Q 01/05

Which fortified wine takes its English name from the Spanish town of Jerez?

A) Port

B) Sherry

C) Madeira

D) Marsala

Answer · why

B) Sherry

Sherry: English drinkers called the wine of Xeres 'sherris', and the final s was later dropped as if plural.

Q 02/05

What are the sauce bases used across Spanish cooking called?

A) Mojos

B) Sofritos

C) Picadas

D) Samfainas

Answer · why

B) Sofritos

Sofritos, from the Spanish verb sofreír, 'to fry lightly', because garlic, peppers and tomatoes are gently fried first.

Q 03/05

Which two ingredients of paella were probably popularised under Muslim rule in Iberia?

A) Tomato and pepper

B) Rice and saffron

C) Mussels and prawns

D) Olive oil and garlic

Answer · why

B) Rice and saffron

Rice and saffron: rice may already have been grown in Iberia, but its farming spread under Muslim rule.

Q 04/05

Escabeche, introduced by the Moors, preserves food using what?

A) Salt

B) Vinegar

C) Honey

D) Smoke

Answer · why

B) Vinegar

Vinegar: the word escabeche comes, through Arabic, from a Persian name for a vinegar stew.

Q 05/05

The medieval cookbooks Sent Soví and Llibre de Coch were written in which language?

A) Catalan

B) Castilian

C) Latin

D) Arabic

Answer · why

A) Catalan

Sent Soví dates from 1324 and Ruperto de Nola's Llibre de Coch from 1520.