Salvitxada

4 servings

45 minutes

Salvitxada is a traditional Catalan sauce that imparts a rich aroma of roasted nuts, sweet baked tomatoes, and a spicy garlic note to dishes. Its roots trace back to medieval Spanish cuisine, where it was used as the perfect accompaniment for fish, meat, and vegetables. Salvitxada has a velvety texture reminiscent of baby food, and its balanced flavor combines the sweetness of nyora pepper with a slight acidity from vinegar and the depth of nut mixtures. This sauce perfectly complements grilled dishes, transforming simple ingredients into a culinary masterpiece. Its rich warm hue and robust flavor make it an indispensable part of Catalan gastronomy where traditions blend with elegance and simplicity.

Energy value per serving

• Calories: 395
• Proteins: 11.7g
• Fats: 32.5g
• Carbohydrates: 14.7g

Ingredients

• Almond: 22 pc
• Hazelnut: 22 pc
• Tomatoes: 4 pc
• Garlic: 1 head
• Stale white bread: 20 g
• Extra virgin olive oil: to taste
• Dried pepper nyora: 2 pc
• Vinegar: to taste
• Salt: to taste

Cooking steps

1. Soak the pepper in boiling water for 15-20 minutes. Then open it, remove the seeds, and scrape the flesh from the inner surface of the skin with a teaspoon — that's what you need. Instead of ñoras, you can use the pepper used for coloring chorizo sausage. However, neither can be found in Russia, so buy dried Bulgarian pepper. As a last resort — ground paprika.

   Required ingredients:

   • Dried pepper nyora: 2 pieces

2. Toast the almonds and hazelnuts in a dry skillet.

   Required ingredients:

   • Almond: 22 pieces
   • Hazelnut: 22 pieces

3. Once the nuts cool down, crush them in a mortar with the bread.

   Required ingredients:

   • Stale white bread: 20 g

4. Add the flesh of peppers, salt, and a tablespoon of vinegar to the nut and bread mixture. Or more — it all depends on your taste.

   Required ingredients:

   • Dried pepper nyora: 2 pieces
   • Salt:  to taste
   • Vinegar:  to taste

5. While you were doing these procedures, the tomatoes and a head of garlic roasted in the oven at 210 degrees. Squeeze the garlic pulp into a mortar.

   Required ingredients:

   • Tomatoes: 4 pieces
   • Garlic: 1 head

6. Mix the nut and bread mixture with garlic and tomatoes into a homogeneous paste. While continuing to work with the pestle, pour in the olive oil in a thin stream. The amount of oil should be just enough for the salvitcada to have a consistency similar to semolina or baby food. If necessary, add more salt and vinegar. If you don't want to bother with the mortar, chop all the ingredients in a blender at once.

   Required ingredients:

   • Almond: 22 pieces
   • Hazelnut: 22 pieces
   • Stale white bread: 20 g
   • Garlic: 1 head
   • Tomatoes: 4 pieces
   • Extra virgin olive oil:  to taste
   • Salt:  to taste
   • Vinegar:  to taste