Olla gitana (olla viuda) recipe from the Vega Baja

Olla gitana, or olla viuda, is the chickpea and vegetable stew of the Vega Baja del Segura for the colder months. This recipe follows Convega’s version, for four and in about 90 minutes. That recipe doesn’t say when the chickpeas go in or whether they are soaked; here we give you the cooking judgement to decide it.

Seasonal vegetables and chickpeas

Convega describes it as an autumn and winter dish, filling, with the smell and taste of traditional cooking. It says the base is very similar in every corner of the comarca. What changes is the rest: it allows pear, sweet potato or pumpkin for sweetness, and parsnip; if there are Vega Baja artichokes, they go in (their season runs from late November to March or April). Sometimes, to cleanse the system after the Christmas festivities, fresh celery or cardoon leaves are added.

The sofrito and the hour in the pot

A sofrito is made separately, in a frying pan, of oil with chopped onion and tomato, a pinch of paprika and a tablespoon of flour. The pot goes on with water and, when it is hot, the vegetables, the sofrito and the pork fat go in. The recipe gives no litres of water or quantity of tomato, so these are to taste. Then, an hour over a medium heat with the pot covered.

Beware of the parsnip: if it burns, it turns bitter. The chickpeas have to be in that pot, but Convega doesn’t say when: if they are dried, soak them the day before and add them with the vegetables; if they are cooked, with the potato.

The potato and the black pudding, at the end

The potato and the onion black puddings are added after the covered hour, and cooking continues without the lid until the potato is done. It is important to prick the black pudding before adding it so it doesn’t fall apart. And Convega closes the step with a “don’t let it go cold!”.

Gitana, viuda and the one from Murcia

Both, olla gitana and olla viuda, are the same dish in the Vega Baja. Originally it had no meat at all, and Convega doesn’t explain why it is called “viuda” (widow). It should not be confused with the Murcian olla gitana, which is a different recipe: the Directo al Paladar one has beans and chickpeas, pumpkin, green beans, pear and mint, with an optional picada of bread and almonds. The two are not mixed here.

With meat or without

The original version had no meat, and Convega notes that the meat additions are optional and work as a complement. In this recipe there are 100 g of pork fat and four onion black puddings; in other homes, a piece of pork. If you prefer the plain vegetable and pulse stew, leave out the pork fat and the black puddings. What doesn’t change is the base of chickpeas, potato and vegetables, and the sofrito with flour that binds the broth.

When to make it

It is a seasonal dish: autumn and winter, with Vega Baja artichokes when they are in season. Allow about 90 minutes in total, with the hour in the covered pot as the long stretch. Convega says of it that it allows for many variations depending on the time of year and personal taste: change the vegetables according to what you can find.

If you like the comarca’s spoon dishes

From the same Convega recipe book, another winter dish with chickpeas is the cocido with pelotas, which takes much longer. If you prefer a spoon dish without meat, the rice with Swiss chard and white beans is a dish of pulses and vegetables; and if you want another pot of pulses, there is the rice with beans and turnips.

For fiestas and group meals

If there are lots of you at a fiesta, we cook for groups: local fiestas.