Aside from last year when Carnival was cancelled due to Covid, 2022 must be the first time I haven't celebrated Carnival heartily since I got here! This year, the only mask I wore was an N95, haha. I guess I'm saving my Carnival spirit for next year, when supposedly it will be ¨back to normal.¨
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| Entroido ears |
Despite neither dressing up nor going out, I did have a little taste of Entroido last weekend. A true taste of those salty and sweet dishes typically served here. Saturday we had a
cocido at home. Thinking back, my first experience with
cocido was when I studied abroad in Donostia ages ago. After participating in Carnvial, we were invited to dine at the
gastronomic club. Steamed vegetables, garbanzos, and meats were on the menu. At the time, I didn't even realize that it was a specific dish. Now I've made the connection--
cocido is a winter (or more specifically, Carnivalesque) dish throughout Northern Spain. When I worked in Becerreá, I would stick around for the
cocido with teachers on Entroido eve. After that, though, I lost the habit. Until now.
Cocido literally means boiled. The ingredients of this bountiful, boiled meal can vary according to the region. Even within Galicia, there are some differences, depending on what produce is readily available in each house. In Lugo, the prototype includes garbanzo beans, steamed cabbage and potatoes, along with various cuts of pork. But in Vigo, for example, you might have turnip tops rather than cabbage or fava beans instead of garbanzos if that's what your family has in their garden.
The rest of this entry is not for the faint of stomach/vegetarians
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| Oink, it's Entroido! |
The meat selection is enough to make even an American meat-eater squirm. Pig snout, ear, and the whole face if you're ¨lucky.¨ I've learned that pig faces are something specific to Galicia. When Carnival season rolls around, plenty of supermarkets will create little ¨displays¨ featuring salted pig heads and costumes or human ¨bodies.¨ Disturbing.
This article has some prime examples. Based on my reaction to the meat platter this weekend, a friend asked, ¨What? Don't you eat ears and snout in the USA?¨ Uh, not as far as I know. Masked in hot dogs, I'm sure, but nobody I know personally is a fan of stewed pigface. Luckily for me, however, there was also
lacón to complement the veggies and garbanzos.
Lacón is pork shoulder-- a Galician dish commonly prepared with turnip greens-- boiled so it's pink and reminds me of corned beef. As required by the Cocido law, there were also
chourizos and an
androlla-- like a big fat
chourizo, popular in
A Fonsagrada. But be careful, there are bone shards in it. Don't say I didn't warn you.
For Entroido, people eat two types of ears: the real pig ears (I'll pass) and fried, crunchy ¨ears¨ similar to our elephant ears (I'll take seconds). This year we were treated to homemade ears as well as filloas, a simple Galician dessert. Essentially, they're crepes. They can be served with sugar, carmel syrup, honey, or whipped cream. As far as traditional Entroido desserts go, all that was missing was some fried flowers. Maybe next year I´ll buy a flower iron!
