The religion of Basque cuisine

The staples, styles and richness of Basque cuisine

A warning to all the vegans and vegetarians out there — Basque cooking is probably not for you. If there is one guarantee about cooking and eating Basque dishes, it’s that there will be some kind of meat as the center of the entrée or nicely accenting other elements of a dish.

Due to the location of the Basque Country in Northern Spain, including Navarra and Southwest France, the two main geographical influences — the ocean and the mountains — are what inspire the contents of each dish with an infusion of cultural tradition.

For the Basque people, food is a religion. While the city of Donostia-San Sebastián is considered the food capital of the Basque Country, cities like Pamplona, Bilbao and Bayonne, France, are by no means falling behind. No matter which Basque town you visit, cuisine will be at the heart of it.

Fish is a staple when it comes to Basque cooking. Whether a city or town is next to the coastline or thrives in the lush green valleys, there is plenty of seafood available, including both freshwater and saltwater fish. Cod is an especially popular choice when cooking up a Basque dish.

But there isn’t quite anything as delicious as sinking your teeth into succulent lamb shanks. Farms are quite a prominent aspect of the Basque Country, and they produce some of the best vegetables, cheeses and livestock in Spain.

Donostia-San Sebastián may have two restaurants ranking within the top 50 of the world, but perhaps the greatest Basque food belongs to the pintxo bars located throughout the city, and especially in the Old Town neighborhood.

Pintxos are the Basque version of the Spanish tapa, which is a small portion of food intended to be a snack while you socialize with friends or family at a bar or tavern. While many pintxos feature a main food item such as fish or tortilla de patata — a Spanish omelet — stacked on top of a slice of baguette, almost all pintxos will be any small portion of food with a toothpick sticking out of it — pincho is a Spanish word for spike, hence the toothpick.

Cod, anchovies, croquettes, tortilla de patata, stuffed peppers and patatas bravas — fried potatoes covered in a special sauce — are popular pintxo selections. Paella can also be served as a pintxo, although it is traditionally served in a wide pan, family style.

Pintxos are not complete unless you have a glass of wine or beer to accompany it. But if you want to take the true Basque route, you would order a glass of sidra, or cider, which is the most produced alcoholic beverage in the Basque country.

The small town of Astigarraga, which is about 20 minutes outside of San Sebastián, is home to the most popular sagardotegi or sidrería in the Basque Country. In the cider house, there are three dishes served to guests intended to bring out the best flavors from the accompanying cider — cod omelet or cod with peppers, steak and cheese with quince jelly and nuts. The cider is stored in large barrels in the cider house and spouts out from the barrel, where the recipient must catch the falling cider in their cup — and it is all-you-can-drink cider.

While this touches on the basics of Basque cuisine, it is difficult to truly grasp Basque cooking without treating yourself to authentic Basque dishes. Luckily, the largest Basque community in the United States happens to be located in Boise. Road trip?

Emily Vaartstra can be reached at [email protected]