La Legume Week In Salamanca, it has become a fixture on the city's gastronomic calendar, combining live cooking demonstrations, tapas routes, cultural activities, and educational programs on healthy eating. Now in its ninth edition, the initiative once again focuses on... locally sourced legumes and in revitalizing markets and neighborhoods.
Promoted by the City Council through the Municipal Consumer Information Office (OMIC)This program runs until the end of November and combines showcookings, workshops, public tastings, competitions and a photographic exhibition, with the aim of to make legumes accessible to all types of audiences, from families to cooking enthusiasts.
A week to bring the municipal markets to life
One of the central axes of the program is activity in the municipal markets of Salamancawhich during these days become true gastronomic meeting places. The series of live cooking demonstrations has taken place at the San Bernardo Market, the Central Market, and the San Juan Market, featuring chefs from renowned restaurants in the city.
The first showcooking was held in the San Bernardo Marketwhere the cook Leticia Martín, from the Estoril Restaurant, prepared several recipes with legumes from the La Armuña regionThis session was attended by the Councillor for Consumer Affairs, Vega Villar, and served to show how the legumes of the area adapt to both traditional dishes and more creative proposals.
The gastronomic program continued in the Central Market with a demonstration by Jesus ColoradoFrom the Gonzalo Group, who offered a large audience various dishes exploring the culinary possibilities of these foods. These activities are part of free accessThis makes it easier for residents and visitors to access the markets without prior registration.
The cycle is completed in the San Juan Marketwhere the cook Cesar NietoThe chef from El Alquimista Restaurant will headline the final culinary demonstration, scheduled for 12:00 PM. With these sessions, the City Council aims to... strengthen the role of markets as reference points for buying fresh and local produce.
Cooking workshops and culinary training
Alongside the showcookings, Legume Week includes several cooking workshops aimed at both cooking enthusiasts and the general public who want to learn new ways to cook chickpeas, lentils, or beans. Most of these sessions are coordinated by the food communicator and academic. David Altar Boy.
The workshops have taken place in various municipal spaces, such as the Trade Museum and Urban Gardens Marketin the afternoon, generally from 17:00 PM onwards. In the case of the Lonja, the places have been filled in advance, reflecting the growing interest in learning recipes with legumes and cooking techniques adapted to the daily rhythm.
In these activities, attendees can follow step by step the preparation of creative dishesYou'll have the opportunity to ask questions about cooking times, soaking, or ingredient combinations, and of course, taste the final dishes. Pre-registration is handled via email. escueladeconsumo@aytosalamanca.es and at the OMIC headquarters, until capacity is reached.
Beyond learning specific recipes, these workshops aim to help citizens incorporate the regularly include legumes in your weekly menuUnderstanding its nutritional value and culinary versatility, both in traditional stews and in lighter or cold preparations.
The West Quarter, a festive epicenter with tapas and tastings
Legume Week is also celebrated very intensely in the Western district of Salamancawhere gastronomy blends with neighborhood life and street entertainment. For several days, bars and cafes in the neighborhood join in the Legume Routeoffering tapas and special offers.
This route includes numerous establishments, among them Bar Bonanza, Bar Lyon, Bar Macondo, Café-Bar Maros, Café bar Kahvalti, Cafetería MT, Carmelitas 14, El Refrán 25.0, Gran Tasca Bar Manzano, La Vegateria, Montecarlo Restaurante and The Craft Bar Labestiawho have designed specific bites with beans, lentils, chickpeas or peas as the main ingredients.
The lids range from classic stewsFrom traditional dishes like chickpeas with octopus, black beans with ribs, or fabada (Asturian bean stew), to more modern options such as hummus with paprika or vegetarian dishes that replace meat with legumes. This variety demonstrates that these products are not limited to hearty winter stews.
In terms of education, the neighborhood hosts a live cooking workshop The workshop, also led by David Monaguillo, will be held at the ZOES neighborhood association headquarters on Valle Inclán Street. Participants can register in advance and learn tips and tricks for getting the most out of legumes in their everyday cooking.
One of the most anticipated moments in the West Quarter is the Lentil or large popular legume stewwhich takes place on Gutenberg Street around midday. This event brings together locals and visitors around a traditional legume dish, accompanied by brass band music and children's activitieswhich makes the day a celebration designed for all ages.
Restaurants, gastronomic routes and support for local products
The program for Legume Week also extends to the city restaurants, which during the days of the initiative offer special menus and dishes. In total, 16 restaurants affiliated with the “Salamanca para Comérsela” brand y 14 hospitality establishments in the West Quarter They are developing specific proposals with legumes until November 30th.
This collaboration with promotional clubs such as “Salamanca to Eat” and “Salamanca on a Platter”, together with the support of the Salamanca Provincial Council, strengthens the visibility of the products with a quality seal of the province, such as the Protected Geographical Indication Lentil from La Armuña or the Guarantee Mark Chickpea from Pedrosillo.
