# Cost of Christmas in Spain



## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

I just saw this thread on BBC BBC News - Christmas dinner prices pushed up by weather and where we are, everything is far cheaper here than in UK. I just wondered what other folk on the forum think??


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

thrax said:


> I just saw this thread on BBC BBC News - Christmas dinner prices pushed up by weather and where we are, everything is far cheaper here than in UK. I just wondered what other folk on the forum think??


can't comment on a couple of the ingredients - but a fresh turkey from Mercadona is listed at 3.30 € / kilo - as opposed to 5.11GBP ( almost twice the price in the UK )

fresh carrots are 68c / kilo - as opposed to 92p = 1.13 € (again - almost twice the price in the UK )

potatoes are 55c / kilo here - 86p / 1.06 € (more than twice the price in the UK )

they aren't listing fresh sprouts - but their frozen ones are 1.89 € /kilo - considerably cheaper than the fresh ones listed in the UK


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

fresh sprouts here are around 30c a kilo silly prices. I still hear people who live here say that prices in Spain are the same or more expensive than UK but I just don't see it


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

thrax said:


> fresh sprouts here are around 30c a kilo silly prices. I still hear people who live here say that prices in Spain are the same or more expensive than UK but I just don't see it


I totally agree that many things are much cheaper here than in the UK

food, of course is one thing

for the rent I pay here for a 5 bed house on an up-market urb with indoor & outdoor poolls & a gym, a few minutes walk from the beach, I'd be lucky to get a pokey 2-3 bed flat in a not-so-nice area in the UK.......... and if I moved to many of the nearby towns I could get similar for about half what I pay here!!

overall though, I think living here probably cost more or less the same as in the UK - a little less maybe

but the QUALITY of that life is so much higher


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

I agree, but for what we have here including rent we would get a one bed high rise flat in an awful area. Here, we have three beds and a pool, wonderful views of the sea and mountains and our young boy has a wonderful lifestyle and is already bi-lingual at two and a half. Never would have happened in UK. Our regular food shop remains at less than half what we would pay in UK.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

I agree 100%.

The people who are saying that the cost of living here is higher than in UK must be shopping in Brit shops where, in addition to the cost of the goods they are having to pay for shipping the stuff to Spain and it often does not make one iota of sense. Near here, there is a Brit shop directly opposite Mercadona. I have been in there (social reasons to talk to the couple who run it) and there will be Brits in there buying Kellogs cornflakes at three times the price they could have bought them in Mercadona, or plastic bread (Kingsmill - goes to pap and sticks to the roof of your mouth) when they could get better in Merc for less than half the price, etc etc - no wonder their cost of living here is higher.

It is difficult to compare the cost of gas/electricity because moving from a top-floor flat (heat from floors below :clap2 with central heating into a five storey house without c/h but with a log burner is not comparable but our water, sewage, refuse collection and other local taxation here is a tenth of what it was in UK.


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

A friend in UK has just bought his xmas turkey for 48 pounds. It weighs 18 pounds. My turkey (albeit British) weighs in at around 16 pounds an cost me €32. Nuff said.. And my turkey is British


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

I kinda went off topic (so what's new?)

Christmas Eve is typically the occasion for the main meal here where we live and invariably we get involved with one of the families (all told including brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, aunts, uncles, greats-, grands-, etc there are about 35 of them) so it is a huge crowd. We haven't yet got involved with paying for a full whack because everybody brings a contribution be it a starter, part of the main course, a dessert, etc. The local Asador stays open until 2.30am and supplies a lot of the meats. Last year we took a couple of roasts from the asador which cost us €20 plus a home-made dessert.

We then have our own Chrissy Dinner on Chrissy Day comprising chicken portions cooked in a bed of two stuffings (parsley thyme and lemon, and sage and onion) this way, the meat doesn't get dried out and absorbs some of the flavours from the stuffings, with the usual accompaniments: sprouts, broccoli/savoy, roast potatoes, roast carrots, roast onions, roast parsnips, etc. followed by Chrissy pud and custard - total cost for three of us plus two dogs is about €10 plus wine. St Stephen's day we usually have boiled ham with potatoes, sprouts, etc mince pies and custard - maybe another €6 plus wine. In total for the two days €20-25 including wine. There are usually sufficient leftovers from the two days for a meal on another day or two or more.

