I totally agree with recommending Penny Casas' final book, It is solid,and not trendy. while knowing her life was soon coming to an end she gathered her 1000 favorite recipes in one volume. A truly talented and generous friend of ours. We at www.la tienda.com have complte selection of the best tof Spain. (almost 1000 sku's.) Don Harris
Definitely go to some local restaurants when you arrive and try the sorts of dishes they offer, and then check out the local market. I got lots of recipes just from asking market stall clerks and colleagues interested in cooking "whats a good recipe for x" - at least in Andalucía and Extremadura they couldn't wait to start rattling stuff off - just have a pen and paper ready. Of course just be aware that for all intents and purposes, vegetarians/vegans are practically non-existent outside of the big cities, so you might get a funny look if you ask if you can omit the panceta or chorizo.
Jan Weber - I can confirm your comments about vegetarian/vegan food rare, and the strange looks. I (accidentally) TURNED vegetarian on my way to Spain one year, couldn't bear the thought of meat or wasting expensive vacation food. And yet made it through.
Fortunately, both the brother I was visiting and I had fluent Spanish, and that helped. People WERE uncomprehending at first, but when they got it, they were uniformly helpful.
So, Joanna Michael, if you have special food needs, be sure to learn a few key Spanish words & sentences to know what to ask for. Or not, as the case might be.
And yet another thought--sorry for the multiple posts, but one idea seems to lead to others. If I remember correctly In Dan Barber's 'The Third Plate,' I am sure he wrote a section about Spain--perhaps it was about pig-reaising and pork.
I recall the geese section--ethically raised foie gras?
Looks like we won't hear back from Joanna and get to vicariously live out her move, but another excellent read is "Everything But the Squeal."
I just thought of a PBS series I watched some years ago that might be perfect for you. It was called Made in Spain and featued Jose Andres. He visited various parts of Spain, interviewed producers of speciality foods and visited restaurants.
Spurred by your comment, I remember there's also a Mario Batali pbs series from 2008 called "Spain...on the road again" which is a combined travelogue and cooking show, touching on the two biggest cities, islands, regions.
Gwyneth Paltrow went along for the ride with Mario on that series. They did produce a book from it. Mario is surprisingly well versed in Spanish cooking. And he does have his one Spanish outpost in NYC.
While reading any of these, it is very important to have a glass of tinto verano (red wine with a splash of lemon soda, like san pellegrino limonata, over ice) close at hand... it adds to the experience.
Yes, the late Penelope Casas was probably the definitive source on Spanish cooking. But her work is a largely a conventional overview. Anyone who has visited Spain, especially Catalonia and Galicia knows that it goes way beyond that. I highly recommend Colman Andrews' CATALAN CUISINE. More recently there is THE BASQUE BOOK by Alexandra Raij and Eder Montero.
The Ferran Adria El Bulli books stand alone as works of art in themselves. For about ten years Adria was the most important chef in the world. A DAY IN THE LIFE OF EL BULLI may still be in print. If you can find the slip cased editions (not many were printed) of El Bulli 1998-2002 it's probably worth many hundreds of dollars today---it's like owning a Picasso and thanks to some friends from the now defunct Cook's Library I do own one.
If you can get your hands on it, pack a copy of Honey from a Weed by Patience Gray. It is more than a cook book--it has sections on fasting and feasting in Catalonia, Tuscany, Puglia, and the Cyclades, so it will come in handy as a preparation for traveling around the Mediterranean.
Where in Spain will you be moving? The region may help as others have mentioned. If you are going to Madrid I would also have restaurant recommendations for you to get out and try the fare!
P.S. Not exactly basics, but an accessible cookbook that emerged in Spain from one of the master chefs of our era. Family Meal, by Ferran Adria, gives recipes in quantities for 2 to 75. Three years of meals at his restaurant El Bulli.
Hasta be Casas- her "Food and Wines of Spain" (her husband is some sort of oenodude)is one of the ost utterly dependable cookbooks out there, any genre. You could also check out the "Spanish Table" website- they have everything including, no doubt, some recommendations.
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Fortunately, both the brother I was visiting and I had fluent Spanish, and that helped. People WERE uncomprehending at first, but when they got it, they were uniformly helpful.
So, Joanna Michael, if you have special food needs, be sure to learn a few key Spanish words & sentences to know what to ask for. Or not, as the case might be.
Looks like we won't hear back from Joanna and get to vicariously live out her move, but another excellent read is "Everything But the Squeal."
The Ferran Adria El Bulli books stand alone as works of art in themselves. For about ten years Adria was the most important chef in the world. A DAY IN THE LIFE OF EL BULLI may still be in print. If you can find the slip cased editions (not many were printed) of El Bulli 1998-2002 it's probably worth many hundreds of dollars today---it's like owning a Picasso and thanks to some friends from the now defunct Cook's Library I do own one.
https://www.amazon.com/Food-Spain-Claudia-Roden/dp/0061969621
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Spanish cuisine is quite regional, so I would delve into specifics of the are in which you are living.