Foods to Eat in Spain - Castilla-La Mancha & Madrid

- Zarajos -

Zarajos is a traditional tapas dish of Cuenca, in the region of Castilla-La Mancha and is now also popular in the neighbouring city of Madrid. Different offal dishes are popular both across the world and within Spain as it is inexpensive and due to the 'not wasting any part of the animal' ethos, especially in the past.

Zarajos are lamb intestines (which may be a turn off for some, but I assure you, when its properly cleaned and fried, you can't tell you're eating offal) which are marinated in garlic, onions, white wine and parsley. They are then wrapped around a skewer and deep-fried (although they can also be baked in an oven or grilled). It is then normally served as is or sometimes, with a wedge of lemon to cut through some of the grease from the frying process. Alternatively, they can also be cooked in the broth made from Caracoles a la Madrileña (which I wrote about previously here).

If you are in Cuenca, home of the Zarajos, then you will find many small tapas bars serving this dish on their menu, and for the most part, you are safe going to any one of these as long as the overall restaurant is decent (as long as they clean the lamb well). Asador Maria Morena also sells Zarajos, however, they serve it with a mint and parsley sauce (traditionalists may say it's blasphemous), which complements the lamb especially well as the mint (a common pairing for lamb) cuts through some of the oil and the parsley adds some freshness.

This dish is also popular in Madrid, and again, most tapas bars will probably have it. One I would recommend is Los Caracoles, which is a friendly neighbourhood tapas bar with even friendlier owners. I mention this restaurant as they serve both the traditional Zarajos (simply fried) and also the variation where it is cooked in the broth of the stewed snails (which they are specialise in).

Overall, while this dish may be somewhat daunting for some people, it is still worth a try (and even if you don't like it, at least you know for sure you don't) and if you've never had it before, I would recommend the fried version rather than the stewed version simply because the fried version masks what you are eating a bit better. In my honest opinion, you can't even tell it's lamb intestines (other than its physical appearance) if it's been cooked properly. Instead, it tastes like a slightly earthier ball of crispy lamb.