Verdict: much less expensive than in the UK or the USA.

A really big bonus is not having to pay out all those ridiculous prices for christmas cards and the postage. We either use an e-card service (JL) or I create our own and send out by e-mail (Mary, PeskyWesky and Jojo will have received one this year or should have! - they're the only ones I have e-mails for)


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## el romeral (May 8, 2012)

Just make sure you do not send square Christmas cards like I did. Due to them being square (only 14cm mind) instead of rectangular, the price was virtually doubled (1.35E vs 0.7E).

Apparently they were classed as "not normal" . Unbelievable :der::rant:.

Bah Humbug :xmassnow: :snowball: :rudolph:




lane:


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

el romeral said:


> Just make sure you do not send square Christmas cards like I did. Due to them being square (only 14cm mind) instead of rectangular, the price was virtually doubled (1.35E vs 0.7E).
> 
> Apparently they were classed as "not normal" . Unbelievable :der::rant:.
> 
> ...


We use Moonpig for all our cards. Not necessarily cheaper but you can personalise them and they are great


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## Lolito (Aug 25, 2012)

I don´t miss the Xmas thing in the UK, decorations in shops since september, lol! Way over the top with everything. 

Here in my village, you wouldn´t know it is Xmas, there is no lights or shop decco anywhere telling you it´s Xmas. I find it quite refreshing to be honest. 

Gandia is a bit over the top with the lights on the street, but they only turned them on last week, not 2 months before like in the UK! 

Most things are cheaper here than in the UK, at least the everyday things, which are the things that matter.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Lolito said:


> I don´t miss the Xmas thing in the UK, decorations in shops since september, lol! Way over the top with everything.
> 
> Here in my village, you wouldn´t know it is Xmas, there is no lights or shop decco anywhere telling you it´s Xmas. I find it quite refreshing to be honest.
> 
> ...


Our village has minimalist decorations - the same ones that the ayuntamiento has trotted out for the last four years, but they haven't yet turned on the lights to save money. We are sympathising and haven't even got our Chrissy tree out (we'll be away anyway.)


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## Goldeneye (Nov 12, 2011)

el romeral said:


> Just make sure you do not send square Christmas cards like I did. Due to them being square (only 14cm mind) instead of rectangular, the price was virtually doubled (1.35E vs 0.7E).
> 
> Apparently they were classed as "not normal" . Unbelievable :der::rant:.
> 
> ...


And I thought that only happened here in Canada ~~!! After being caught and having to pay some hefty $$$ by that stupid rule..... excuse being they wouldn't be recognized by the machine so had to be sorted by hand _(by the postal worker that's just standing over the machine)_ .. 

This year I got a book of 'pre-paid' stamps local and international. I didn't go directly into the post office to hand them in used the mail box outside.. 

Result friends and family in UK got their cards & letter and I saved paying almost double on my mail !!


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Goldeneye said:


> And I thought that only happened here in Canada ~~!! After being caught and having to pay some hefty $$$ by that stupid rule..... excuse being they wouldn't be recognized by the machine so had to be sorted by hand _(by the postal worker that's just standing over the machine)_ ..
> 
> This year I got a book of 'pre-paid' stamps local and international. I didn't go directly into the post office to hand them in used the mail box outside..
> 
> Result friends and family in UK got their cards & letter and I saved paying almost double on my mail !!


We tried similar in UK many moons ago and cards posted in October arrived, overseas, the following Easter - many wondered why we had sent Christmas cards at Easter time! But then we didn't have e-mail, so now most of our friends and family are accessible electronically so they either get one via Jacquie Lawson or one we have created ourselves. Mind you, when we sent by post it was often one of our home-made ones - we're not tight (nor rich) but try to put something of us into our greeting by doing it ourselves.


