Romesco

Ingredients

Peppers

• 4nyora or ñora peppers, dried and round
• 1dried guindilla, optional

Nuts

• 100 gblanched almonds
• 50 ghazelnuts

Also

• 4ripe tomatoes
• 1whole head garlic
• 2 slicescountry bread
• 150 mlextra virgin olive oil
• 3 tbspsherry vinegar
• 1 tspsmoked paprika
• salt

To serve

• with calçots
• grilled spring onions
• fish
• or lamb

Directions

1. Soak the nyoras in hot water for at least an hour, until completely soft. The skins are papery and will never break down, and blending them whole gives a gritty sauce. Roast the tomatoes and the whole garlic head at 200°C for about 30 minutes until soft and slightly blackened.
2. Roast rather than using them raw. It concentrates the tomato and takes the harshness out of the garlic. Squeeze the garlic cloves out of their skins and peel the tomatoes.
3. Toast the almonds and hazelnuts in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes until fragrant. Toast the nuts, always. Rub the skins off the hazelnuts in a cloth while they are warm. Now fry the bread in olive oil until deep golden and crisp on both sides.
4. Pound the nuts first with a little salt until they are broken down but still slightly coarse. Grind the nuts before anything wet goes in, which is the order that gets them fine. Add the fried bread and pound it in.
5. Add the garlic, the nyora pulp, the tomatoes and the paprika and work it to a rough paste. Now add the olive oil slowly, in a thin stream, working it in.
6. Add the oil gradually so it emulsifies into the paste rather than sitting on top as a slick. Add the vinegar and season with salt. It should be nutty first, then sweet from the pepper, then sharp from the vinegar, with the smoke behind it.
7. Let it stand at least an hour before serving, and it is better the next day. Serve it at room temperature rather than cold, which flattens the flavour. It keeps a week in the fridge under a film of oil.

Technique

• Salvitxada is the closely related sauce made specifically for calçots and is often used interchangeably.
• Nyora pulp is sold in jars in Spanish shops and saves an hour.
• It is excellent with grilled fish, lamb, roast vegetables and eggs.

Substitutions

• Dried ancho or choricero pulp in place of nyora.
• All almonds if hazelnuts are unavailable.

Variations

• Salvitxada, the calçot version with more garlic and vinegar.
• Made hotter, with more guindilla.
• Xató, the related sauce from the Penedès.

History

From Tarragona fishermen, who ground nuts, peppers and bread to dress fish; it is also the sauce eaten with calçots at Catalan spring barbecues.

Frequently asked questions

What is Romesco?

Romesco is a sauce & condiment from Spain: tarragona sauce of nyora peppers, almonds, tomato and fried bread. From Tarragona fishermen, who ground nuts, peppers and bread to dress fish; it is also the sauce eaten with calçots at Catalan spring barbecues.

How long does Romesco take to make?

Romesco takes 30 min plus soaking of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes about 500 ml. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Romesco?

Yes, within limits. Dried ancho or choricero pulp in place of nyora. All almonds if hazelnuts are unavailable.

What is the most important thing to get right in Romesco?

Soak the nyoras in hot water for at least an hour, until completely soft. The skins are papery and will never break down, and blending them whole gives a gritty sauce. Roast the tomatoes and the whole garlic head at 200°C for about 30 minutes until soft and slightly blackened.