Spanish food has been shaped by many influences, amongst them Roman, Arabic and Jewish. There are many common threads within the cooking of Spain, from salt cod to saffron and yet the sense of regional identity and separatism remains strong in the many provinces and is proudly reflected in the cooking. Each chapter highlights a different ingredient or ingredients from a different region of Spain. The introductory narratives tell the story in terms of culture, history, cultivation, tradition and context and above all bring the products to life by talking to the producers themselves.