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

xabiachica said:


> can't comment on a couple of the ingredients - but a fresh turkey from Mercadona is listed at 3.30 € / kilo - as opposed to 5.11GBP ( almost twice the price in the UK )
> 
> fresh carrots are 68c / kilo - as opposed to 92p = 1.13 € (again - almost twice the price in the UK )
> 
> ...


Looks like we've been ripped off again - just goes to show how areas vary!

Picked up our turkey today having ordered a 'pavo' some weeks ago. We asked for about 5kg - they'd saved us a bl**dy ostrich. It was over 9.5kg and cost 3.90/kg The smaller ones in the chiller were all about 4 - 6 kg and cost 1.50/kg but these are called 'pavito' - so we were later told. 

Apparently we should not have ordered a Pavo if we only wanted a pavito!!!!!!!


Any way, point to the story was that a Pavo here is 3.90/kg and a pavito is 3.50/kg in mercadona.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

snikpoh said:


> Looks like we've been ripped off again - just goes to show how areas vary!
> 
> Picked up our turkey today having ordered a 'pavo' some weeks ago. We asked for about 5kg - they'd saved us a bl**dy ostrich. It was over 9.5kg and cost 3.90/kg The smaller ones in the chiller were all about 4 - 6 kg and cost 1.50/kg but these are called 'pavito' - so we were later told.
> 
> ...


oh dear......

we ordered one from an English butcher the first year we were here - didn't know any better (we only arrived half way through Nov. & that's what the brits told us we HAD to do, cos the spanish 'don't do turkey' )

I can't remember how much it was but it was about twice the price of the ones we saw in Mercadona just after we picked it up 

we've never ordered one since - the fresh turkeys always appear in the supermarket about a week before xmas & we buy one off the shelf

I just looked at mercadona online shopping - it does say a 'pavito' (about 3,5 kg) is 3,50€ / kg & a 'pavo' (about 7kg) is 3.90€ /kg - I wonder what the logic behind that is


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

snikpoh said:


> Looks like we've been ripped off again - just goes to show how areas vary!
> 
> Picked up our turkey today having ordered a 'pavo' some weeks ago. We asked for about 5kg - they'd saved us a bl**dy ostrich. It was over 9.5kg and cost 3.90/kg The smaller ones in the chiller were all about 4 - 6 kg and cost 1.50/kg but these are called 'pavito' - so we were later told.
> 
> ...


Ripped off or misunderstanding?


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## kalohi (May 6, 2012)

xabiachica said:


> I just looked at mercadona online shopping - it does say a 'pavito' (about 3,5 kg) is 3,50€ / kg & a 'pavo' (about 7kg) is 3.90€ /kg - I wonder what the logic behind that is


Is it 'pavito' or 'pavita'? They differenciate here between male and female turkeys. Pavas are smaller than pavos, and they're often called pavitas.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

kalohi said:


> Is it 'pavito' or 'pavita'? They differenciate here between male and female turkeys. Pavas are smaller than pavos, and they're often called pavitas.


do you know, you're right - I didn't even notice!!

I wonder why they're cheaper per kilo though :confused2:


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

Pesky Wesky said:


> Ripped off or misunderstanding?


Yeh, who knows? Certainly our Spanish was not at fault (my wife has lived here most of her life - 40+ years).

I take the point about male/female turkeys but how stupid when we specifically asked for a particular size.


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## paul44 (May 19, 2009)

Whatever the costs are In Spain or the UK come too that you'll never be anywhere near to what we have to pay in Ireland .Here you get ripped off every which way you turn and in all honesty it's a joy for me when we come to Spain which is often.Come this April will spend a month (5 week's ish) just to test if we like the longer period which no doubt we will then it's decision time to up sticks, been putting it off so far but have taken enough over here.Thankfully we don't have any money/job issue's in relocating and have set my sights on Benalmadena


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

paul44 said:


> Whatever the costs are In Spain or the UK come too that you'll never be anywhere near to what we have to pay in Ireland .Here you get ripped off every which way you turn and in all honesty it's a joy for me when we come to Spain which is often.Come this April will spend a month (5 week's ish) just to test if we like the longer period which no doubt we will then it's decision time to up sticks, been putting it off so far but have taken enough over here.Thankfully we don't have any money/job issue's in relocating and have set my sights on Benalmadena


My advice would be to come in one of the 'off season' months as well - it's completely different, for example, in the winter. Spain really does get cold and the houses/flats just aren't built for that sort of weather.


