5 Amazing Traditional Spanish Vegetarian Recipes

I remember when I was told that Spanish dishes are very meat-based. This made me think and come up with traditional Spanish vegetarian recipes that my grandma has been cooking all her life.

Apart from travel, food is my second passion, and it can be linked very easily. I travel to experience new places, meet new people, learn more about a culture, and definitely try new flavours.

As a Spanish chica, food is so important to me and, although I love trying new recipes from other parts of the world, I must admit I love my country’s food. 

Spanish food is included in the Mediterranean diet and has various influences. Muslims invaded the Iberian Peninsula in 711, and their food influenced Spanish cuisine, bringing ingredients like aubergine, spinach, sugar cane, rice, apricots, and citrus.

If you’re in love with Spanish tapas, you’re on the right blog because I will tell you about the amazing traditional Spanish and vegetarian dishes you can make at home. 

Also, most of these recipes are from my lovely Andalusia county where I am from, so be ready to cook three amazing Spanish vegetarian recipes that don’t take long to prepare and have simple and yummy ingredients.

Delicious Spanish Vegetarian Recipes

Gazpacho

This is a traditional Spanish cold tomato soup that is mainly served in the warm summer months as a refresher. Gazpacho or Gazpacho Andaluz was originated in Southern Spain, in the Andalusia region. 

It’s a healthy soup that is easy to prepare and has budget-friendly ingredients that you can easily get anywhere.

Ingredients – Serves 2 people

• ½ kg tomatoes 
• ½ green pepper
• 1 garlic clove
• ½ cucumber
• 1 dl olive oil
• 4 tsp wine vinegar
• 1 white bread slice
• Salt 

Method

1. Put the tomatoes in boiled water and peel them.
2. Peel and cut the cucumber into dice. 
3. Wash and cut the pepper into chunks.
4. Put the peeled tomatoes, cucumber, pepper, garlic and bread in a blender for a couple of seconds.
5. Add vinegar, salt and olive oil and blend further for a few seconds.
6. Put the soup through a sieve and then put it in the fridge for an hour.
7. Serve in small cups or glasses.

Recommendation – serve it very chilly for a better taste 🙂 You can also have it with an ice cube-like some locals do and add chopped basil or an extra drizzle of olive oil.

Espinacas con garbanzos

It’s a hearty meal that you’ll love so much that you’ll do it again and again. This is chickpeas with spinach that I learned from my grandma, who is from Sevilla, where this dish is made! 

Like many Andalusian recipes, its origin is Arabic and it was created to preserve pulses at the time. They discovered that mixing spices with pulses, meat and fish helped preserve these ingredients.

If you go to Andalusia, you’ll be able to order it as a tapa or a main, but there’s nothing better than grandma’s traditional recipe.

Ingredients – Serves 2 people

• 500g chickpeas
• 400g frozen spinach
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 bread slice
• 5g ground cumin
• 5g ground coriander 
• 5g Sweet paprika
• 60g Tomato sauce
• 30g Apple vinegar
• 100ml water
• 100ml olive oil
• Salt

Method

1. Boil the frozen spinach in a pot at medium heat for approximately 15 minutes or until they defrost and are cooked.  
2. Once the spinach is ready, chop them with a sharp knife. 
3. In a hot pan, add olive oil and two peeled garlic cloves. Fry the garlic cloves until they get golden, and then, add them to a blender.
4. Fry the bread slice in the same olive oil from the garlic.
5. Once the bread is fried, wipe the oil and put it in a blender with the cumin, coriander, white pepper, tomato sauce and salt. Also, add the apple vinegar, water and half of the olive oil. Blend and leave it aside.
6. Put the olive oil from frying the garlic and bread in a big pan, add the spinach and stir fry for a couple of minutes.
7. Add the bread paste and cook for two more minutes. Stir everything to mix the flavours. 
8. Add the chickpeas and stir fry for five minutes. Add salt if necessary.
9. Serve!

Berenjenas con miel de caña

This is a very traditional recipe from Málaga and other Andalusian towns like Granada. Although it isn’t a main course, it’s a great starter and side that you can quickly prepare.

You may think, wait, aubergine with honey? Yes, the secret of this recipe is that the combination of fried aubergine and honey is perfect for a sweet and salty taste. Also, the aubergine loses the sour taste once it’s fried.

Miel de caña (sugar cane honey) is considered very healthy too! It’s rich in iron, it gives you energy, and it has fewer calories! It’s a great natural alternative to regular honey or sugar.

