Gibraltarian cuisine is the result of a long relationship between the people of Spanish

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

and those of Great Britain, as well as the many foreigners who have made

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

their home over the past three centuries. These influences include those of the culinary traditions of

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

, and

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. This marriage of tastes has produced in Gibraltar an eclectic mix of

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

and

British cuisine British cuisine consists of the cooking traditions and practices associated with the United Kingdom, including the regional cuisines of English cuisine, England, Scottish cuisine, Scotland, Welsh cuisine, Wales, and Northern Irish cuisine, Nort ...

s. Below are some examples of typical Gibraltarian dishes.

Pasta

Rosto

A popular local pasta dish of Italian origin consisting of penne in a

tomato sauce Tomato sauce (; ; ) can refer to many different sauces made primarily from tomatoes. In some countries the term refers to a sauce to be served as part of a dish, in others it is a condiment. Tomatoes have a rich flavor, high water content, s ...

with beef or occasionally pork, mushrooms and carrots (among other vegetables depending on family tradition) and topped with grated "'' queso bola''". The origin of its name is probably from the Italian word "arrosto".

Fideos al horno

A baked pasta dish very similar to the Spanish ''fideos al horno'', Maltese '' imqarrun'' or

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

pastitsio Pastitsio (, ''pastítsio'') is a Greek baked pasta dish with ground meat and béchamel sauce, with variations of the dish found in other countries near the Mediterranean Sea. Name and origin Pastitsio takes its name from the Italian ''pas ...

which consists of macaroni, bolognese sauce, and various other ingredients including egg and bacon that vary according to family tradition. The macaroni is usually topped with a layer of grated cheese or béchamel that melts during the baking process and aids in binding. Even though the dish's main ingredient is macaroni, the name ''fideos al horno'' is actually Spanish for 'baked noodles'.

Bread

Savoury

Calentita

This is a baked pancake-like dish, similar to the Italian '' farinata'', also known in Genoa as ''fainâ'' and in

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

and

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

as ''fainá'', and in the

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionchickpea flour, water,

olive oil Olive oil is a vegetable oil obtained by pressing whole olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea'', a traditional Tree fruit, tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin) and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking for frying foods, as a cond ...

, salt and pepper. The word ''calentita'' is the Spanish informal diminutive of the word ''caliente'', and means "nice and warm (or hot)". A very similar dish is widely consumed in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

, where it is known as Calentica, Galentita or Karantika. The dish has the same Spanish etymology (the diminutive -ica rather than -ita being typical of eastern Spain). According to local sources, calentita was introduced into Algeria by the Spaniards garrisoned at the port of Santa Cruz during the 16th century. Soon after 1704, well-documented connections were established between the

Barbary Coast The Barbary Coast (also Barbary, Berbery, or Berber Coast) were the coastal regions of central and western North Africa, more specifically, the Maghreb and the Ottoman borderlands consisting of the regencies in Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli, a ...

and Gibraltar to victual the garrison, after Gibraltar lost her agricultural land. The Sephardi Jews from the Barbary Coast may have reintroduced this dish into Gibraltar, where it was maintained after the recipe was lost or fell out of favour in Spain. Another widely suggested theory is that the origin of calentita is in Genoese migrations to Gibraltar and Iberia which started before the Anglo-Dutch action of 1704, although its name makes this unlikely. The Sephardi Jews from the Barbary Coast became major food providers for the British in Gibraltar, bringing their customs, languages and food culture. It is widely believed in Gibraltar that name may have come from

street vendor A hawker is a vendor of merchandise that can be easily transported; the term is roughly synonymous with costermonger or peddler. In most places where the term is used, a hawker sells inexpensive goods, handicrafts, or food items. Whether stationa ...

s who would shout "''Calentita''" to sell their freshly cooked wares, a word which was transferred from the temperature to the foodstuff. Indeed, the last calentita street vendor, Paloma, is still remembered locally by older people. Since the name can be traced to the 16th century during the Spanish presence in Oran, this is a false etymology.

Panissa

A bread-like dish similar to calentita. Sharing its Italian origins, it is a descendant of the Genoese dish with the same name. Unlike calentita, the ingredients are first simmered in a saucepan for over an hour, stirring constantly, to form a paste which is then left to set. When the

polenta Polenta (, ) is an Italian cuisine, Italian dish of boiled cornmeal that was historically made from other grains. It may be allowed to cool and solidify into a loaf that can be baked, fried or Grilling, grilled. The variety of cereal used is ...

-like dough is set, it is cut into small strips and fried in olive oil.