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Well, most of you don't know that I have been confined to the UK shores for some 3 months now

Ive got to tell you that anyone that tells you that the costs of living / Christmas in the UK is cheaper than in Spain is deluding themselves. Of course I can only relate to the CB North and the Midlands in the UK.

Having said that the shops here have been heaving. No sign of crisis around here it seems. In the supermarkets there are the two for one or three for one deals which people keep mentiong. But what use is that if you dont want three, or indeed aren't interested in the product at all.

We go through money like water . Even having a cup of coffee in the local Costa is £5 for the two of us. Diesel is £1.40 ish a litre

There are certainly a lot of sales already beginning, as I'm not sure the spend this year has been what they expected after watching news reports

I've never spent Christmas in Spain, but I'm guessing that if we did the cost of it there would be far far less then here in the UK

Looking forward to our return soon


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## stevelin (Apr 25, 2009)

Just been to the local supermarket for my fresh Turkey 5. 750 turkey paid 20 euro!!!


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

stevelin said:


> Just been to the local supermarket for my fresh Turkey 5. 750 turkey paid 20 euro!!!


same price as Mercadona then


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## bob_bob (Jan 5, 2011)

I've no idea where the BBC got their prices, they must have shopped in Fortnum & Masons. I did my xmas shopping in Tesco and the local market yesterday. Off the top of my head (prices in €)

20kg potatoes €3.60
3kg carrots €2.25
4 pack of peppers 1.2
Fresh Welsh lamb €6 per kilo (leg)
Pork loin, boneless €5.50 per kilo
Don't eat Turkey but thumping great fresh ******s were priced about £20
I can't remember the price of sprouts but they were cheap enough. Food prices has gone up this year and if the weather continues will go up again next year, UK fields just aren't drying out.

Spain is cheap for some food, some of the fresh fruit and vegetables for instance but, your very limited in Spain as to choice and range, overall the UK is cheaper for food than Spain. Basic things like herbs and spices which are so easy to find are not easy to find at all in Spain. I notice more than some here because I'm two and fro both places. When I'm away I do miss the bigger UK supermarkets and the vast range they carry.


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

bob_bob said:


> I've no idea where the BBC got their prices, they must have shopped in Fortnum & Masons. I did my xmas shopping in Tesco and the local market yesterday. Off the top of my head (prices in €)
> 
> 20kg potatoes €3.60
> 3kg carrots €2.25
> ...



Sorry Bob, I just cant agree
The UK supermarkets have a better variety in some lines, but for instance the fish counter in Tescos is like a wheelbarrow compared to Spanish. We have a huge fruit and veg market in Oliva every Friday, as well as big fresh veg shops, fish and butchers

Overall I have no doubt that shopping in the areas I mentioned above is cheaper in Spain than the UK. Thats even before you get onto general costs of living which have of course been well discussed on here before


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## paul44 (May 19, 2009)

snikpoh said:


> My advice would be to come in one of the 'off season' months as well - it's completely different, for example, in the winter. Spain really does get cold and the houses/flats just aren't built for that sort of weather.


Yep I'm aware of that having been in Jan and Feb before but not for such a long stretch.I'm quite prepared for it


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## bob_bob (Jan 5, 2011)

Stravinsky said:


> Sorry Bob, I just cant agree
> The UK supermarkets have a better variety in some lines, but for instance the fish counter in Tescos is like a wheelbarrow compared to Spanish. We have a huge fruit and veg market in Oliva every Friday, as well as big fresh veg shops, fish and butchers
> 
> Overall I have no doubt that shopping in the areas I mentioned above is cheaper in Spain than the UK. Thats even before you get onto general costs of living which have of course been well discussed on here before


You just don't get the range of fresh food in Spain, it depends on what your used to or prepared to live on I suppose but I find much Spanish food bland. If that floats your boat then go for it but having lived in various countries my food tastes vary so there is no way I could ever be happy all the time with the offerings in Spain, far too restrictive for me. 

