Scents and flavours of Granada
Granada
Granada is music and poetry, monuments which are pure art, and ancient culture. This province reaches towards the skies from the craggy summits of the Sierra Nevada mountains; cities with breathtaking architecture which reside serenely in the Altiplano region; white villages scattered across hills and valleys which slope down to the cliffs and beaches of the Costa Tropical. The province of Granada, tourist destination par excellence, offers travellers the chance to ski in the Sierra Nevada mountains, discover hidden villages in the Alpujarra region, explore the last frontier of the Al-Andalus empire in eastern Granada or stay in caves and experience a troglodyte’s lifestyle.
A land of mild warm summers and winters which are ideal for snow sports.
The whole province is full of incentives for those who love architecture and culture. The district of Santa Fe was where the discovery of America was planned by Christopher Columbus, and Fuente Vaqueros is the birthplace of Federico García Lorca, one of the most important poets and playwrights that Spanish literature has ever produced.
The remains of a hominid dating between one and two million years old were discovered in the Altiplano region of Granada. The Bastetani, an Iberian people, bequeathed to posterity a relic of great historic and cultural value: the Lady of Baza.
Some coins struck by the Turduli people towards the 5th century bear witness to the origin of the capital of this lovely province. In the 8th century, the Berbers conquered these lands which reached their apogee with the Nasrids, who brought an economic, social, artistic and cultural development whose influence can still be seen today.
The province of Granada is characterised by a descending series of raised plains which start at the high summits and go right down to the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. These plains and the height of the terrain mean that the climate in winter is extremely cold. This greatly affects the vegetation, agriculture, cattle farming and game animals.
Three clearly distinct zones can be seen in Granada: the coast, the river plain in Granada, and the mountain area. Each one has its own climate, geography, history and location which set it apart from the others.
On the banks of the Mediterranean Sea and in the heart of the Penibética mountain range. The capital is the city of Granada. It borders the provinces of Málaga and Cordoba in the west, Jaén in the north, Almería in the east and it is open to the Mediterranean in the south.
It is framed within the Andalusian cuisine and it can be said that it has a wide and rich gastronomy, mixed by different contributions, mainly those recently contributed by the new settlers with products that were previously prohibited. This is how, for example, broad beans with ham appeared which, as this is from Trevélez (Trevélez ham), have a delicate and smooth flavor. The waters of Lanjarón are equally famous.
Granada's geography is very rugged, from the mountains the coastline is reached in a few hundred kilometers. This situation means that it is possible to enjoy a very diverse range of ingredients. One of the most representative legume dishes is grenadine green beans. A dry bean gazpacho is made with beans. It is also worth mentioning among the potato dishes, the poor potatoes or the typical crumbs, both dishes mixed with pieces of fried pork, the potatoes in glory. The production of almonds makes almond soup popular (it is prepared with crushed almonds and a dressing of cumin, pepper, and crust of fried bread). Grenadian canning companies produce some amount of canned asparagus that goes to various areas of Spanish cuisine. The emblematic fruit is the pomegranate (Punica granatum), whose tree is omnipresent in carmenes and gardens.
The pot of San Antón is one of their traditional dishes, as well as that of the province, although the most representative dish is the saladilla con habas, or the famous Sacromonte omelette. Pork products are typical in the interior, in some municipalities they prepare pig slaughter, there are dishes such as slaughter crumbs. One of the genuine products of the province is the Trevélez ham, served cut as a tapa or fried with beans. One of the most typical meat preparations is the kid in garlic horse.
River fishing focuses on trout and barbel. Snail stews are popular. Among the fish dishes, cod, poplar mushrooms, moraga and sardines are important. Another classic of Granada's gastronomy is its flour crumbs, which can be accompanied by various products such as peppers, bacon, anchovies ...
It has a wide variety of sweets, among which are the mole eggs from San Antón, the biscuit from Zafra, the pestiños from La Encarnación or the puff pastry from San Jerónimo. Alfajores from Albaicín, tocinillos from Guadix, donuts from Loja, empanadillas from Santa Catalina, saint's bones from the nuns of Santa Isabel, homol egg from the Collected Sisters, donuts from Montefrío, puff pastry twists, the must porridge, the soplillos, the pestiños from Vélez and Salobreña, the butter buns, the Alfácar rolls, the musty casserole, the al-Hajú cake, the Poinsettia from the Eastern Mountains and the merengazo from Almuñécar.
The Sierra Nevada district is located next to the districts of Alpujarra and El Marquesado del Zenete. It is home to the highest mountain range within the Iberian Peninsula. From the top of the Veleta and the Mulhacén peaks you can see the Mediterranean Sea. It is a natural alpine paradise in the heart of Andalucía with mild summers and cold winters.
Granada’s coastal area has dozens of beaches and small coves with crystal-clear water, 320 sunny days a year and an average temperature of 20 degrees. These are the basic facts that sum up the 73 kilometres of the Tropical Coastline in the province of Granada, which gets its name from the exceptionally good weather it enjoys all year round. Two centuries ago, this was the only place in Europe where subtropical fruits such as mangos, cherimoyas, avocados and papayas could be grown. These are fruits that evoke exotic flavours and places but, in fact, they are grown in Europe, in one of the most privileged corners of Andalucía.
The Poniente Granadino district spans the western part of Granada. It includes mountain ranges, valleys, plains and countryside that together form a rich and diverse landscape. The Poniente Granadino borders with the western mountain ranges as well as with the Tejeda, Almijara and Alhama. This borderland is a mixture Christian and Arab cultures, with an ancient past.
La Alpujarra lies between the Sierra Nevada and the Lújar and Gádor mountain ranges. It opens up to the Mediterranean Sea from the Mulhacén, the highest peak of the Iberian Peninsula. Its landscape is rough yet colourful, scattered with ravines, canyons and valleys with traditional villages lying all around.
El Altiplano lies to the northeast of Granada, where immense plateaus rise up to more than 1000 metres above sea level. There is a huge and mainly deserted plain in its central part, surrounded by the mountain ranges of Sagra, Castril, Baza and Orce.
The Guadix and El Marquesado district is located in the eastern part of the province of Granada. It is made up of the town Guadix and its surrounding villages, all rich in archaeological and historical attractions. The landscape is one of contrasts – it has hilly slopes that reach out towards the foot Sierra Nevada as well as an impressive lunar landscape in the Montes Orientales. A number of rivers wind their way between the reddish shades of the Hoya de Guadix and the green valleys.