Pork has been a fundamental part of Andalucian cuisine for over six centuries, and it gained even greater significance during times of religious intolerance. When Jewish and Arabic people were expelled from Spain, Christians aimed to cultivate a cuisine that would be deemed offensive to the “infidels” who chose to stay. Fortunately, we now live in more tolerant times, and we can appreciate our culinary heritage with a clear conscience.

Albóndigas provide a quick and practical way to use up leftover family joint. Today, we can simply request minced pork from our local butcher, but in Andalucia’s recent past, before refrigeration and when religious observation forbade meat consumption on certain days, there had to be an efficient way of cooking up the last of the leg of pork – and albóndigas were the perfect solution!