Focusing on food culture, some of the most popular traditional dishes are:
PAELLA
Paella is one of the best-known dishes in Spanish cuisine. For this reason, many non-Spaniards view it as Spain's national dish, but Spaniards almost unanimously consider it to be a dish from the Valencian region. Valencians, in turn, regard paella as one of their identifying symbols.
Paella takes its name from the wide, shallow traditional pan used to cook the dish on an open fire. Paella means "frying pan" in Valencian, Valencia's regional language.
As a dish, it may have ancient roots, but in its modern form it is traced back to the mid-19th century, in the rural area around the Albufera lagoon adjacent to the city of Valencia, on the east coast of Spain.
Paella valenciana is the traditional paella of the Valencia region, believed to be the original recipe, and consists of round grain rice, bajoqueta and tavella (varieties of green beans), rabbit, chicken, sometimes duck, garrofó (a variety of lima or butter bean). Artichoke hearts and stems may be used as seasonal ingredients. Olive oil is used as a base, while saffron and (sometimes) whole rosemary branches are used as seasoning.
Paella de marisco (seafood paella) replaces meat with seafood and omits beans and green vegetables, while paella mixta (mixed paella) combines meat from livestock, seafood, vegetables, and sometimes beans, with the traditional rice.
TORTILLA DE PATATAS "SPANISH OMELETTE"
Spanish omelette or Spanish tortilla is a traditional dish from Spain and one of the signature dishes in the Spanish cuisine. It is an omelette made with eggs and potatoes, optionally including onion. It is often served at room temperature as a tapa.
It is commonly known in Spanish-speaking countries as tortilla de patatas, tortilla de papas or tortilla española.
JAMÓN IBÉRICO "IBERIAN HAM"
Jamón Ibérico, "Iberian ham", is variety of Jamón, a type of curedleg of pork produced in Spain and Portugal, where it may be labeled as presunto ibérico.
Pork products made from Black Iberian breed pigs receive the ibérico/a denomination. As such, jamón ibérico is the dry-cured ham produced from livestock of said breeds.
According to Spain's denominación de origen rules and current regulations on Jamón, Jamón Ibérico must be made from pure breed, or cross-bred pigs - as long as they are at least 50% Black Iberian in their ancestry.
Jamón Ibérico, especially the one labeled as de bellota, has a smooth texture and rich, savory taste. The fat content is relatively high compared to jamón serrano. A good ibérico ham has regular flecks of intramuscular fat known as marbling.
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