Eva Longoria's preferences in Marbella

Known worldwide for her role as Gabrielle Solis in the series Desperate Housewives, Eva Longoria has shown herself to be an inquisitive person eager to explore Spain. Within her television project ‘Searching for Spain’, the actress travelled to different regions of the country to discover the incredible wealth of cultures, climates and, especially, the Spanish cuisine with its traditional dishes.

‘Searching for Spain’ has already been broadcast on CNN and BBC Two, and recently it has been shown on the Spanish television channel RTVE as Recorriendo España. A separate episode is dedicated to Marbella and the Costa del Sol, featuring colourful dishes and local gastronomic spots that caught Eva Longoria's attention. In Marbella Eva decides to invite some of her friends over for dinner.

Marbella and the Malaga coast are special places for Eva Longoria. The actress is no stranger here. She bought a house in Marbella, which she likes for its lifestyle. Over the past 20 years, Eva has befriended the locals, who are happy to help her learn more about local products and the true flavour of the Costa del Sol.

Dani García, awarded several Michelin stars, is one of Eva's gastronomic guides in discovering the real Marbella. In the tv-show the chef explains that he distinguishes between two Marbellas — the luxurious one and the real one, with its long-standing seafood traditions. Such Marbella can still be found at the local market. There Eva finds lots of seafood from local waters and eats a Malaga sandwich filled with ‘carne mechada’ (larded pork loin).

To learn more about traditional local dishes, Eva visits the Venta Los Pacos. This restaurant is a good example of that ‘real thing’ in the very ‘luxurious’ Marbella. Although it is located on the luxury Marbella's Golden Mile, it remains a ‘humble’ place as Eva it defined. On the restaurant terrace the actress and the owner, Francisco Sánchez, have lunch. Eva particularly enjoys the roast kid - ‘chivito al ajillo’.

“I was glad that she liked our dishes so much. I explained to Eva the secret of preparing our ‘chivito’ - oven temperature, white wine, bay leaves, garlic, thyme, lard, lemon juice… We are true to our local traditions. I would mention that we are proud to have been one of the first to revive Gazpachuelo, a traditional Malaga soup. Additionally, a tripe with chickpeas, wild rabbit, and marinated wild partridge are also in our menu and are beloved by many celebrities who live or come to Marbella,” Francisco Sánchez told SUR in English.

Eva Longoria also visits the Guadalhorce Valley, known as Malaga's garden, to discover a local star vegetable. ‘Huevo de toro’ or ‘bull's ball’ is an old variety of tomato that has been saved from extinction. Later, for the dinner with friends, ‘bull's balls’ are used in both gazpacho and tomato carpaccio.

Additionally, Eva's friends help prepare local salads, including typically Malaga ‘ensalada malagueña’ consisting of boiled potatoes and eggs, orange, cod and onion. Meatballs (albondigas) in almond sauce (salsa de almendra) — a classic dish on any Andalusian table — are also cooked according to an old recipe. However, pizza de sachimi is an exclusive dish. Eva learned about this dish made with tuna, tomatoes and cheese on crispy filo pastry at one of her favourite restaurants in Marbella, Nota Blu New Brasserie.

Knowing Eva's preference for goat meat and rice, her friend Felipe prepares paella in her garden. Dani García, responsible for seafood dishes, brings a tray with a big piece of wild tuna, crystal shrimps and sardines. All three products are considered Andalucia's star seafood, originating from Cádiz, Huelva and Málaga respectively. While preparing the tuna dish, the chef notes that tuna is still underappreciated by Spaniards. The secret to his tuna dish is the white soy sauce dressing. Dani also suggests adding black cherry pulp to traditional gazpacho to give it a more unique flavour.

The renowned chef also prepares an iconic dish from the Costa del Sol — espeto de sardinas (herrings' brochette) — and advises to add fried crystal shrimps to guacamole made from local avocados. It becomes a delicious surprise for many at the dinner, which everyone enjoys.

Incidentally, all episodes of ‘Searching for Spain' can be viewed on RTVE play, where the episode on Marbella will be available until 12 February.