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Market Counter · Tomato Bread

Pa amb Tomàquet

Pa amb Tomàquet — street food from Cataluña, Spain
Photo: Mutari / Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

There's technically no cooking involved — just toasted bread rubbed raw with a halved tomato, garlic, olive oil, and salt, yet Catalans treat the ratio like a serious craft.

Pa amb tomàquet is toasted country bread rubbed with a cut tomato until the pulp soaks into the crumb, then drizzled with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Market stalls and bars across Catalonia serve it as the base for almost every other snack.

Why it's made this way: It likely began as a way to soften stale bread and stretch a few tomatoes, and it became so central to Catalan eating that it's rarely left off any menu.
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Part of World of Street Food — 690 dishes from 118 countries. Something wrong here? Tell us in the comments below. Photo credits.