Sobrasada: ‘spreadable’ chorizo from Mallorca
Is it steak tartare? Or chorizo after all? Neither. Sobrasada is actually best compared to the Italian ‘Nduja: a spreadable, spicy sausage. Unbelievably delicious, especially with this golden tip.
What is sobrasada?
Sobrasada is a soft sausage made from pork, two types of paprika (dulce and picante), black pepper and salt. It comes in spicy and mild varieties, and some are more spreadable than others, but in all types the meat must contain between 30 and 60% lean meat and between 40% and 70% fat. In addition, artificial colourings are prohibited, so the red colour really does come from the paprika.
Where can you buy sobrasada?
The sausage comes from the Balearic Islands, so it is available everywhere on Mallorca and Ibiza. It is also widely available on mainland Spain. Unfortunately, it is a little harder to find in the Netherlands, but some good delicatessens do stock it. Caulils on Haarlemmerstraat in Amsterdam, for example.
How do you eat sobrasada?
You can eat this Spanish spreadable sausage in all kinds of different ways. In risotto, as a croquette, with baked apple, simply on a sandwich (like steak tartare), for example, or topped with manchego or a quail’s egg. But the golden tip for me was definitely to crumble the sausage coarsely into a pan, fry it and eat it on a piece of toast with—yes, here it comes: honey. So delicious that after tasting it, I immediately bought a sausage and ate sobrasada with honey every day for the rest of the week.
How do you make sobrasada?
You can also make the sausage yourself. All you need is a good food processor, chorizo, lard, spices and this sobrasada recipe.
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