Throughout the week, participating venues combine traditional proposals and contemporary creationsdemonstrating that legumes work just as well in a traditional stew as in salads, creams, veggie burgers or international cuisine dishes.
This joint effort between public administration, the hospitality sector and neighborhood associations aims not only to promote the consumption of legumes, but also boost local commerce, to highlight local products and attract visitors to markets and neighborhoods outside the main tourist circuits.
The involvement of entities such as “Salamanca City of Spanish” The ZOES association also emphasizes the cultural and educational dimension of the Week, which transcends mere tasting to become a awareness tool on healthy lifestyle habits.
II Legume Recipe Contest: creativity for all audiences
Among the activities with the greatest response is the 2nd Legume Recipe ContestIt has been reintegrated into the program after the positive reception of its first edition. This competition is open to anyone regardless of age, provided that has no professional connection to the hospitality or culinary industry.
It works simply: each participant can present a single recipeThe dish must include legumes as the main ingredient and be accompanied by a photograph. The jury will assess aspects such as the originality of the proposal, the final presentation and the use of local products, especially those with quality labels from the province.
Prescriptions can be sent by email to escueladeconsumo@aytosalamanca.es or delivered in person to the OMIC headquarters, located in the Victoria Adrados Integrated Municipal CenterThe deadline remains open until December 3rd, allowing interested parties time to refine their proposals.
They have been fixed three main prizesThe winner will receive a meal at one of the restaurants participating in Legume Week, a basket of locally sourced legumes, and the inclusion of your recipe in the official recipe book of the next edition. The second prize consists of a basket of legumes and the publication of the recipe in that same recipe book, while the third prize consists of a basket of local products.
Beyond recognition, the goal of the competition is to encourage citizen participationExpand the home recipe book with new ideas and consolidate a recipe collection that helps legumes become more present on the daily table.
Photo exhibition and parallel cultural activities
Legume Week isn't limited to kitchens and stoves. The program also includes cultural events such as... photographic exhibition “Circumfrontal Faces of La Armuña”, a work by the photographer Victorino García Calderón, which can be visited at the Museum of Commerce.
This exhibition, open until February during the museum's regular hours, focuses on the people and territory linked to Legume cultivation in La Armuña, bringing the visitor closer to the reality of those who work the land and the economic and social importance of these productions in the province.
Within the framework of the Week, a gastronomic tour departing from Trujillo Square and arriving at the Museum of Commerce itself, which includes a visit to the exhibition and a tasting of sweets made with legume floursThis activity allows you to discover lesser-known uses for these products, beyond savory stews.
In parallel, a visit has been carried out to Legume Center in Pajares de la Lagunawith tastings of different products also made from legume flours. These initiatives aim to showcase the full range of value chain, from agricultural production to gastronomic transformation.
As a general rule, to participate in this type of activity it is necessary pre-registration, managed through the Consumer School's email and at the OMIC, except in the case of showcookings in the markets, which remain as open proposals without the need for reservation.
Legume consumption in Spain and health benefits
Pulses Week takes place within a context in which the consumption of these foods in Spain It is lower than the amount recommended by health authorities. It is currently estimated that the Spanish population consumes around 1,5 servings of legumes per week, when the advisable thing would be to be between 3 and 4 servings per week.
The data shows that the chickpea It is the most consumed legume, with just over 43% of the market share, followed by the lentils (close to 29%) and the bean (around 28%). These are the people 65 over years Those who incorporate the most legumes into their diet, with figures around five kilos per person per year, contrast with the lower consumption among younger generations.
From a nutritional point of view, legumes stand out for being a important source of fiber and plant proteinIn addition to providing B vitamins and minerals such as iron, magnesium, and potassium, its regular consumption helps control [various conditions]. cholesterol, triglyceride, and blood sugar levelsand reduces the risk of diseases such as type 2 diabetes or other metabolic problems.
The presence of antioxidants such as flavonoids and saponins It helps neutralize free radicals, which is associated with a lower risk of certain types of cancer, including breast and prostate cancer. Furthermore, its high fiber content promotes... good bowel function and it can help prevent colon cancer, also improving transit and combating constipation.
Contrary to widespread myths—such as that legumes are fattening, difficult to digest, or only suitable for winter dishes—nutritionists and experts remind us that they are a food versatile, economical and suitable for year-round useFrom traditional stews to cold salads, hummus, creams, veggie burgers or international cuisine dishes, its range of uses is wide and easily adapts to the tastes and rhythms of modern life.
The 9th Legume Week in Salamanca combines gastronomy, culture and nutritional education to put a humble but key product at the center of the Mediterranean dietThrough showcookings in markets, tapas routes in the Barrio del Oeste, workshops, competitions and cultural activities, the city reinforces its commitment to locally sourced legumes, supports local businesses and encourages citizens to incorporate more servings of these foods into their daily lives, with clear benefits for health and the environment.