On the mountain road from Ronda to Carmona I spotted a couple pulling a giant thistle plant and placing it carefully in a sack. The thistle was almost as big as they were and I wondered what they were planning to do with it. Later that day we had lunch in an outstanding restaurant overlooking the vast plain. We sat inside where it was dark and cool and watched the tables of elderly men silently eating their way through numerous courses and pausing occasionally to call for another bottle of wine. I started with croquetas, delicate white sauce miraculously covered with the lightest coating of crisp crumb. Spanish croquetas have infinite variations - these incorporated wild thistle, a local delicacy.
They look delicious. And I've heard of people eating thistle, that it has a very memorable taste.
ReplyDeleteNot sure about thistles but I think I would like to try nettle soup - apparently it is like a robust version of spinach.
Deletenettle soup is delicious x
Deletethat sounds, interesting. Wild artichoke?
ReplyDeleteWhat did it taste like?
I don't remember a particular taste because I was so overwhelmed by the exquisite texture of the croquetas. I was interested to see that thistle is used as a traditional alternative to rennet in local cheeses and I wonder if that it what they were planning to use it for because there was certainly too much for eating.
DeleteI believe donkeys, who are vey clever and sociable, enjoy the occasional thistle. I'm curious to try thistle for myself and wonder if it is similar to artichoke perhaps with a hint of wild thyme?
ReplyDeleteThere are lots of different thistle type plants in Spain. It is possible that we were eating something like wild artichoke - I noticed that cultivated artichokes were being harvested in the sheltered valleys near Granada.
DeleteCould the thistle have been something like a cardoon, I wonder. These are widely used in Europe.
ReplyDelete