Economy of A Limia

Gastronomy of A Limia

The gastronomy of A Limia: the potato as the star product and its designation, the bread from Xinzo's ovens, the pig slaughter and the products that sustain the comarca's cooking.

Star product: Potato (Pataca de Galicia PGI)
Weight in Galicia: About 90 % of Galician potatoes
Traditions: Pig slaughter, oven and bread

The cooking of A Limia is that of a farming and livestock land with cold winters: potatoes, rye, pork, chestnuts and slaughter products. Its best-known product, the potato, is the economic base of the comarca and its protected designation ^[1]^[2].

What there is

The potato of A Limia: the Pataca de Galicia PGI, A Limia’s weight in the Galician total and the producers’ debate.
Xinzo’s ovens and the bread cycle: sourdough starter, tendas (resting stages) and home delivery.
The pig slaughter: the ritual from morning to sausages.
The potato industry in Xinzo has its own entry in Propasi, AGA and the Feculera.

Bread, ovens and the slaughter

Edelmiro Martínez Cerredelo described on his blog Historia de Xinzo how bread was made in traditional ovens (A Limia, the "granary of Galicia", cooks wheat and rye) and what the ritual of the pig slaughter was, on which the pantry of many homes depended all year. These are the two foundations of traditional cooking told in this section: rye bread, baked in communal parish ovens, and meat cured and smoked over the hearth, with chorizos, blood sausages and hams.

FAQ

Which potato is grown in A Limia?

The one protected by the Pataca de Galicia PGI: Kennebec, Agria and Fina de Carballo varieties, on between 1,500 and 1,800 hectares a year in Galicia ^[1].

How much Galician potato comes from A Limia?

According to participants at the 3rd Conversas na Taberna (2018) at the Museo da Limia, the comarca produces 90 % of Galician potatoes ^[2].

How was bread baked in A Limia?

In communal or wood-fired ovens, with wheat flour, rye or a mixture, kneaded in the trough with sourdough starter, salt and water, with two or three resting stages (tendas) and two hours of baking ^[3].