Horchata + Farton - CondimentClaire
What does a match made in heaven look like to you? Whether they be people, flavors, or colors, iconic duos come in all shapes in sizes. Today, the perfect pair comes in a small glass with a straw and a little round white plate. Famous to Valencia and relatively unknown to the rest of the world outside of Spain, today’s dream combo is that of horchata and fartón.
You can find my full Valencia City Guide here, IG highlights here, and TikTok videos here :)
Unlike Mexican horchata, Spanish horchata is made from chufas, also known as tiger nuts for us English speakers. These nuts aren’t nuts as all but rather little root veggies, tubers, from the yellow nutsedge wetland plant! Each tiger nut is as small as a chickpea, brown and looks quite wrinkled. They can be chewed on, ground into flour or made into horchata.
Although tiger nuts were extremely common in ancient civilizations, the first record of tiger nut horchata in Spain was in Valencia in the 13th century. Valencia has an extremely humid, well-leveled soil so its a great terroir for these “nuts”.*
*this environment is also well suited for rice which can explain why paella was invented here. Even when farmers didn’t have much, they always had lots of rice to sustain themselves. Traditional Valencian paella is made from rice, rabbit and snails.
Growing up in Los Angeles, I am accustomed to the taste and texture of Mexican rice horchata so I was perplexed by the Spanish version during my first few sips. After doing a bit of research, I’ve come to realize that the Mexican version is in fact an adaptation of this Spanish version invented here in Valencia!
When in Valencia, it would be a crime to try it without its pastry bff, the farton.
The drink tastes quite distinct from the Mexican version. The base recipe is extremely similar in steps apart from the one ingredient swap. To make this type of horchata, one soaks tiger nuts to hydrate them and then blends them into a liquid. This liquid is then sweetened and jazzed up with some cinnamon (yum) and occasionally lemon peel. It’s basically the exact same as the Mexican horchata but tiger nuts are swapped in for rice and some citrus zest is incorporated.
To summarize, this milky non-dairy beverage is made from tiger nuts, cinnamon, sugar and occasional lemon peels (depending on where you try it). It tastes starchy, vegetably, and celeriac-like. The flavor is very fresh and green, not herby green but jicama green, is light in texture and a bit grainy. If you’ve ever tried making nut milk at home, it gives off that same slightly grainy but not bothersome texture. Are you still with me?
Now onto its partner in crime…
Like horchata, the farton was invented in Valencia. A more recent creation, this 1960s sweet pastry was created for the sole purpose of accompanying the refreshing drink. I guess they’re not a match made in heaven then? A tactical match purposefully created on earth?
The matchmaker here was the Polo family. This Valencian family lived amongst tiger nuts fields in the town of Alboraia and was consistently drinking horchata (as they should have). The typical pair to the beverage at the time was a rosquilleta, a bread stick. I don’t know about you but that doesn’t sound that tempting to me. They decided to create a pastry that would not only be perfect for dipping whilst still maintaining its shape, but also be long enough to fit the glass. How neat is THAT!
Traditionally, fartons are baked pastries made of flour, milk, sugar, oil, eggs, and a leavening agent. They are later glazed with a sugar syrup once out of the oven. Fluffy, light, brioche-like. In the 1990s, due to the rise of premade frozen pastry, some fartons were made with puff pastry resulting in a different texture to the traditional more bun-like, yeasted dough ones.
In my 3 days in Valencia, I managed to try many different versions (you can find all of my Valencia videos here) and my exact recommendations here. While both are delicious pairs, I preferred the yeasty ones like the one below I had at Horchateria Daniel. When well-soaked, this farton tasted like a fresh cloud filled with horchata rain.
As always, there’s a fun history, and a more level-headed history. While I will always share both with you, I prefer to believe in the more romantic one.
The Spanish word, horchata, comes from the Valencian orxata. This word is believed to have originated from an exclamation made by King James I of Aragon. The King was served this delicious dairy-free nut milk (chic) by a young girl. Upon first sip, he adored the beverage and asked her was it was. To that, she simply stated it was tiger nut milk. The King was not so convinced… it was SO delicious that he made sure to state
¡Això no es llet, això és or, xata! / this is not milk; this is gold, my dear!
And from then on, orxata became one and the word remained.
If you’re into the more didactic histories, the Latin hordeata stands for barley which could have been another explanation. But that’s boring.
The English word tiger nut comes from the fact that each little nut has stripes on it.
In Valencian, fartar, is a verb that means to provide or supply in abundance. Each farton then is something that feeds the soul and brings extreme pleasure when eaten. Correctamundo!!
Supposedly, tiger nut extract also has an antibacterial property that is effective against E. coli? And is helpful for relieving an upset stomach? Let the chugging begin.
What kind of iconic duo do you enjoy in your culture? Please share in the comments below!
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