# Picada
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> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picada
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{{short description|Sauce in catalan cuisine}}
{{About|the Spanish sauce|the Argentine and Uruguayan dish|Picada (Rioplatense cuisine)|the Colombian dish|Picada (Colombian cuisine)}}
thumb|A dish seasoned with picada sauce
'''Picada''' ({{IPA|ca|piˈkaðə}}) is a [sauce](/source/sauce) and [culinary](/source/culinary) technique found in [Catalonia](/source/Catalonia) and [Valencia](/source/Valencia), and therefore [Catalan cuisine](/source/Catalan_cuisine) and [Valencian cuisine](/source/Valencian_cuisine). It is not a separate sauce like [mayonnaise](/source/mayonnaise) or [romesco](/source/romesco), but it is added as a seasoning during the cooking of a recipe.
== Preparation ==
Often the preparation of a concoction begins with another essential sauce, like the [sofregit](/source/sofrito), and ends with the final adding of the picada some minutes before the cooking termination. Picada is used to blend and thicken juices, to provide an excellent finishing touch to a multitude of recipes: meats, fish, rice, soups, legumes, vegetables. There are many variants for the rest of ingredients. The most common ones are [garlic](/source/garlic) (often considered essential), [saffron](/source/saffron) (also considered essential), and [parsley](/source/parsley). Other possible ingredients used more rarely are [cinnamon](/source/cinnamon), cooked [liver](/source/liver) (of [chicken](/source/chicken) or [rabbit](/source/rabbit)), [chocolate](/source/chocolate), [cumin](/source/cumin), herbs, and other spices.[{{Cite web |date=2017-10-19 |title=Picada is the Catalan-Style Pesto You Can Use on Everything |url=https://food52.com/blog/20740-picada-is-the-catalan-style-pesto-you-can-use-on-everything |access-date=2022-12-30 |website=Food52 |language=en-us}}]
The picada is prepared in the [mortar](/source/Mortar_and_pestle) and must contain a basic triad: [almond](/source/almond), bread and some liquid. Almonds are toasted and can be replaced by another nut like [hazelnut](/source/hazelnut), [pinenut](/source/pinenut), [walnut](/source/walnut), or some combination of those. Bread is crushed in a mortar after being made dry and hard from going [stale](/source/stale), being toasted, or being fried in oil. Otherwise, some sort of sweet [biscuit](/source/biscuit) or cookie may be used. The liquid used is usually the cooking [juice](/source/juice) but [stock](/source/stock_(food)) or hot water can be used as well.
== Historical background ==
Historically, picada of almonds is documented in Catalan cuisine since the 13th century.[{{Cite web |title=Catalan Picada: The Seasoning Blend That Lifts The Texture Of Your Dishes |url=https://cocaccia.com/catalan-picada/ |access-date=2022-12-30 |website=cocaccia.com |language=en-US}}] Picada is included in Robert de Nola's fifteenth century book [Libre del Coch](/source/Llibre_del_Coch).[{{Cite web |last=Melian |first=Gaby |date=31 August 2022 |title=The 9 Essential Elements of Picada Argentina, the Country's Snack Board {{!}} America's Test Kitchen |url=http://www.americastestkitchen.com/articles/6118-the-9-essential-elements-of-picada-argentina-the-country-s-snack-board |access-date=2022-12-30 |website=America's Test Kitchen |language=en}}] Normally served with dips, bread, olives and nuts.