Spanish food gifts: the best ones to send across Europe
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Spanish food gifts are pantry products with a name and an origin, like Iberian ham, extra virgin olive oil, cured cheese, tinned fish or turrón, that you can send to friends and family across Europe (or order for yourself) so that Spain reaches the table. Here’s which ones travel best, how to put them together depending on who they’re for, and how to send them with Mentta.
Why give the taste of Spain
Some things you just won’t find in any supermarket in Berlin, Lyon or Amsterdam. Ham that melts in your mouth, peppery green oil from the latest harvest, or turrón that tastes like your grandmother’s house. Anyone who lives far from Spain knows it: what you miss most at Christmas is almost always something you eat.
And anyone who isn’t from Spain but has fallen in love with it knows it too. A Spanish food gift is a way of saying “I’m thinking of you” with something you share at the table.
The Spanish food gifts that travel best
For a long journey, cured, tinned and pantry products are your best bet: they travel well and don’t need refrigeration. These are the essentials:
- Iberian ham. Best sliced and vacuum-packed: it travels better than a whole leg and you don’t need a ham knife. Take it out of the pack a little while before eating and let it breathe.
- Extra virgin olive oil. A gift that gets used every day. If it’s from the new harvest, even better: green, fruity and with that peppery finish.
- Cured cheese. Manchego, Idiazábal, Zamorano… Cured cheeses travel well and taste exactly as they should.
- Tinned fish and seafood. Bonito del norte, mussels in escabeche, anchovies, cockles. The best of the sea in a tin, ready for the aperitif.
- Turrón and polvorones. A must after a Spanish Christmas meal, and almost impossible to find abroad with the taste you remember.
- Cured sausages. Chorizo, salchichón, lomo embuchado. For nibbles that taste like home.
- Pimentón and saffron. Small, light and packed with flavour. The perfect gift for anyone who cooks.
What not to send far away
Fresh fish, fresh meat, delicate fruit or anything that needs a fridge is best enjoyed close to where it’s produced. For deliveries outside Spain, stick to cured, packaged and pantry products: they’ll arrive in perfect condition and keep through the holidays.
How to put together your Spanish food gifts depending on who they’re for
For someone who misses home
The flavours of always: Iberian ham, turrón, polvorones and a good olive oil. What was on the table on Christmas Eve.
For someone discovering Spain
A journey around the country: Manchego cheese, chorizo, tinned fish from the Cantabrian Sea and pimentón de la Vera. Each product, a region.
For someone who lives in the kitchen
Ingredients to cook with: extra virgin olive oil, saffron, pimentón and some good tinned fish to improvise with.
For anyone with a sweet tooth
Different kinds of turrón, polvorones, marzipan and some convent sweets. Dessert sorted.
How to send Spanish food gifts with Mentta, step by step
Mentta is a Spanish online food market that, since 2015, has connected producers and specialist shops from all over Spain directly with the people who buy from them, with no middlemen. This is how you send a gift:
- Choose the products. Use the search bar or browse by category.
- Check who sells them. Each product page shows the seller, where they’re from and their shipping conditions.
- Enter the recipient’s address. At checkout you’ll see whether the product can be shipped to that country and how much shipping costs.
- Pay online. By card, through a secure payment gateway.
- The producer prepares the order. Whoever sells it prepares and ships it, with no warehouses in between.
One thing to know: if you buy from several producers, the gift will arrive in several parcels, one per seller. If you want everything to arrive together, choose products from the same seller. We explain it in more detail in how to buy directly from producers online.
Christmas: order early
In December everything slows down, deliveries included. Each producer shows their timings on the product page, and at checkout you’ll see the estimated delivery time for the destination address. Our advice: order as early as you can so it reaches the table in time.
And if you’re wondering why flavour matters so much, read why tomatoes don’t taste like tomatoes anymore.
Frequently asked questions about Spanish food gifts
Which Spanish food gifts hold up best on a long journey?
Cured and pantry products: vacuum-packed sliced Iberian ham, cured cheese, cured sausages, tinned fish, extra virgin olive oil, turrón, pimentón and saffron.
Does Mentta deliver outside Spain?
Mentta ships to Spain and to several European countries. When you enter the address at checkout, you’ll see whether the product can be sent to that country and how much it costs.
When should I order for it to arrive by Christmas?
As early as possible. Each producer shows their timings on the product page, and in December deliveries tend to be busier.
Can I send the gift to a different address from mine?
Yes. Just enter the recipient’s address as the delivery address.
Why is my gift arriving in several parcels?
Because each producer ships from their own farm, workshop or shop. If you buy from several sellers, you’ll receive one parcel from each.
Mentta. We’ll save you a seat at the table.
