Catalan spinach with pine nuts and raisins is a wonderfully simple, easy and tasty side dish or tapas. It's quick to make with just a few ingredients, combining tender spinach with lovely bursts of flavor throughout.
This post may contain affiliate links, where we earn from qualifying purchases. See more details in the policy page.
Spanish cuisine sometimes gets a reputation of not being vegetarian-friendly, which I understand, though it's a maybe a little less true than you might think. When I first lived there years ago I had a good friend who was vegetarian and it could indeed be tough to find dishes that didn't have little bits of ham or something else mixed in.
But times have changed, and it's not that there has ever been any shortage of vegetables. In fact I always loved the broad range of produce available at my local market with amazing tomatoes, artichokes, chard and more. And there have always been some great vegetable dishes around, like this one.
Origins of spinach with pine nuts and raisins
This dish is from Catalunya in the Northeast of Spain (the region that includes Barcelona). It dates back to the Middle Ages, and so probably unsurprisingly, not a lot more about the origins are known.
The ingredients are simple and ones you'll find readily in the area - spinach, pine nuts, raisins, olive oil and garlic. There's minimal preparation required, a short cook then it's ready to enjoy.
Some variations add some onion or shallot, others add crisp bacon or ham either on the side or mixed in, but traditionally it's as simple as this. And it's a lovely mix as it is, or with additions.
I've used the same basic idea to make sauteed chard with pine nuts and raisins which is one of my favorite ways to prepare chard. In that I add a little lemon juice to take the edge off any iron-y flavor. You could do that here, too, though I don't think you need to.
Choosing and preparing the spinach
In general, there aren't many variations in this dish but one area that you may see difference in is how to prepare the spinach. Some choose to cook it in boiling water first, other saute it in oil.
To me which you choose depends on the type of spinach you use. Baby spinach has very tender leaves and they cook down quickly, so sauteing works well, and saves using an extra dish.
For larger leaf spinach, though, which can take a little longer to cook and can be a bit more bitter, boiling (or rather blanching, since it's such a quick cook) is the better choice. First, it's probably more effective at ensuring the thicker leaves cook evenly plus secondly, it helps reduce the bitterness.
Here I've chosen to use baby spinach as it's what's more readily available, is that bit milder and is also easier to prepare.
Remember spinach reduces down A LOT when you cook it so it might seem a huge amount before you start, but it really cooks down to next to nothing.
The quantities of pine nuts and raisins are a little flexible, depending on your taste. I like quite a lot of them as I love the contrasting flavor and texture they add. But I appreciate it may feel a bit much to some (and traditionally you would add less), so feel free to reduce if you prefer.
Serving ideas
This is a dish that you can serve in a few ways. It's great as a topping to bread or toast, as in one of the llescas, Catalan bread pizza, I've shared before. It's also great to have as a vegetable tapas to mix in with either meaty or other vegetable-based dishes.
But while it's a Spanish/Catalan dish, don't feel that restricts what you pair it with. It would also work well as a side to things like steak or roast chicken, as well as many vegetarian mains, such as something legume-based.
This Catalan spinach with pine nuts and raisins is a wonderfully quick and easy dish to make with a short list of ingredients, yet it has a lovely mix of textures and flavors. Great as a topping, tapas or side, be sure to enjoy soon.
Try these other vegetable sides/tapas:
- Spanish garlic mushrooms, champiñones al ajillo, another wonderfully easy yet tasty vegetable tapas/side.
- Vichy carrots, French glazed carrots, tender and with a lovely gently sweet glaze.
- Japanese spinach salad with sesame, horenso gomaae, another tasty way to prepare spinach.
- Plus get more Spanish recipes and side dishes in the archives.
Catalan spinach with pine nuts and raisins
Ingredients
- 10 oz spinach see notes
- 2 cloves garlic small, or less if large
- 4 tablespoon raisins both regular and golden raisins/sultanas work
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoon pine nuts
Instructions
- If using larger-leaf spinach, rough chop before cooking. If baby spinach, it's fine as it is. Finely dice the garlic. If the raisins are dry, soak in water for a couple minutes as you cook the spinach, but if pretty tender then no need.
- Warm most of the olive oil in a medium-large skillet/frying pan over a medium heat. Add the spinach leaves, part at a time, and wilt them down, turning the mixture over so the wilted parts below weigh down the un-wilted spinach on top. Add more as you get more space and keep turning to cook evenly. Remove the wilted spinach from the pan and set aside.
- Add the rest of the oil then add the pine nuts and garlic. If the pine nuts are small you can add together, otherwise give them a minute longer than the garlic. Cook for a couple minutes, stirring to turn as best you can, taking care that the pine nuts just gently brown and the garlic becomes fragrant but not really browned. Reduce the heat if needed.
- Add the raisins, stir them through and cook briefly then add back the spinach. Mix well so everything is well distributed, and season with a little salt and pepper and if you like, a little extra drizzle oil, then serve.
Notes
Nutrition
See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store.
Remember to pin for later!
Leave a Reply