The Guide to Traditional Spanish Cookware: What to Buy and How to Use It

Spanish cooking has always been inseparable from the vessels it happens in. Recall the clay cazuela that holds a bubbling dish of gambas al ajillo and the wide, shallow paella pan that gives Spain's most famous rice dish its name.

Traditional Spanish cookware carries the influence of every culture that passed through the Iberian Peninsula. The Romans brought the potter's wheel and the Moors introduced glazing techniques during their nearly 800 years of rule. Village artisans in places like Pereruela, in the province of Zamora, still shape clay pots by hand using methods that date back centuries.

For Spanish Americans building kitchens that connect them to family food traditions, and for home cooks curious about Spanish cuisine, these tools are worth understanding. Each piece solves a specific cooking problem. And several of them will change the way you cook.

The Cazuela: Spain's Workhorse Clay Pot

The cazuela is a wide, shallow dish made from glazed terracotta. It is the most versatile and widely used piece of traditional Spanish cookware. You will find one in almost every kitchen in Spain.

Cazuelas are low-fired earthenware, glazed on the inside to hold liquids and typically left unglazed or partially glazed on the outside. They come in sizes from a few inches across – for individual tapas servings – to well over a foot in diameter for family meals. The shape is always the same. It's round, with low sides and small handles.

What makes a cazuela useful is how it handles heat. Terracotta absorbs heat slowly and distributes it evenly. Food cooked in a cazuela simmers gently rather than searing. And the pot holds that heat long after you remove it from the stove, so dishes keep cooking at the table. This is why cazuelas double as serving vessels. In Spain, the pot you cook in is often the pot you eat from.

Classic cazuela dishes include gambas al ajillo (garlic shrimp), bacalao al pil pil, patatas bravas, and baked rice. The small individual-sized cazuelas are standard for tapas restaurants.

How to care for a cazuela

Before first use, soak the cazuela in cold water for at least six hours. Soaking overnight is even better. This seals the clay's natural pores. Some traditions call for rubbing a clove of garlic on the unglazed exterior after soaking, which further seals the surface.

The most important rule is to never shock a cazuela with sudden temperature changes. Add ingredients before heating. Start on low heat and increase gradually. Never place a hot cazuela on a cold granite or tile countertop. Use a wooden cutting board or trivet instead. Hand wash only, and let it air dry completely before storing.

Cazuelas are safe for ovens (up to about 400 degrees Fahrenheit), stovetops, microwaves, and open flame. On electric ranges, use a heat diffuser.

The Cazuela from Pereruela: A Special Category

In the small town of Pereruela in Zamora province, artisans have been making clay cookware by hand for centuries. The University of Barcelona and the University of Sheffield have studied Pereruela's pottery tradition, and what makes it distinctive is the local clay itself.

Pereruela cazuelas are made from two types of clay mixed together. A heavy red clay provides structural strength. A white clay rich in quartz, feldspar, and mica gives the pots their refractory (heat-resistant) properties. You can see the mica flecks with your bare eyes. Because the red clay is so dense, it can only be shaped by hand rather than on a wheel. This gives each piece an irregular, handmade quality.

The combination of these two clays produces a pot that actually hardens further with repeated use. Pereruela cazuelas work on the stovetop, in the oven, over open flame, and in wood-fired ovens. In the Zamora region, they are traditionally used for roasting lamb and for making arroz a la zamorana, one of Spain's great rice dishes.

If you are going to invest in one piece of high-quality Spanish clay cookware, a Pereruela cazuela is worth the cost.

The Paella Pan (Paellera)

The word "paella" comes from the Valencian language and simply means "pan." Its etymology traces back through Old French to the Latin word patella, meaning a flat plate or shallow dish. In Valencia, locals still use the word paella to mean the pan itself. They call the dish "arros" (rice) or "arros en paella."

