Preserved Game Meat. Juan Manuel Sanz /© ICEX

Spanish Preserved Meat

Preserved Game Meat

Spain is a very attractive country for hunting. Game can be classified as follows:

- Small game: the most representative game bird in Spain is the red-legged partridge, which has excellent meat. Castile-La Mancha, in the center of the Iberian Peninsula, is the region with the largest flocks. Partridge is usually prepared in Spain in escabeche, a pickle sauce. In northern Spain and Andalusia, another popular game bird is the wood pigeon. August and September are the best months for hunting quails, fairly common all over Spain. They are smaller than the partridge but also have delicate meat. Rabbit and hare are widely hunted in many parts of Spain. Their flavorsome meat figures in many regional recipes.

- Large game: The mountainous areas are home to wild boar, deer, roebuck and other large game. Groups of hunters set out together, sharing out the trophies at the end of the day. There are also companies that specialize in the sale of large game, mostly to restaurants. Different preparations for game meat form part of the gastronomy of many regions of Spain.