Butifarra a la Brasa
Recipes with Butifarra
Butifarra cooked over charcoal, the way it is served at Catalan outdoor meals and calçotades. The coals do what a planxa cannot: give the casing a faint smoke and char it in patches. Eat with allioli and bread.
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
12 min
Servings
4
Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients
- 4 butifarra blanca sausages
- For the allioli: 4 garlic cloves
- 150ml olive oil (for allioli)
- 1 pinch of salt (for allioli)
- 8 thick slices pa de pagès
- 2 ripe tomatoes (for pa amb tomàquet)
- Extra olive oil (for bread)
Steps
Make the allioli: pound the garlic cloves with a pinch of salt in a mortar until they form a smooth paste. Add the olive oil drop by drop at first, working the pestle constantly in a circular motion. As the mixture starts to thicken, add oil in a thin stream, still working constantly. The allioli is ready when it holds the texture of a stiff mayonnaise. This takes 10 to 15 minutes by hand.
Light the charcoal and allow it to burn down to grey-white ash with no more orange flames. The grill surface should be very hot. Position the grill grate 8 to 10 centimetres above the coals.
Place the butifarra sausages directly over the coals. Grill for 5 to 6 minutes per side without pressing. The casing will blister and char in spots. This is correct. Do not move the sausages constantly.
Rest the grilled sausages on a board for 2 minutes. Meanwhile, rub the bread with the cut face of a tomato and drizzle with olive oil.
Serve the sausages whole, or slice diagonally on the board. Place the allioli in a small bowl on the side for dipping. Serve with the pa amb tomàquet.
Tips
The allioli by mortar requires patience. If the emulsion breaks (the oil separates), start again with a new garlic base and add the broken allioli slowly as if it were oil. A blender version with egg yolk works as a shortcut but the texture is thinner. Keep the allioli at room temperature; cold allioli loses its sheen.