The paella pan (also called paellera in Castilian Spanish) is wide, round, shallow, and has two looped handles. Traditional pans are made from carbon steel, sometimes called polished steel (acero pulido). The pan's shape serves a purpose – rice should cook in a layer no thicker than one finger, about half an inch. The wide surface area lets liquid evaporate properly and allows the bottom layer of rice to caramelize into socarrat, the prized crispy crust that Valencians consider the best part.

Carbon steel is the traditional choice. It conducts heat quickly and evenly, which matters when you are cooking over an open fire (the traditional Valencian method). The pan is thin but rigid, often with a hammered dimpled bottom for structural strength.

Types of paella pans

Carbon steel is the traditional material. It is what most homes in Spain use. The downside is maintenance. You need to dry it immediately after washing and rub the inside with oil to prevent rust. If rust appears, steel wool removes it easily.

Enameled steel pans have a black ceramic coating with white speckles. They perform almost identically to carbon steel, but they do not rust and require no special maintenance. For home cooks in the U.S. who do not want the extra upkeep, enameled steel is a practical alternative. Only an experienced paella cook would notice a flavor difference.

Stainless steel pans are the easiest to care for but distribute heat less evenly. They also tend to cost more.

Sizing a paella pan

The pan should be sized to your heat source. Choose the largest pan that fits comfortably over your burners, grill, or paella burner. For a standard home stove with two burners, a 15- to 17-inch pan serves four to six people. The general rule is 100 grams of rice per person. The broth level should sit just above the handle rivets so that the rice absorbs all the flavor without drowning.

The Olla: Spain's Great Stew Pot

The olla is Spain's original one-pot meal vessel. The word means both the pot and the stew cooked in it. Originally made of clay, the traditional olla is a tall, pot-bellied vessel designed to sit in a tripod over a hearth fire. Its rounded shape was efficient and concentrated heat and minimized fuel use.

The olla podrida (literally "rotten pot," though the word may actually derive from "poderida," meaning powerful) is the grandmother of all Spanish stews. It is the dish Sancho Panza requested in Cervantes' Don Quixote. The wealthy version contained all manner of game and meat. The poor version used a rancid ham bone, salt pork, chickpeas, and turnips, simmered until the meat fell apart.

Today's versions are called cocido, pote, puchero, or escudella depending on the region. The classic Madrid cocido contains chickpeas, stewing hen, ham hock, beef, morcilla (blood sausage), chorizo, vegetables, and potatoes. It cooks for two hours or more and is served in stages. First comes the broth with noodles, then a platter of meats and sausages, and finally the chickpeas and vegetables.

Modern ollas are made from cast iron, enameled iron, or stainless steel and sit directly on the stovetop. The Spanish pressure cooker (olla expres) has become common for shortening cooking times. But the principle is the same – one pot, long cooking, and layers of flavor.

The Mortero and Almirez: Spain's Mortar and Pestle

The mortar and pestle is the most fundamental tool in a traditional Spanish kitchen. In Spanish, it is called the mortero (the bowl) or almirez (a word with Arabic roots, used especially in southern and central Spain for brass mortars). The technique of grinding in it is called majar.

Before electric blenders, the mortero was where flavor began. A few peppercorns, garlic, and a wisp of saffron crushed in the mortar and stirred into a simmering pot. The Foods and Wines from Spain organization, an initiative of the Spanish government's trade office, describes the mortar as "the starting point of many recipes."

Spanish mortars come in several materials. Granite and marble are heavy and produce fine pastes. Olive wood mortars are common in rural areas. Brass almirez sets are traditional in Andalusia, Extremadura, and Castile-Leon.

Every region has its own signature mortar-based preparation. Andalusia has ajoblanco, the cold almond soup. Catalonia has romesco sauce and picada, a ground nut paste that finishes seafood stews and meat dishes. La Mancha has morteruelo, a game meat pate. The Basque Country uses a mortar for their signature marmitako tuna stew base.

If you buy a granite mortar, choose one heavy enough that it will not slide while you work. A six-inch diameter bowl with a pestle that fits comfortably in your hand is a good starting size.

