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Aroa

Posted by marti | Posted on 27-05-2013

Category : BasqueStage

Tags: aroa, BasqueStage, getaria

Perhaps you’ve been wondering where Susy, our Sammic Top Chef Scholar, ended up after her stint at Ezkurtxerri, the pork farmers.  Well, she’s been working the fields above Getaria at Aroa, one of Basque Country’s most exquisite farms.

And the verdict? It’s pretty back-breaking, if beautiful work.  Beautiful because the people at Aroa are devoted to producing the finest vegetables, herbs, and fruits. One of their legendary products are their guisantes de lágrima, or tear-shaped peas.

Absolutely beautiful both raw and cooked (as is much of Jaime Burgana’s produce), these peas are sold at premium prices (think 200-300 euros a kilogram).  It’s all in the care, the cost of seeds, and the labor that goes into their collection.

For more details on Susy’s next destination, stay tuned to her blog and follow us on Twitter.

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A Trip to Getaria

Posted by marti | Posted on 12-12-2012

Category : BasqueStage

Tags: anchovy, basque country, free time, getaria, itsas mendi

We never let our Sammic scholars finish their stage without taking them to one of the most beautiful coastal towns in Basque Country: Getaria.  For such a tiny village, Getaria has quite the list of sights.

The Balenciaga Museum, as in the famous fashion designer.

A unique tradition of grilling fish, freshly caught by local farmers, on streetside charcoal grills that line the old part’s streets. A fresher fish probably doesn’t exist.

And then fish of a saltier variety….one of the Basque Country’s finest anchovy purveyors is also located in Getaria: Anchoas Maisor. They pack anchovies caught off the coast of Getaria in salt and allow them to cure for months, carefully scraping clean the filets for a perfect, bone-free anchovy. Brenden and Luuk were highly impressed on our personal taste-testing and needless to say, they went back for seconds.

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Of Fish and Forests

Posted by admin | Posted on 30-07-2011

Category : BasqueStage

Tags: cameron, free time, getaria, marco

Another weekend, another excursion! After last weekend’s trip to French Basque Country, we decided it would be only fitting to show Marco and Cameron the coast on the other side of the border. So, we set off along the winding roads of the highway outside of San Sebastián, direction west.

Making pitstops, of course, to admire the local fauna. Without fail, our American stages have been absolutely fascinated with the local sheep. Soon we arrived in Getaria, a tiny village known in some circles for being the birthplace of Cristobal Balenciaga, famous fashion designer, and in quite different circles as the birthplace of Juan Mari Elkano, first man to circumnavigate the globe. We know it, however, for its anchovies.

No trip to Getaria is complete without a stop in Itsas Mendi, for some of their delicious Maisor anchovies. But this time, the stages got a special surprise, a tour of the back processing room. We learned about how anchovies are made, start to finish.

What is basically a long curing period, where the cleaned anchovies are left to soak in salt, is followed by the final cleaning before they are packaged in olive oil and ready to be consumed.  The Maisor anchovies are prized for their lack of any bones, and they melt like butter on the tongue. Best in the world? Maybe. Check out Cameron’s blog post for a second opinion.

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