THE FAMOUS FOOD "SPAIN EDITION"

HOLA....

Whoop.. whoop.. Onijjang readers!! how you feel lately??... 

   i feel really want to eat something oily and crunchy with hot chocolate and watching a spain movie... 
   i think its time to churros ... what a delicious fried snack ahh.. dont forget to deep the churros with chocolate and dulce de leche hohohohoho... purfect combination but i prefer the savory one so if you guys curious about churros lets check it out..

...Gracias

churros

   A churro (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈtʃuro], Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈʃuʁu]) is a fried-dough pastry—predominantly choux—based snack. Churros are traditional in Spain and Portugal - from where they originate - as well as the Philippines and Ibero-America.    

   They are also consumed in the Southwestern United States, France and other areas that have received immigration from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking countries.

   In Spain, churros can either be thin (and sometimes knotted) or long and thick, where they are known as porras in some regions. 

   They are normally eaten for breakfast dipped in champurrado, hot chocolate, dulce de leche or café con leche. Sugar is often sprinkled on top.

   In vans, trailers, cafes and on dessert menus, the churro has arrived.

   Churros, tasty deep fried sticks of dough, sugar sprinkled and served with warm chocolate sauce for dipping, have long been the working man’s breakfast or after-party snack of choice in Spain, with churrerías often the first eateries to open in the morning, and the last to close at night.

   They quickly gained popularity in Mexico and South America, and are finally seducing London with their sticky, oily charms.

The origin of churros is unclear. One theory suggests they were brought to Europe from China by the Portuguese.

   The Portuguese sailed for the Orient and, as they returned from Ming Dynasty China to Portugal, they brought along with them new culinary techniques, including altering dough for youtiao, also known as Youzagwei in southern China, for Portugal.

   The new pastry soon crossed the border into Spain, where it was modified to have the dough extruded through a star-shaped die rather than pulled.

   Another theory is that the churro was made by Spanish shepherds, to substitute for fresh bakery goods. Churro paste was easy to make and fry in an open fire in the mountains, where shepherds spend most of their time.

HISTORY

   History is divided on how exactly churros came to exist. Some say they were the invention of nomadic Spanish shepherds. Living high in the mountains with no access to bakeries, the Spanish shepherds supposedly created churros, which were easy for them to cook in frying pans over fire.

   Lending credibility to this version of history is the fact that there exists a breed of sheep called the “Navajo-Churro”, which are descended from the “Churra” sheep of the Iberian Peninsula; the horns of these sheep look similar to the fried pastry.

   Another story says that Portuguese sailors discovered a similar food in Northern China called “You Tiao” and they brought it back with them. The Spanish learned of the new culinary treat from their neighbors, and put their own spin on

it by passing the dough through a star-shaped tip which gives the churro its signature ridges.

   Whether Spanish shepherds, Portuguese sailors or the Chinese get the credit for inventing the churro, it was the conquistadors who introduced them to Latin America. 

   Since then, the modern day churro has undergone various reincarnations including guava-filled churros in Cuba, dulce de leche-filled churros in Mexico and a cheese-filled version in Uruguay.

   Straight or spiral-shaped, with or without a dusting of cinnamon and sugar, dipped in chocolate or straight out of a greasy paper bag on the street, churros, in all their creative variations,

he history of the churro is ancient and revered, lending the snack an almost mythical status. 

   It begins not in Spain but in China, where Portuguese merchants first tasted youtiao, strips of golden fried salty pastry traditionally eaten for breakfast.

   When the Portuguese recreated this delicacy in Iberia, adding sugar rather than salt and introducing the now-familiar starred shape of the strips, the churro was born.

yaotiao

      In China, youtiao translates as ‘oil-fried devil’; the snack

was original served in pairs, symbolising Song dynasty official Qin Hui and his wife, the ‘devils’ who brought about the demise of the respected general.

   In Spain this folklore was lost, and the churro takes its name from the churra sheep, whose horns it is said to resemble.

   It was Spanish shepherds who popularised the dish, working as they did in the isolated terrain of the mountains for weeks and months at a time, they did not have access to fresh bread and so used the youtiao idea to cook their own substitute using no more than flour, water, oil and an open fire.

   Meanwhile, in Spanish towns, an exchange occurred which transformed the snack from shepherd’s fare to a royal delicacy.

While the conquistadors took churros to South America, they brought back chocolate and plentiful sugar, turning dull dough sticks into a sweet sensation.