I can't agree about food prices, even shopping around I find the country expensive overall and the quality dubious at times, some of the meat I see on sale I'd not feed a dog.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

bob_bob said:


> You just don't get the range of fresh food in Spain, it depends on what your used to or prepared to live on I suppose but I find much Spanish food bland. If that floats your boat then go for it but having lived in various countries my food tastes vary so there is no way I could ever be happy with the offerings in Spain, far too restrictive for me.
> 
> I can't agree about food prices, even shopping around I find the country expensive overall and the quality dubious at times, some of the meat I see on sale I'd not feed a dog.


The food in the UK, in the main, is horrendous!!! Its pre packed, from all over the world and is generally sterile and flavourless!! Ok, there is more choice, but its not real. The meat in UK supermarkets is almost characterture. Perfectly grown and coloured to look right, preservatives and pretty packaging. Free range and organic goes half way there, but nnnnooooooo, its not "real" - especially the supermarkets!!!!

Spain is luckily, still a few years behind and the food you get maybe boring and unimaginative, but then food is fuel and nutrition - not exciting and pretty!!!

Jo xxx


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

jojo said:


> The food in the UK, in the main, is horrendous!!! I pre packed, from all over the world and is generally sterile and flavourless!! Ok, there is more choice, but its not real. The meat in UK supermarkets is almost characterture. Perfectly grown and coloured to look right, preservatives and pretty packaging. Free range and organic goes half way there, but nnnnooooooo, its not "real" - especially the supermarkets!!!!
> 
> Spain is luckily, still a few years behind and the food you get maybe boring and unimaginative, but then food is fuel and nutrition - not exciting and pretty!!!
> 
> Jo xxx


Agree with a lot that you've said Jojo, and was going to write smth similar.
There may be more choice in the UK 'cos there's more stuff flown in from all over the world. It's not a choice that I'm interested in, although there must be plenty of people out there who want cherries in December. And you're right about Spain being a few years "behind" in that aspect, although I can see more "choice" every year.
I also agree about the meat. There *is* intensive farming here, but there's still plenty of good meat available or at least semi intensive farming - not so many steroids and drug enhanced meat and animals which are outside some of the day - at least in my region. We get meat from a farm in Segovia. Avila also has good beef, Burgos and area for lamb and Madrid also has some good meat.
I don't think all Spanish food is superior and I'm looking forward to my turkey in the UK soon, but in general I think I eat better than my UK family with fresher and better quality ingredients. Also there's still not such a culture of pre prepared food, although it's gaining ground and it seems to me that in the UK a lot of people use prepared sauces and meals (pies, chickens, cans of soup...) on a frequent basis.


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## bob_bob (Jan 5, 2011)

jojo said:


> The food in the UK, in the main, is horrendous!!! Its pre packed, from all over the world and is generally sterile and flavourless!! Ok, there is more choice, but its not real. The meat in UK supermarkets is almost characterture. Perfectly grown and coloured to look right, preservatives and pretty packaging. Free range and organic goes half way there, but nnnnooooooo, its not "real" - especially the supermarkets!!!!
> 
> Spain is luckily, still a few years behind and the food you get maybe boring and unimaginative, but then food is fuel and nutrition - not exciting and pretty!!!
> 
> Jo xxx


Depends on where you shop too. Some of the food is grow 'perfect' and lack flavour but even the likes of Tesco now offer three or four varieties of tomatoes, peppers etc. Meat can be good, the 'value range' stuff is not great but the more expensive is good and I have a very good local butcher and all our meat is sourced locally where possible. I love being able to get the ingredients I need 24/7 any day of the year and you simply can't do that in Spain. Whilst the staples of typical 'Spanish' food _may_ be cheaper your diet is restricted by the pee poor choice on offer 

Jo, the day I thought of food as fuel and nutrition is the day I'd hang up my apron and live on fish fingers and chips. All modesty aside, I'm a truly fantastic cook and take my ingredients and dishes very very seriously, all my food tastes great and is indeed pretty and exciting.....thats part of being a seriously good cook. You need to branch out and try new things by the sound of it and not be stuck in a rut looking back to when you lived in Spain, your in the UK, embrace the explosion in food culture that is taking place.

