Gastronomy plays a very important role in our district. Take delight in all the different flavours you will find in our cheeses, meats, wines and cavas.
We celebrate varied gastronomic fairs in the area of Requena-Utiel. The most relevant ones are the Butchery fair, the Gastronomic Fair of Utiel and the Wine Fair in Requena (FEREVIN).
Casa Lucía
Flavours that inspire… A broad gastronomic offer
The Gastronomy of Requena
Main dishes: arroz en cazuela (rice with meat), arroz y bajocas (rice with beans), patatas en caldo (potatoes cooked with brot), gazpacho manchego (warm meal made with game meats).
Sweets and desserts: turroncillo (nougat), torrijas de bobal (fried bread soaked in milk), pan bendito (sponge cake), tortas de chichorritas (flour and butter pie) and alajú (honey and almond nougat).
Award-winning cheeses
You should not leave our district until you have tasted another of our delicacies: the cheeses. In the artisan cheese factory Hoya de la Iglesia, they manufacture high quality products from carefully selected livestock, mainly goats, and different aging methods for the cheese. The unique flavour of their cheeses has earned them several international awards.
--Serviette cheese
--Pyramid cheese
--Cheesecake
--Cured cheese
Olive oil
The ‘green gold’ can also be found in Requena. Here, many producers have specialized in organic oil, taking care of the sustainability of the agriculture, and the use of several olive varieties in order to get a distinguised oil. Among these, we really enjoy and recommend two:
From Oli-oli
--Arbequina olive oil
From Oleícola del Cabriel
--Olive oil
Embutidos: meats from Requena
Embutidos are a kind of sausages and cold meat elaborations that go deep in our traditions. They are artisan meals, made very carefully to ensure their quality.
A comitee guarantees their autenticity. The varieties of embutidos from Requena with the local quality seal are: longaniza, chorizo, güeña, sobrasada, salchichón, perro and morcilla.
The production of embutido follows strict guidelines (from the Protected Geographical Indication) that take care of the selection of the pork meat, which can only come from female or castrated males, the use of quality spices and the use of natural intestines to put the meat inside. These are unique features of our embutido and sets it appart from other offerings.
EVENT: the Butchery fair that takes place in February.
Valencian land of wine
Requena-Utiel is known for their wines, specially those made with Bobal, a local grape variety.
EVENT: the Wine fair and the Harvesting festivities, both take place at the end of August.
... and cava
Requena is one of the few cities outside Catalonia where cava is produced with the quality control of D.O. CAVA. For many years, cavas from Requena have been awarded internationally in renowned contests and have achieved very high scores in some of the most important guides.
