Chopping away in Segovia
With the Segovia Cathedral looming just behind it, this statue can easily be mistaken as that of a priest. But a closer inspection makes things clearer. This is actually a tribute to Candido Lopez Sanz, a chef in Segovia known as the “Mesonero Mayor de Castilla” who popularized the cochinillo – suckling pig cooked in a traditional wood oven – that the city has become synonymous with. The statue shows Candido about to cut through a quartet of the roasted delicacy (poor piggies!) before him – not with a knife but with a plate, a nod to cochinillo meat being tender and its skin crisp. When in Segovia, be sure to sample its signature dish and try to visit the memorial to Candido, the culinary hero who made it famous.