Sad to say, many here are wearing rose tinted glasses and promoting some romantic notion about Spanish food.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

bob_bob said:


> Depends on where you shop too. Some of the food is grow 'perfect' and lack flavour but even the likes of Tesco now offer three or four varieties of tomatoes, peppers etc. Meat can be good, the 'value range' stuff is not great but the more expensive is good and I have a very good local butcher and all our meat is sourced locally where possible. I love being able to get the ingredients I need 24/7 any day of the year and you simply can't do that in Spain. Whilst the staples of typical 'Spanish' food _may_ be cheaper your diet is restricted by the pee poor choice on offer
> 
> Jo, the day I thought of food as fuel and nutrition is the day I'd hang up my apron and live on fish fingers and chips. All modesty aside, I'm a truly fantastic cook and take my ingredients and dishes very very seriously, all my food tastes great and is indeed pretty and exciting.....thats part of being a seriously good cook. You need to branch out and try new things by the sound of it and not be stuck in a rut looking back to when you lived in Spain, your in the UK, embrace the explosion in food culture that is taking place.
> 
> Sad to say, many here are wearing rose tinted glasses and promoting some romantic notion about Spanish food.


Well of all the supermarkets/food suppliers in the world, Tescos is not the one I would hold up as "the paragon"!!! In IMO and in my area, its.............. well its not where a discerning chef would shop!!!!

I guess it depends on what you like tho. I'm a low carbohydrate eater, which means I enjoy unprocessed, un-tampered with food! 

I have no rose tinted specs on when I say that the food in Spain is more flavoursome and real. Eggs, Chicken, meat, veg, butter.......... ALL taste infinitely better and you CAN tell!! - Spanish cheese is horrid IMO tho lol!!!

Jo xxx


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## Calas felices (Nov 29, 2007)

It's not really a true comparison to say that the food in the UK from supermarkets (and Tesco's at that) is not comparable with the food in Spain from a local farm. I also obtain my meat from a local farm in the UK but the difference is that I know that the animal husbandry is an acceptable standard. I don't have the same reassurance in Spain.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Calas felices said:


> I also obtain my meat from a local farm in the UK but the difference is that I know that the animal husbandry is an acceptable standard. I don't have the same reassurance in Spain.


I'm curious. Why not?


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

bob_bob said:


> Sad to say, many here are wearing rose tinted glasses and promoting some romantic notion about Spanish food.


I'm not!
I'm making a comparison with the way my family eats in the UK and the way I and my Spanish family eat here.

Comparing what I buy here and what I buy there.

BUT, I do live near Madrid where perhaps there is better quality food, and my husband's family is from Bilbao which is world reknowned for it's cuisine...

If anyone is not satisfied with Spanish cuisine I'd say you're doing something wrong!


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## bob_bob (Jan 5, 2011)

jojo said:


> Well of all the supermarkets/food suppliers in the world, Tescos is not the one I would hold up as "the paragon"!!! In IMO and in my area, its.............. well its not where a discerning chef would shop!!!!
> 
> I guess it depends on what you like tho. I'm a low carbohydrate eater, which means I enjoy unprocessed, un-tampered with food!
> 
> ...


Jo, your an ex nurse, if you have let your pin lapse go and sorted that out and then you can leave your shop work behind and eard £30k a year, the boost in income will let you enjoy better food. As for a low carb diet...I am surprised that with your medical background you've gone that route, it has advantages for some but is seen by those in the know as another fad diet in many ways.

Get your pin back, leave the shop, earn £20++ an hour and enjoy life; there is no need in reality to limit yourself the way you are.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

xabiachica said:


> I just looked at mercadona online shopping - it does say a 'pavito' (about 3,5 kg) is 3,50€ / kg & a 'pavo' (about 7kg) is 3.90€ /kg - I wonder what the logic behind that is


Why is a smaller bird more expensive per kg?

