Calcot

Calcots

My first gastronomical experience with Catalan culture came on our IES field trip to Valencia.  On the way home from our field trip, our bus stopped at a restaurant in the countryside.  Our bus guide explained that during this time of year, it was a Catalan tradition to go to the countryside  and have a Calcot.  We were informed that in a Calcot, you eat long onions dipped in a salsa onion sauce.  This would then be followed by an assortment of grilled meats and potatoes.  We entered the restaurant to find that we were one of the last buses to arrive and most of the program was already seated at long tables.  I took my seat, put my bib on, and had my first glass of red wine from a pitcher with a long spout.  The atmosphere was very lively and even our professors and administrators were drinking wine right from the spout of the pitcher.  Soon a waiter appeared and placed a platter of onions and calcot salsa in front of us.  The onions did not look like regular onions but instead were long and burnt black from the grill.  I peeled off the burnt skin of the onion, dipped it into the salsa, and had my first bite.  It was very greasy and the onions had a very strong taste.  I was not a huge fan of the onions so I mainly dipped bread in the salsa until the meat arrived.  Another waiter appeared with a platter with racks of lamb, potatoes and a variety of sausages.  This was more my game.  I stuffed myself on succulent lamb, greasy potatoes and juicy grilled sausage.  After lunch I was in a food coma and slept the entire bus ride back to Barcelona.