30-01-2024

Traditional dishes of Lanzarote

During your holidays in Lanzarote we are sure that you will be interested to discover what is the typical food in Lanzarote and what typical dishes and appetizers you cannot miss and that you should try during your stay on the island. In this article we are going to bring you closer to some of the most typical dishes of the island's gastronomy that have managed to delight many visitors to Lanzarote.

Typical Lanzarote cheeses.

The cheeses of the Majorero goats that can also be found on the island of Lanzarote have always been a delight for every inhabitant and visitor to the island due to the unique processing that these snacks go through in order to have such a characteristic flavour. Curiously, the rennet is pressed, not cooked, and this preserves many of the flavour qualities and gives the cheeses their smooth texture, of which there are several types that we recommend you try:

- Uga cheese: Ranked among the best cheeses in the world, they have won awards as the best cheese in the Canary Islands in 2023. They are covered with ash, others with olive oil, vegetable colouring or paprika. The animals live without any kind of stress and with a very careful diet based on cereals, grass and fodder from outside. Water is also a very important factor, obtained by reverse osmosis and microfiltration.

- Goat's cheese: The highest quality goat's cheese is wrapped in ash to enhance its aroma and flavour, which also causes the rind to dry earlier and the cheese to mature more quickly.

Gofio.

Being one of the symbols of Canarian culture and gastronomy, this food has always been key for the residents of the Canarian archipelago, both for the aborigines and nowadays, due to its high nutritional value. It can be preserved for a long time in good conditions and was widely consumed by sailors and the Spanish population during the Civil War.

- Sancocho: A popular salted fish dish accompanied by a vegetable broth, sweet potato and pella de gofio. The most typical dish of Holy Friday, it was mainly consumed in coastal villages because good preservation techniques for fish were not yet known. This dish was born when the salting technique became known, becoming the main food for those who worked in the fields or at sea.

- Escaldón de gofio: Meat or fish broth mixed with gofio, there could not be a more comforting recipe for any Canarian resident. During the time of the Guanches, this dish was prepared mainly with wheat, barley or lentils, but later maize settled on the island and the much-prized "harina de gofio" began to be used, which became a traditional ingredient of the archipelago, being christened gofio.

Grilled octopus: Being one of the most recognisable creatures of the ocean in the Canarian archipelago, octopus has always been a protagonist several times in Canarian gastronomy. This dish is usually served with whole octopus cooked on the griddle with mojo or green pesto, accompanied by wrinkled potatoes and a refreshing salad.

Uga smoked salmon: One of the best smoked salmon in Europe. The fish comes from Norway and Scotland, and is smoked with salt from the Janubio salt pans. It is made cold and the key is the smoke.

Polvito uruguayo: This dessert got its name from the Uruguayan woman who invented it when she lived in Gran Canaria and wanted to create a dessert with which you could enjoy all the sweet delights of the island. It became a traditional Canarian dessert in a short time and spread throughout the archipelago.

Lapas: This treasure for seafood lovers is usually served grilled with a touch of green mojo, having the name of lapas con mojo. Apparently the search for limpets has been going on since pre-Hispanic times, as there are archaeological finds of shell deposits of marine molluscs scattered all over the island. This creature was not only cultivated for its exquisite flavour, but the shells of this animal have been used since ancient times to create the instrument also known as lapas.

Goat meat: Goat meat, also known as baifo, is the most commonly consumed meat on the island of Lanzarote, both in stews and baked or fried. Despite being islands surrounded by the ocean and therefore having an abundant selection of fish, the meat of this livestock is possibly consumed above fish. The history of livestock farming on the island of Lanzarote goes back many years, so it is no surprise that the tradition of shepherding is still deeply rooted in many residents of the Canary Islands.

Black pig of Lanzarote: This breed of pig is native to the Canarian Archipelago and highly demanded in the Canarian gastronomy, which made it even at high risk of extinction around the time of the 80's until measures were taken, the Asociación de Criadores de Cochino Negro de Canarias was created and it became a more common animal in the livestock of the islands.