Cooking a la plancha —Seafood the Spanish way!

Natacha Sanz Caballero Fish celebration, cooking for a crowd, cooking outdoors, cooking with fire, Spanish cooking

I’ve been wanting to write a post about cooking a la plancha for the longest time. In fact, I started it a couple of years ago, only to shelve it and pull it out again the following year, with new photos of our family gathering for a la plancha cooking in Spain in the summer. Then I put it aside once more, and here we are, the summer of 2023, with new photos but the same gathering —same people, just a little bit older. Because no matter how many years go by, a la plancha cooking is a given and a favorite in our summer gatherings.

A la plancha is a type of cooking that is light, flavorful, intense and generally regarded as healthy. The secret is la plancha, which loosely translates to “the griddle.” Unlike the stainless steel 350°F griddles we use in American kitchens, the plancha is usually much hotter (450°F+), wood or charcoal fired, and can be made of carbon steel, cast-iron or slate. It is very popular in the Mediterranean and particularly in Spain, where this style of cooking is frequently used for preparing seafood —in coastal towns it is often performed within footsteps of the docks where the day’s catch arrived. Because of the higher temperatures used, seafood cooks very quickly while still benefiting from caramelization, some charring and the accumulated flavoring of the well seasoned cooking surface, the plancha.

Cooking a la plancha allows the freshest ingredients to be served in an honest and unadorned, simple manner. In fact, this post barely contains a recipe, because the cooking method is very intuitive. Or so we should ask my brother-in-law Jorge, master a la plancha cook, with sous-chef Jaime, who gladly steps in when needed. At our house, a la plancha cooking is reserved for the men.

Jorge and Jaime spend time making the fire to obtain the embers. This process can take about one hour or so. They use wood from the property —mostly orange tree and other fruit trees wood— and build a powerful fire, which will burn down and consume until the sought after embers are obtained. That’s when they place the plancha on top and let it heat up for a while. Then they start cooking in batches, seasoning the different kinds of fish and seafood with scales of sea salt as they go. The seafood cooks relatively fast, varying from 2 or 3 minutes per side for shrimp to a bit longer for thicker fish and cuttlefish. Once on the platters, cuttlefish and other species of seafood will be drizzled with some spoonfuls of majado (see recipe here) or, at the very least, some good quality olive oil.

For the most part, food is served as it comes off of the plancha, as it is better enjoyed immediately.

In many cases, the plancha will be scraped of seafood remains and sausages and other meats will be cooked —chorizos, morcillas (blood sausages), lamb chops, rib eye. But more on this on another post.

About vegetables

To save on plancha space, the women cook vegetables in the kitchen, but some are better cooked on the plancha, to benefit from the caramelization —thinly sliced artichokes and zucchini are favorites for a la plancha cooking, while a separate griddle is prepared for potatoes: to make them, wash the unpeeled potatoes, rub them with a generous amount of sea salt and wrap them in foil. Since the potatoes will take the longest to cook (more than an hour), start them on the separate griddle on embers first.

Cooking a la plancha brings out the best in the high quality fresh or premium frozen local seafood you can find in Spain. Shrimp, langoustines, rockfish, cuttlefish, razor clams… really shine when cooked a la plancha. 

As you can see, a la plancha cooking is highly versatile, allowing for many kinds of food to be cooked. It is also a sure way to bring people together in a very festive way. Our cookouts end in the wee hours, usually with some music performances and dancing. 

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5 from 1 vote

SEAFOOD "A LA PLANCHA"

Pescado y marisco a la plancha

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Spanish

Keyword: Spanish cuisine, mediterranean diet, party food, tapas

Author: Natacha Sanz Caballero, Mama Ía blog

Equipment

• Plancha
• Tongs
• Oven mittens
• Wood

Ingredients

Different kinds of seafood:

• Sea bream
• Sea bass
• Rockfish
• Cuttlefish
• Shrimp
• Squid or calamari
• Langoustines
• Razor clams

Other:

• Sea salt
• Olive oil
• Majado (click for recipe)

Instructions

• Have the fishmonger clean the fish and remove guts and scales.
• Make the fire and have it reduced to embers (this process will take about 1 hour)
• Work in batches:
• For the shrimp, sprinkle abundantly with scales of sea salt and place on the hot plancha. Cook 2 minutes per side, depending on their size. When slightly charred, remove from the plancha and place on a platter.
• For the cuttlefish and squid, first season the plancha with some olive oil. Cook until slightly charred and wrinkled on the edges. Remove from the plancha and place on a platter. Drizzle with majado.
• For the different kinds of fish, season the plancha with some olive oil. Cook 2-4 minutes per side, depending on their size. Don't overcook! Remove from the plancha and place on platters. Majado or a drizzle of olive oil is optional.
• Serve immediately.

Notes

Make sure the plancha is VERY hot before placing the seafood on it.

You will also need a good amount of paper napkins!