Ingredients – Serves 2 people

• 1 Aubergine
• Salt
• ¾ cup of buckwheat flour
• Olive oil
• Sugar cane honey

Method

1. Cut the aubergine into slices, add salt and put them in a colander to drain for half an hour.
2. Wipe the aubergine slices with a kitchen towel or cloth.
3. Put them in a bowl with flour and make sure they are fully covered in flour.
4. Add olive oil to a hot pan and fry the aubergine slices until they are golden.
5. Put them on a plate with a kitchen towel to remove any excess oil.
6. Serve them and add sugar cane honey as much as you want.

Tortilla de patatas

This is a classic Spanish dish that you’re very likely to hear of. Tortilla de patatas is a vegetarian dish with simple ingredients (potatoes, eggs and olive oil) that you probably have at home.

It’s a budget-friendly recipe that you’ll love cooking again and again. However, as simple as it seems, not everyone gets the perfect tortilla de patatas.

You’ll get different results depending on the cooking time for each ingredient and how you turn it over in the pan!

Ingredients – Serves 4 people

• 5 eggs
• 500g potatoes
• Olive oil
• Salt

Method

1. Peel and wash the potatoes. Then cut them into slices. 
2. Add olive oil to a deep pan and fry the potatoes on medium-low heat. Make sure they are thoroughly fried to avoid a bad tortilla de patatas.
3. Put them on a colander to remove the excess oil. Grab a bowl, beat the eggs and add a pinch of salt.
4. In a big bowl put the potatoes and eggs, and mix them. Don’t mash the potatoes when mixing!
5. Add olive oil to a hot pan and pour the mixture. Start giving it shape and when you think it’s done – approximately 3 minutes or so depending on how you’d like your tortilla (runnier or completely cooked).
6. Here’s the most difficult part of making a good tortilla de patatas, grab a big plate and turn it over.
7. Once it’s ready, set aside and serve.

Many locals like adding onions to their tortilla de patatas, so if you like them, fry the onions and add them to the mixture. Personally, it’s tastier!

Paella de verduras

Who says paella needs to have meat or seafood? Another classic Spanish dish is paella de verduras which is a vegan paella. 

If you’ve never heard of paella, it’s a delicious rice dish that originated in Valencia. However, despite its origins, this is a dish that is cooked nationally.

Also, although not every local follows the tradition, Sundays are the perfect day to gather with family and friends to have paella.

Ingredients – Serves 4 people

• 300g bomba rice
• 800ml vegetable stock
• 200g mushrooms
• 6 artichoke hearts
• 100g green beans
• 1/2 red bell pepper
• 1/2 green bell pepper
• 1 onion
• 1 garlic clove
• 3 tbsp crushed tomato 
• A pinch of saffron 
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• Olive oil
• Salt

Method

1. Prepare the vegetable stock as it needs to be hot to prevent interrupting the rice cooking process.
2. Dice red and green bell peppers, onion and garlic. 
3. Cut the green beans’ ends and cut them in half to make them slightly smaller.
4. Get the paellera, a Spanish pan specially used to make paella, or alternatively a big deep pan and add olive oil on high heat. 
5. Add onions to the pan until cooked, and then add all vegetables (except artichoke hearts) and garlic. Fry for approximately 5 minutes.
6. Add 3 tbsp of crushed tomato and 300g of bomba rice. Stir the rice with the ingredients in the pan.
7. Add hot vegetable stock, artichoke hearts, saffron and paprika. Stir and leave it to cook for approximately 20 minutes until there isn’t any stock left.
8. Let it rest for 2 minutes and serve!

If you’re interested in learning about other Andalusian food, read my blog about Authentic Andalusian Food.

These vegetarian dishes can make you feel like you’re in sunny and beautiful Spain, and although it may not be an authentic taste because of the ingredients, it’s a great way to get closer to the cuisine.

Also, you can compare your version with an authentic one when you travel and visit tapas bars.

I’ve always believed that there’s nothing better than going to a new country and tasting the food made by the locals, especially grandmas because they really know how to make meals tastier and to remember.

Also, I hope to have inspired you to cook these delicious Spanish dishes and prove that vegetables are one of the main ingredients in Spanish cuisine.

Apart from these classic Spanish dishes, there are other well-known and delicious dishes like patatas bravas (deep-fried chips with a spicy sauce) and pimientos de padrón (fried peppers) that you can dip in romesco sauce.

I hope you enjoy these recipes, and I’d love to hear from you. What traditional vegetarian recipes do you prepare in your region or country?

Love,

Cristina xx

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