The Plancha: Spain's Flat-Top Griddle

Cooking a la plancha means cooking on a flat metal plate heated to high temperature. The word plancha translates literally to "cooking plate" or "iron." The technique is central to Spanish seafood cooking, especially along the coast.

A plancha is typically made from carbon steel, cast iron, or thick steel plate. It gets much hotter than a standard griddle, reaching 550 to 700 degrees Fahrenheit. At those temperatures, food sears instantly on contact. Shrimp, squid, thin fish fillets, and vegetables develop a caramelized crust while staying moist inside.

Gambas a la plancha (griddle-seared prawns) is among Spain's most popular tapas. The technique works because the solid surface prevents delicate seafood from falling through grill grates and provides complete, even contact with the heat.

For home use, a heavy cast iron griddle or a carbon steel flat pan placed across two stovetop burners works well. Season and maintain it like any cast iron. Use oil with a high smoke point. Cook food in small batches so the surface stays hot.

The Churrera: For Making Churros at Home

A churrera is a manual press used to shape churro dough into the ridged, star-shaped cylinders that are fried and served with sugar or hot chocolate. It resembles a cookie press or a large syringe with a star-shaped nozzle at the end.

Most household churreras in Spain are hand-operated, made from aluminum or stainless steel with interchangeable nozzles. You fill the tube with hot dough – a simple mixture of water, flour, salt, and sometimes a small amount of olive oil – then press it directly into hot oil. The ridged nozzle creates the characteristic shape that gives churros their crisp exterior and soft interior.

Churreras are inexpensive, small enough to store in a drawer, and make a genuine difference in the quality of homemade churros compared to piping bags. The star-shaped nozzle creates more surface area than a round one, which means more crunch per bite.

Other Traditional Spanish Kitchen Tools

The botijo is not cookware, but it belongs in any conversation about traditional Spanish kitchen objects. It is an unglazed clay jug with two spouts – one for filling, one for drinking – that keeps water cool through evaporation. The porous clay "sweats" slightly, and as the moisture evaporates from the surface, it cools the water inside. Botijos have been used in Spain's hot, dry regions for centuries.

The orza is a deep clay jar with thick walls, traditionally used to preserve pork, sausages, or olives under a layer of olive oil or lard. Before refrigeration, orzas kept food safe from light and heat. Many Spanish families still use them for preserving.

The jamonero is a wooden or metal stand designed to hold a whole leg of jamon while you carve it. It is a fixture in Spanish homes and bars.

Where to Buy Traditional Spanish Cookware in the U.S.

Several importers bring authentic Spanish cookware to the American market. La Tienda, The Spanish Table, and Ancient Cookware are established retailers that import directly from Spanish producers. Many carry cazuelas from Pereruela, carbon steel paella pans from Valencian makers like Garcima, a family company that has been making paella pans since the 1940s, and brass almirez sets.

For paella pans specifically, Garcima is the name to know. The Garcia family started forging pans in a Valencia workshop in 1920. By the 1940s, they were hand-making paella pans and selling them at Valencia's Central Market. They remain Spain's leading paella pan producer.

When buying clay cookware, look for pieces marked as 100% lead-free. Reputable Spanish producers now comply with European Union regulations on food safety and glazes.

Building Your Spanish Cookware Collection

If you are starting from scratch, buy these pieces in this order.

A 10- to 12-inch cazuela will cover tapas, baked rice dishes, and simple stews. A carbon steel or enameled steel paella pan sized to your stove will open up Spain's entire world of rice cooking. A heavy granite or marble mortar with a comfortable pestle will change how you build flavor in each dish.

From there, add a cast iron plancha for seafood. A churrera if you want to make churros at home. And a Pereruela cazuela if you want to invest in a piece of cookware that will get better over time.

The tools matter because the food was designed around them. Spanish cuisine evolved alongside these pieces of cookware over centuries. A cazuela cooks the stew differently than a stainless steel pot would, because of how clay absorbs and releases heat. A paella pan is wide for a reason and a mortar produces textures that a blender cannot.