I am about to share with all of you the start of my experience on this assignment: teaching in the beautiful city of Seville for 3 months. I will let you in to see what it really is like to experience my journey during this adventure….what better way to start than to talk about our incredibly tasty chocolate with churros.
where do churros come from? have you ever wondered? You may be surprised to hear that they actually come from China, from what is called “Yutiao” there. It was a dish eaten during breakfast in that land and it originally consisted of strips of salty fry dough. This meal was so good that little y little, and caused by the repeated trips of Spaniards and Portuguese to China, it ended up arriving to the Iberian Peninsula.
In the beginning, and upon arriving to our land, churros were a dish mainly eaten by people with low means and shepherds. It is said that the name “churros” come from the “Churras” sheep because the fried dough resembled the horns of the sheep.
After the arrival of Colombus in the new world other ingredients like sugar and cacao started to arrive in the peninsula and they were added to the delicious dish. Churros increased in popularity until they became a well liked and elegant dish. It is this way how they arrived in the cities through ferias and the first churrerías (churros stores) appeared.
Today the most famous churros in Spain are the ones in Madrid. This city started to popularize eating them for breakfast in the XIX century (at that time they were called ‘frying-pan fruit’) .
The origen of chocolate is, of course, much older and it brings us to Mexico and to pre hispanic cultures. There is no doubt, however that chocolate and churros form one of the most popular couples in the culinary history of Spain.
Churros have always been one of my favorite dishes. They bring me memories of walking down the street holding my grand mother’s hand as we walked in the churrería. The smell of chocolate and churros is simply intoxicating and the flavor makes you go into an intense state of euforia.
It is of no surprise that, upon landing in Madrid, the first place I visited with my beautiful cousin Maribel was the Churrería de San Ginés located next to the plaza mayor, the churrería is the oldest in the city and it is located right next to the Plaza Mayor.
It is open 7 days a week 24 hours a day and you can always find a line forming out the door of people waiting for the delicious dough with a cup of dark thick chocolate.
I once remember traveling with a client for Smithsonian Journeys. He asked me to take him for some chocolate and churros, so we came to San Ginés. When he dipped his first ever churro and put it in his mouth he started laughing uncontrollably. When I asked him if he was alright he replied: ‘I have never eaten anything so delicious in my live’
This was my first day being back home…well spent at San Ginés and if you ever visit Madrid, this is where you should start. ¡Buen provecho!