It takes a little exploration away from the main tourist areas and fast food restaurants of the south to discover Tenerife's gastronomical delights. Although you can experience some traditional fare in some of the more typical Canarian restaurants within Playa De Las Americas and Los Cristianos.
Canarian cuisine is well known for fresh ingredients, simple recipes and its originality.This  can be attributed to the weather, the sea and the island's history. Tenerife's balmy climate allows for the year-round cultivation of vegetables (olives, tomatoes, chards, watercress, zucchini, green beans) and tropical fruits (oranges, bananas, mangos, papaya, avocado, guava), most of which stay right on the island and go into typical food dishes.

If you are a lover of seafood, the Atlantic Ocean surrounding Tenerife supplies an endless amount of the freshest seafood - parrot fish, tuna, sardines, mackerel, eel, sea bream, Canarian lobster, crab, octopus... the list is endless! Finally, the diverse nature of cultures in Tenerife - indigenous has encouraged the creative, innovative cuisine for which Tenerife is famous.

Most traditional Tenerife dishes are made from scratch and, while rather simple, are bursting with flavor. Take the famous "Canarian Potatoes," a favorite Tenerife food, for example; literally meaning "wrinkled potatoes," they are simply small potatoes cooked in salted water with their skins still on and then served with a sauce known as "mojo." Canarians are experts at combining herbs and spices - particularly saffron, paprika, oregano, basil, thyme, bay leaf and cumin - to give flavour-packed meals with an exotic touch.

Typical Canarian dishes include the following:

Fresh fish casserole with potatoes, onions, tomatoes and peppers.
Popular stews with fresh local vegetables and meats.
Vegetable stew.
Watercress stew and a popular vegetarian pick.
Different meats along with potatoes and garbanzo beans.
Potatoes and yams, accompied by mojo picón and gofio canario.
Unpeeled potatoes cooked in salted water and served with mojo.
Sweet blood sausage prepared with grapes, raisins, almonds and often with gofio canario.

Apart from the variety of dishes on offer, the main advantage of tasting the cuisine of Tenerife, is that you will normally find dining in a typical Canarian restaurant much more value for money than eating in an English restaurant.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 1st, 2008 at 3:31 pm and is filed under Food, Information, Relax, Tenerife. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.