Portuguese food is hearty and its main dishes are made with meat, seafood, legumes, and vegetables. It is a Mediterranean-based cuisine that makes use of a wide variety of spices, and many of those spices came from Portugal’s former colonies (piri-piri, paprike, clove, cumin). Garlic and onions are also widely used as are herbs like bay leaf, oregano, rosemary, and coriander. Olive oil is used as a base in many Portuguese dishes, either for cooking or for flavouring meals. Bread is a staple at a Portuguese dinner table while wine is the traditional Portuguese drink.
In Galicia, you’ll definitely find hearty stews and sauces, many seafood and rice dishes, and a heavy reliance on vegetables, dairy, and the foods local farming is able to produce.