   Once in South America, the churro continued to evolve from a plain, thin stick to a more rotund stuffed speciality, varying according to region.

 

savory churros

 While the Brazilians prefer a chocolate filling, the Cubans like their churros with Guava stuffing, Mexicans with dulce de leche or vanilla. In Uruguay, a savoury combination arose: cheese stuffed churros, and indeed, in South Eastern Spain they are still eaten with salt rather than sugar, closer relatives of the original youtiao. 

   Mexican churros are said to act as the bridge between dessert and savoury churros as salt is added to the dough before kneading, while the filling is tooth-achingly sweet.

   Churros are fried until they become crunchy, and may be sprinkled with sugar. The surface of a churro is ridged due to having been piped from a churrera, a syringe-like tool with a star-shaped nozzle. Churros are generally prisms in shape, and may be straight, curled or spirally twisted.

   Like pretzels, churros are sold by street vendors, who may fry them freshly on the street stand and sell them hot. In Spain and much of Latin America, churros are available in cafes for breakfast, although they may be eaten throughout the day as a snack.

   Specialized churreríascan be found in the form of a shop or a trailer during the holiday period. In addition, countries like Spain, Peru, Venezuela and Colombia have churrerías throughout their streets. In Portugal, they are commonly eaten at carnivals, fairs and other celebrations, where they are made freshly at street stands.

   In Seville (Andalusia), the name "calientes" or "calentitos de rueda" is sometimes used instead of the word churro. These tend to refer to the thicker variant, called porra in northern Spain, the Basque Country and other regions.

potato churros

   Calientes are usually fried in the shape of a continuous spiral and cut into portions afterwards. The center of the spiral is thicker and softer, and for many a delicacy in itself. The standard "churro" is also sold under the name "calentitos de papas", the name referring to the softer mashed potato–like texture.

In parts of Eastern Andalusia, a much thinner dough is used, which does not allow for the typical ridges to be formed on the surface of the churro.

The final result therefore has a smooth surface, and is more pliable and of a slightly thinner diameter than standard Spanish churros. Another difference is that sugar is never sprinkled on them, because the flavour is not considered suitable.

   Filled, straight churros are found in Cuba (with fruit, such

as guava), Brazil (with chocolate, doce de leite, among others), and in Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Chile and Mexico (usually filled with dulce de leche or cajeta but also with chocolate and vanilla).

   In Colombia and Venezuela, churros are glazed with arequipe and sweetened condensed milk. In Spain, a considerably wider diameter is used to accommodate the filling. In Uruguay, churros can also come in a savoury version, filled with melted cheese.

   Churros in American theme parks and street fairs are most often rolled in cinnamon sugar or other flavored sugars.

   In Spain and Latin American countries, you will find churros at churrerias made by a true “Churrero” churro master. The mouth-popping snack can be eaten for breakfast, as a mid-day snack to curb your hunger, and as a late night treat with friends. It is best paired with a cup of coffee, café con leche, hot cocoa or rich, thick dipping chocolate. You can always count on a churreria to be open early or very late, however you want to look at it.

   It is common to find churro vendors selling from street carts throughout Latin American, especially in Peru, Venezuela, and Colombia. You never know when you will get a craving for a delightfully sweet and perfectly crunchy churro.

   Portugal tends to associate churros with fair food and special occasions. On the other side of the world in Great Britain, meeting up with friends on a weeknight at the local churro spot is becoming the newest trend.                                                                              

   In America, we relish all of the other countries’ adaptations. Whether being pleasantly surprised by their presence at a local gathering or enjoying a batch of churros at your favorite international locale, it is easy to see who is benefiting from the growing popularity of the churro.

source by

htt://theprisma.co.uk/2011/07/17/churros-a-secret-history/

"Churros: a secret history". Retrieved 2011-10-16.

"Churro Encyclopedia". Retrieved 2011-12-27.

"Churros: The Hidden History". The Huffington Post. 2011-08-18. Retrieved 2011-10-16.

Díaz, Ana (2012-10-31). "Calentitos versus churros". A B C. Retrieved 19 June 2014.

"Una de calentitos". Toda una amalgama. 18 October 2013.

"La muralla widower: rueda o papa". Diario de Sevilla. May 18, 2009. Retrieved 19 June 2014.htts://albertoschurros.com/the-history-of-the-churro/