Canarian Cooking

Many people come to Gran Canaria and spend all week in a British restaurant eating steak and chips! If this is what you like, that’s fine. I like a traditional British meal at Christmas but I also like to be adventurous. If you fancy trying some authentic Canarian dishes, read on…

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Canarian Potatoes with Mojo Sauce (Papas Arrugadas)
Wherever you go, nearly every main dish comes with this (unless you request chips, a jacket potato or rice) but what exactly are Canarian Potatoes with Mojo Sauce?

Canarian Spuds
Photo By Fernando Carmona

Well, Canarian potatoes are quite small and are boiled in very salty water until the skin wrinkles then baked for a short time. Traditionally sea water was used but salted water is handier nowadays! Mojo sauce comes in two flavours – green (mojo verde) and red (mojo rojo) but the red type is served on potatoes and the main ingredients are oil, vinegar, garlic, chillies, cumin and paprika. Many Canarians make their own so no two mojos are ever alike! The green mojo contains coriander and is good with fish. There is a restaurant in Mogán called La Cofredia where fresh fish and Canarian potatoes are the order of the day!

Puchero Canario
This is a hearty vegetable stew with plenty of chick peas. If you like chick peas, you might also enjoy Ropa Vieja, which is a combination of potatoes, chicken and chick peas.

Bienmesabe
Literally meaning “how good it tastes to me” bienmesabe is an almond cream, popular as a Canarian dessert.

Bienmesabe
Photo By Ehbenahavis

Canarian Cheese
We might not have many cows here but we have plenty of goats! Goat cheese (queso de cabra) is widely available and can be served hot and melty – mmm! Almogrote is a well known snack here and is a mixture of hard cheese and garlic, nice with fresh bread.

Goat Cheese
Photo By BocaDorada

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In the resort areas, English is widely spoken so if you fancy trying something new, just ask your waiter what he recommends. It’s always fun to try out new foods and there are lots of tasty Canarian tapas to try 🙂

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4 Comments

  1. Kath Raw

    MMMMM mojo potatoes!!!

  2. Victoria (Post author)

    I hate them!!

  3. linda cooney

    hi i wonder if you have information on living in pueblo de mogan accomodation and schools as i have two children aged 7,and 11, i am looking for long term rental to see if we like the area before buying a property kind regards linda

  4. Victoria

    Hi Linda, would you mind if I started a separate thread to answer this question, since this one is a bit irrelevant 🙂

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