Weird Spanish food • 5 things that will shock you

If you feel daring, you will work out that some of this weird Spanish foods can also be the most delicious.

Weird Spanish food. 5 things that will shock you

Considering they suffered a war, a dictatorship, and general poverty it is no surprise that Spanish grandmas learnt how to make the most of any resource available.

Their imagination to keep their families fed and well nourished in times of need is legendary. Interestingly enough, as time went by, some of these very peculiar dishes are now considered delicacies.

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Weird Spanish food. 5 things that will shock you

1. Pork nose or Morro de cerdo. A weird Spanish food, not for everyone

This is a very straight forward Spanish tapa made out of deep fried pieces of pork nose and mouth.

There are no grey areas with this very typical Spanish tapa, people either love it or hate it. Be warned.. the occasional hair might be present!

2. Calamari Ink or tinta de calamar. An interesting spice

While it is not a tapa per se, they use it to add colour and flavour while cooking.

One of the most popular ways to use is black rice (or Arroz Negro), a paella-style dish that can include calamari and prawns. Simply delicious!

3. A weird Spanish food that is a delicacy: Baby eels or Angulas

One of the most sought after bites from the sea as eels only reproduce in one area of the world: the Sargasso sea, an area in the Atlantic ocean.

They travel thousands of kilometres from all over the world to reach this area where the water is warmer and saltier.

Not only they are rare to find they are also only available from October to March. There are many limitations on the amount people can fish per year and their price per kilo can be reach 1000 €. (Cod price per kilo is around 15 €)

You will normally fry them in oil with garlic and chilli, and they are so popular nowadays you can also find cheaper, fake versions available in all supermarkets (called gulas)

4. Lamb’s glands or mollejas. A weird Spanish food actually delicious

We must confess, growing up as kids in Spain, we had no clue what mollejas were.

Therefore, we could not be disgusted by the fact that what we were eating were actual glands.

Although, to be honest, we would not have known what glands were anyway!

This meaty bite started as the only meat poor people could afford in times of need, but now it has become an exquisite bite appreciated by the most prestigious chefs in Spain.

5. Cow’s stomach or Callos.

Generally they are popular in winter due to its heavy calorie count. You will find them mostly in Madrid and Galicia.

People serve them as a stew cooked with chorizo, blood pudding and sometimes chickpeas.

However, keep in mind their texture is surely not for everyone.

These are just a small selection of the weird Spanish foods you might encounter if you find yourself in Spain.

But please keep in mind that weird is very relative and depends on where you grew up. For instance, growing up in the south of Spain, the kids in my family used to fight over the rabbit’s kidneys but probably that’s not the case in other places.