Sobrasada

Mallorcans are particularly proud of their local sausage made from the "black pig" called sobrasada. It is similar in taste to chorizo but with a very soft texture. This sausage is bright red and often served uncooked spread onto a piece of crusty bread. Often Mallorcans will throw some of the local "pan moreno" brown bread topped with sobrasada onto the grill while they are outside cooking their paella. The slight charring adds a magnificent dimension of flavor. It can also be chopped up and added to stews such as arroz brut and lentejas.

You can find sobrasada almost anywhere in Mallorca but most locals have their preferred vendors and won't touch it if it came from somewhere else. It is typically hung upside down from a string, allowing the red-orange oil to drip off of the sausage. Smaller amounts can be purchased in a grocery store where you can find just the soft center without the casings in a ready-to-spread pot.

The best way to describe sobrasada to someone who hasn't tasted it is to liken it to spreadable pepperoni. Although this comparison does not do it justice, there really is nothing quite like it to be found in the United States. Some Italian-American specialty markets carry Italian sopressata but that is a very different item altogether. The Italian verson is more of a lunchmeat similar to salami and bears little relation to its Mallorcan counterpart.

Ensaimada

Ensaimada is a traditional Mallorcan pastry that is typical breakfast food on the island. It is a delicate, flaky pastry in a spiral shape topped with a light dusting of powdered sugar. The ingredient that makes this so special is the "saim" or pork lard, which is difficult to find outside of the island made this way. Despite the heavy ingredients, it has a very light flavor and texture and the locals usually eat it dipped in coffee or hot chocolate.



Besides the traditional ensaimada, there are several variations with toppings and fillings which transform it from a breakfast food to a dessert. Some of the fillings you can find include cream, "cabello de angel" (a type of pumpkin), chocolate, nutella, and turrón. The list of toppings is as endless as your imagination but the most common ones are toasted pine nuts or walnuts, slices of apricot, and the "tallades" type widely consumed during lent which is topped with pumpkin and sobrasada for a unique combination of salty and sweet flavors. (More on sobrasada in a future post.)

The ensaimada is perhaps the most iconic of Mallorcan foods. Throughout the Palma Airport, travelers can be seen carrying stacks of ensaimada boxes onto their flights to bring the fresh-baked treat back to family and friends on the mainland of Spain. This Mallorcan staple is cheap, delicious, and very easy to find throughout the island.

Welcome to Mallorcan Food

Mallorca is an island with its very own rich culinary traditions. Although there is a strong presence of Spanish mainland flavors and ingredients, the cuisine is also influenced by the land's neighbors, immigrants, and previous inhabitants. The flavors tend to be earthy, the ingredients local, and the dishes of the comfort variety.

Here I take a look at the Mallorcan cuisine from an outsider's perspective, specifically that of an American. As an avid gourmet cook and "foodie" from the U.S. living on the island, I not only break down the local fare from cute old Spanish grandmothers and five-star Mallorcan restaurants but also offer insight into the challenges of cooking in a place very different from home.