This article is part two of a three part series on "How to prepare & cook a traditional Mallorcan Slow Food Paella."
Many of our Clients ask, "Where does your food come from?"
Peixos Carmen - Local Fish Vendor at the Mercat de Olivar
The Mercat de Olivar is where we get our slow food seafood for our paella. This market is the biggest in Mallorca and it has a lot of variety.
There's seafood, vegetables, spices, and even a tapas bar. It's located in Palma, the capital of Mallorca, right near the Placa Espana.
Mallorcuina chef, Janko, shows us the way through the market
All the vendors at this market are family owned and from the island. We like to go to different local seafood vendors here. There are many to choose from.
Lately, we have been going to Peixos Carmen. They're seafood is of high quality, fresh and their prices are fair.
Janko shows us the kind of seafood he gets for his paella.
Is the Seafood Really Slow Food?
To find out if the seafood from a particular vendor is local and fresh, check the "Zona de Captura" - a certificate telling you the where it was caught.
Zona de Captura Certificate - here it states "Mar Mediterrani 37" - muy cerca!
A lot of markets boast that they are a slowfood market, trying to make a point of it. At the Mercat de Olivar, every vendor is a local business, but you do have to check the Zona de Captura to make sure that your seafood is off the coast of Mallorca.
Some people ask "Why is the seafood a bit pricey?
We have noticed that prices have been becoming more reasonable and fair for the vendor and the client as more and more people shop locally. Not only does this promote local businesses, it also promotes a more sustainable food economy. Also, it guarentees fresh, healthy food for you and your family.
Also, we follow the slow food philosophy of keeping everything fresh, local and fair. What we mean by fair is to purchase all of our ingredients from local businesses. Local fish vendors have the freshest and best quality seafood, but they have to compete against large fisheries that can sell cheaper, yet less quality products. We totally avoid that scene ; )
Local Tapas at The Bar del Peig inside the fish market
At the end of our slow food seafood shopping experience, we invited our camera guy for some tapas at the The Bar del Peig.
The tapas bar is right in the fish market and their tapas' ingredients come mainly from the market.
In part 3 of "How to prepare & cook a traditional Mallorcan Slow Food Paella", we will give you a cooking demonstration.
Best Regards,
The Marin Brothers