow at ground level; they are then manually harvested and are handled one by one in order to pick the stigmas off. Furthermore, the cultivation of saffron is maintained during a three year cycle on the same land and then it has to be transferred onto another plot of land where no beetroot, alfalfa or saffron has been grown for the last five years.

PIMENTÓN DE MURCIA Y DE LA VERA (MURCIA AND LA VERA RED PEPPER)

Red pepper is the Spanish pork industry’s favourite seasoning and it is widely used in the manufacturing of cold cuts. Its principal characteristic, other than its aroma and taste, is its potent colouring and antioxidating effects, which prove to be excellent food preservatives. It is made from dried, pulverised “pimentonero” pepper, which grows mainly in two regions in Spain: the banks of the Segura river, in the province of Murcia, and in the region of La Vera, in Caceres. Manufacturing red pepper is carried out differently in both these regions, seeing as in Murcia it is obtained by drying it out in the open air and the sun, and in Caceres, its dried in the shade and by exposing it to smoke. Another important difference is that Murcia

red pepper is always sweet, called paprika, and in La Vera there are three different types: paprika (sweet), cayenne (spicy) and ocal (semisweet). Pimentón de la Vera has been regulated by a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) since May 2004. Around 900 hectares

are used to grow this vegetable and they produce more or less 410.000 stone. The market for Pimentón de la Vera lies mainly within Spain, especially in the areas where quality cold cuts are manufactured, though about 9% of the production is exported. Germany, France, United Kingdom and Latin American countries such as Mexico, Venezuela or Chile are the main importers. According to those in charge, the process for the creation of the Designation of Origin was motivated at first by the continuous decrease of land being used to grow peppers for Pimentón in the region of La Vera. Another reason was strictly for protecting the quality, seeing as in many cases red pepper was being mixed with different “verato” peppers, dried using quick drying techniques and were marketing it as Pimentón de La Vera, which was constituting

a fraud to the consumer and could carry serious problems in the long term. The Murcia red pepper always has a sweet taste, a strong and penetratingly characteristic aroma, a bright red colour and a great colouring power. Its basic characteristics are that it is oily and tasty and with a great stability regarding colour and aroma. The sweet taste is because of the peppers obtained in Murcia, which have evolved since they were taken there loosing their spicy element

due to the mild climate conditions of this region. The environmental characteristics of the Southeast of Spain, a Subtropical Mediterranean climate, with scarce rainfall and high temperatures, saline land and scant hydraulic resources, are responsible for this change. The manufacturing process begins when the fruit, once it has matured,

is harvested manually with crop scheduling techniques. Subsequently they are sun dried for various days or placed in hot air dryers and then ground, until it is thin enough to be bottled and labelled.