What Is Trinxat?

Trinxat is a meat and vegetable dish that is a part of the Catalonian cuisine of Spain. The word trinxat means chopped or sliced in the Catalan language, and the vegetables that are used, mainly cabbage and potatoes, are finely chopped and mashed to make this dish. Other ingredients include garlic, mushrooms, pork or bacon, salt, pepper, and olive oil; all locally available in the Andorran region of Spain. In addition, depending on the cook's preference, ingredients such as thyme, lemon, sugar, and cheese may also be used to make trinxat.

This dish is quite similar to a popular British dish called bubble and squeak. Like the British dish, trinxat is quite easy and quick to prepare, and generally may be eaten as an everyday fare. There are many local Catalan variations of the potato dishes, cabbage dishes and pork dishes, but the basic preparation method for trinxat is the same.

To begin with, the potatoes and the cabbage leaves are finely chopped and placed in separate pots of salted water; if mushrooms are used, these too are chopped and placed in a separate pot of water. The chopped vegetables are first boiled and then simmered until they are tender. The pots are then removed from the heat, the water is drained away and the vegetables are set aside to cool.

The chopped, boiled potatoes and cabbage are now mixed together and mashed well, along with the mushrooms if desired. Salt and pepper are added to the mashed vegetables as required and the mix is set aside. A little olive oil is heated in a pan and thin strips of pork or bacon are fried until they are crisp. The pork or bacon strips are then set aside as well and, after adding some more olive oil to the same pan, some garlic cloves are sauteed. The fried garlic together with the excess oil is then poured over the mashed vegetables and mixed in well with them.

The mashed vegetables are divided into several separate portions, which are then flattened into small round pancakes. These pancakes are fried in oil, turning each one over as it fries so that it gets browned evenly on both sides. After the trinxat is done, each pancake is garnished with the fried pork or bacon pieces. In some cases, the fried pork or bacon may be added to the vegetable mash and recooked along with it.