All is Not Lost – More Calçots Please!
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All is not completely lost though. D had a brainwave – luckily he doesn’t like to waste a thing so had been mulling over the problem of the sprouting onions and decided to replant them. Mad huh? Let me explain more…
The onions are sprouting but are still basically dry and okay so we’re going to increase our ‘calçot‘ crop. Now calçots are something I’d never encountered before moving to Catalunya but I have to say they really are Spain’s best kept veggie secret! Legend has it that calçots were ‘discovered’ by a farmer who’d neglected to harvest all his onions only to find the following spring that he had up to ten large loose leeky/oniony sprouts coming from each bulb. Well a new reason for a springtime fiesta was borne!
Towns and villages all over Catalunya are awash with these over-sized spring onions each January to April and quite rightly too. In Tarragona province particularly they are eaten with abandon – cooked over hot charcoal, the charred outer skin is slipped off (whilst holding the root end tightly) to reveal the sweetest, mildest, softest onion experience of all time. These beauties are then dipped in a romesco or salvitxada sauce and slurped furiously. It is always best to wear a bib or old clothes and traditionally one should be standing up too, whilst eating these amazing veggies. They really are very very messy. For anyone thinking of travelling to the area do try to visit the calçotada. It’ll warm you up and let you have fun with Catalans enjoying some of their favourite pass-times – good food, company and wine. They may even throw a human tower into the mix if you’re lucky!
We planted our calcots in early October but hopefully the sprouting onions put in this week, will extend our harvest. Weird as it seems if you’ve never tasted a roasted calcot they really are supreme eating. Wow maybe the onion problem isn’t so bad. After all if it means we get to enjoy more mini Calcotades fiestas at home – roll on Jan 2009!
- Calcots 2 Weeks Old!
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[...] when talking about the Catalan tradition of calçots and the calçotada, I did mention that you need a really good romesco sauce to go with [...]
I’ve not heard of this, must look into it.
Morning Jan, You’ll see them everywhere in another month or so – big bunches of oversized spring onions – try them and you’ll see they’re worth growing as quite pricey but lovely!
i’ve never heard of these either! we’ve got old sprouting onions now, is it too late to try growing them into calçots?
[...] Second is the yummy-sounding Spanish Calçot. [...]
Sophie, So long as the onions aren’t too mushy I’d give it a go. We planted ours in autumn/winter but still trying them is better than chucking them! I’ve also been using them sliced in cooking instead of ‘proper’ onions coz we’ve run out. They taste good!
Is there an onion that is grown in the United states that could work similarly to growing Calcots in Spain?
Walla Wall sweets are thinned in the spring and sold as “salad onions”. They look lik a large green spring onion at this stage. I wonder if they may work?
Are there any places that the original “Calcot” can be purchased to start a Calcot grop of this type of onion?
I live in Port Angeles, Washington, which has a mild climate, but somewhat rainy.
Thank You,
Bill Merrill bmerrill@pencol.edu