Valencia, Spain: A Foodie's Dream
Spanish food is diverse among its several regions and with complexity in flavor and history. Like all Mediterranean cooking, the cuisine highlights each fresh ingredient of the best quality.
Valencian cuisine emphasizes fish and seafood of the Mediterranean Sea, meats from the land, and the fruits and vegetables of La Huerta, the farming area surrounding the city (known in Valencian as L’Horta de València) which expands beyond Greater Valencia and includes L'Albufera Natural Park.
Historically, the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Carthaginians, and Jews each made contributions, but the Moors, who ruled for over 700 years, most significantly impacted Valencian flavors and ingredients found today when they brought rice, fruit, nuts, spices like saffron, and cooking methods to the region. After they discovered the New World, Christian Spain brought back potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, paprika, and chocolate used throughout Spain today.
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