Spanish Wedding – Dinner Traditions – Wedding Stories

Spanish Wedding Dinner

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For those of you who are curious about the Spanish wedding dinner traditions and maybe thinking of incorporating this into your own wedding celebrations,

El Coctel – This doesn’t mean just sipping on a cocktail or aperitif, this is a full on wedding cocktail party including a variety of appetizers, beers, wines, cocktails and mixed drinks. Bites wise, think high quality cured meats such as hams, chorizo and other dried sausages, big juicy olives, fresh croquettes with chicken, ham and fish, crispy bread with tomato and different kinds of (cured) cheeses.

El Entrante – Basically this is an appetizer before ‘the real Spanish wedding eating’ begins. This could vary from some salad, a soup and savoury pastries filled with for example fish or meat and vegetables.

El Pescado – Since this is a wedding dinner, of course the fish isn’t just a simple grilled piece of cod or sardines. This wedding fish needs to be top of the notch. Think a nice fat medallion of monkfish, turbot or a beautiful thick piece of salmon. Add fresh shellfish as well, like clams, crab and big shrimp and a rich sauce. Side servings can be some simple grilled or steamed vegetables.

El Sorbete – The Spanish wedding dinner palate cleanser. The sorbet flavour possibilities are endless, but a type of citrus fruit or something exotic like mango or passion fruit is for sure a safe pick.

La Carne – Time to pull out the big guns: A good piece of high quality red meat. Serving steak can be a bit tricky since everyone likes their meat to be cooked differently. But with a good (medium cooked) medallion of sirloin (solomillo), you basically can’t go wrong.

El Postre – Up to you of course, but according to the proper Spanish wedding cake-etiquette, the cake gets cut yet not eaten as wedding dessert. Spanish couples prefer to serve a more sophisticated dessert and like to have it beautifully presented on each plate of their wedding guests.

El Cava – Kind of self-explanatory. After every Spanish wedding dinner, time will come to pop some bottles of proper Spanish bubbly (Cava) and toast to the newlyweds.

Coffee, Liqueurs, Etc. – After the toast, there will be a variety of coffees and liqueurs usually served in small shot glasses (sip it though, don’t throw it back at once).

After Party -During the Spanish wedding after party there will be drinks, drinks and some more drinks. Mixed drinks are called cubatas and they are served in big fish bowl like glasses with lots of ice. Now dance the night away!

Important note: Of course always make sure to ask your wedding guests about any type of allergies or diet preferences.

Spanish wedding vs American Weddings: http://ymuchomas.com/2012/08/19/spanish-weddings-vs-american-weddings/