It all depends on how long it has been fed. Some birds (chicken or turkey) gain weight faster than others while still consuming the same amount of food and needing the same amount of care so a bird that, when culled, may weigh only 5kg, when his/her sibling of a similar age weighs 6kg, yet both have cost €15 to rear - the basic cost of the smaller bird is €3/kg and the larger bird only €2.50/kg and this difference will be reflected in the final price. Note: these figures are purely theoretical and are selected merely to simplify calculations


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

bob_bob said:


> All modesty aside, I'm a truly fantastic cook and take my ingredients and dishes very very seriously, all my food tastes great and is indeed pretty and exciting.....thats part of being a seriously good cook. You need to branch out and try new things by the sound of it and not be stuck in a rut looking back to when you lived in Spain, your in the UK, embrace the explosion in food culture that is taking place.
> 
> Sad to say, many here are wearing rose tinted glasses and promoting some romantic notion about Spanish food.


What a load of old dogs' droppings. If you were half the cook you profess to be, you would be able to take less fancy ingredients and still produce a fantastic meal full of taste and flavour with only a minimum amount of additional herbs and spices. You sound like one of those who claim to be a good cook but never allow the true taste and flavours of the foods that go to make up the finished dish to show through.


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## bob_bob (Jan 5, 2011)

baldilocks said:


> What a load of old dogs' droppings. If you were half the cook you profess to be, you would be able to take less fancy ingredients and still produce a fantastic meal full of taste and flavour with only a minimum amount of additional herbs and spices. You sound like one of those who claim to be a good cook but never allow the true taste and flavours of the foods that go to make up the finished dish to show through.


Of course I can make the very best of whats on offer, but having the choice and range makes food even better  I am, a fantastic cook and will admit that my budget is higher than most but my food is ..... great regardless of what I use;  I don't boast about much in my life apart from my wonderful cooking skills whether at home cooked on a commercial range or on a camp stove or two when out and about.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

bob_bob said:


> Of course I can make the very best of whats on offer, but having the choice and range makes food even better  I am, a fantastic cook and will admit that my budget is higher than most but my food is ..... great regardless of what I use;  I don't boast about much in my life apart from my wonderful cooking skills whether at home cooked on a commercial range or on a camp stove or two when out and about.


But I speak as one who has cooked professionally since the age of 19 (my blue ribbon is somewhere up in the attic) and that is over 52 years and when one is running a restaurant, one has to maximise profit and that means, often, making silk purses out of sows' ears, unless one is up in Galicia where orejones are a delicacy.


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## anles (Feb 11, 2009)

baldilocks said:


> But I speak as one who has cooked professionally since the age of 19 (my blue ribbon is somewhere up in the attic) and that is over 52 years and when one is running a restaurant, one has to maximise profit and that means, often, making silk purses out of sows' ears, unless one is up in Galicia where orejones are a delicacy.


Did you mean orejones (which are dried apricots) or "oreja/orella" which are pigs' ears, except for during Carnival week when they are a sweet fried pastry!


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

anles said:


> Did you mean orejones (which are dried apricots) or "oreja/orella" which are pigs' ears, except for during Carnival week when they are a sweet fried pastry!


Sorry, Yes, you are quite correct - suffering from post holiday effects and the stress of having fifty ophthalmology letters to do.


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## bob_bob (Jan 5, 2011)

Thankfully my diet is not restricted due to health, finance, availability of ingredients or of course, skill


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## Captain Leaky (Jun 22, 2011)

"Jo, the day I thought of food as fuel and nutrition is the day I'd hang up my apron and live on fish fingers and chips. "

Bob Bob I'm scratching my head as to which cook could make sense of that statement.

I don't live in Spain so really I can only talk about the food in the UK, except that there are two more 2 & 3 star Michelin rated restaurants in Spain than the UK, that the Manchego cheese has been voted one of the best cheeses in the world and there Jamon Iberico & serrrano has a very strict code.
I'm fed up with the supermarkets in the UK, nothing looks real, its massively overpriced, there is no tax on it so its not the Governments fault( for a change), greedy Supermarkets who have changed our high streets for the worse. They are so sterile.


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