Torta de Acelgas

A Swiss chard pie very similar to the Greek '' spanakopita'', which is usually made at Easter Time.

Sweet

Bollo de hornasso

A sweet and dry bread similar to the Spanish '' hornazo''. It is made with self-raising flour, sugar, eggs, butter or

margarine Margarine (, also , ) is a Spread (food), spread used for flavoring, baking, and cooking. It is most often used as a substitute for butter. Although originally made from animal fats, most margarine consumed today is made from vegetable oil. The ...

and

aniseed Anise (; '), also called aniseed or rarely anix, is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae native to the eastern Mediterranean region and Southwest Asia. The flavor and aroma of its seeds have similarities with some other spices and herbs, ...

. ''Bollos de hornasso'' are eaten around Easter just as in Spain, but in Gibraltar they are also popular during Christmas. Gibraltarian ''hornassos'' can normally be distinguished from the original Spanish ''hornazo'' as they do not tend to be decorated with hard-boiled eggs (however, Gibraltarian families of Spanish descent may still decorate them in this manner). It usually glazed with beaten egg and sometimes decorated with hundreds and thousands.

Pan dulce

A sweet fruit and nut bread eaten at Christmas time. The term ''pan dulce'' means "sweet bread" in Spanish, but its origins may lie in Italy with the Genoese '' pandolce'' or Portuguese sweet bread. Its main ingredients can include

lard Lard is a Quasi-solid, semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering (animal products), rendering the adipose tissue, fatty tissue of a domestic pig, pig.

, margarine, sugar, self-raising flour, blanched

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', Synonym (taxonomy)#Botany, syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera ...

raisin A raisin is a Dried fruit, dried grape. Raisins are produced in many regions of the world and may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking, and brewing. In the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia and South Afri ...

s, sultanas,

pine nut Pine nuts, also called piñón (), pinoli (), or pignoli, are the edible seeds of pines (family Pinaceae, genus ''Pinus''). According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, only 29 species provide edible nuts, while 20 are traded locall ...

candied peel Candied fruit, also known as glacé fruit, is whole fruit, smaller pieces of fruit, or pieces of peel, placed in heated sugar syrup, which absorbs the moisture from within the fruit and eventually preserves it. Depending on the size and type ...

, eggs, aniseed and anisette among others. It is sometimes decorated with hundreds and thousands just like the ''bollo de hornasso''.

Milhojas

Meat

Rolitos

A thin slice of beef surrounding

breadcrumbs Breadcrumbs are a culinary ingredient consisting of flour or crumbled bread of varying dryness, sometimes with seasonings added. They are used for a variety of purposes, including breading or crumbing foods before frying (such as breaded cutlet ...

, bacon, eggs, olives, vegetables and herbs. These can be baked, fried or cooked in wine. ''Rolitos'' is another dish of Maltese origin, similar to '' braġjoli''. It is also known as ''beef olives'' in English, even though some families prefer making them with pork or even chicken. The word ''rolito'' comes from the Spanish word ''rollo'' meaning 'roll', as the meat is rolled to hold the other ingredients inside.

Confectionery

Japonesa

The ''japonesa'' () is a sweet fried

doughnut A doughnut or donut () is a type of pastry made from leavened fried dough. It is popular in many countries and is prepared in various forms as a sweet snack that can be homemade or purchased in bakeries, supermarkets, food stalls, and fran ...

filled with a

custard Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on sweetened milk, cheese, or cream cooked with Eggs as food, egg or egg yolk to thicken it, and sometimes also flour, corn starch, or gelatin. Depending on the recipe, custard may vary in con ...

-like cream. Japonesas are usually enjoyed at teatime or as a

snack A snack is a small portion of Human food, food generally Eating, eaten between meals. Snacks come in a variety of forms including Food packaging, packaged snack foods and other processed foods, as well as items made from fresh ingredients at ho ...

. They are traditionally coated in syrup or granulated sugar.The Jewish Traveler – Gibraltar
/ref> The name is a reference to Japanese dorayaki cakes which are similarly shaped and also have a sweet filling.

References

External links

Gibraltar Recipes �
www.mamalotties.com
alentita Recipe �
www.mamalotties.com/calentita/
Pudin de Pan – http://www.mamalotties.com/pudin-de-pan/ Borrachuelos – http://www.mamalotties.com/borrachuelos-de-mama/ Minestra / Menestra – http://www.mamalotties.com/menestra/ Rosto – http://www.mamalotties.com/rosto/ {{Mediterranean cuisine European cuisine by dependent territory Mediterranean cuisine British cuisine Culture of Gibraltar