La Tienda in the Press
Fine Cooking - February 01, 2016![]() Catalan Comfort: How to Cook in a CassolaGet to know the rustic, deeply flavored stews of Catalonia.Jeff Koehler Nearly 20 years ago, not long after I moved to Catalonia, the region in northeastern Spain of which Barcelona is the capital, my soon-to-be mother-in-law gave me my first cassola. Also known by its Spanish name, cazuela, this shallow, round, kiln-fired terra-cotta casserole is the workhorse of the traditional Catalan kitchen, where it’s used to stew and braise meats, poultry, and seafood, and even to make rice dishes. Then, when the dish is ready, the cassola is carried to the dining table, where it serves double-duty as an attractive serving vessel. Already a deep ruddy color and veined with a patina of hairline cracks when it was given to me, that first cassola lasted me for years as I learned to cook a repertoire of Catalan classics in it. |