Many of Spain's 400,000 British residents prefer to stay at home for Christmas rather than go back to Blighty, and thousands of UK tourists also choose to spend the festive period in the warmer areas of Spain.
While this may mean missing friends and family back home, it doesn’t necessarily have to mean missing out on the things that make it feel like a traditional British Christmas.
Mince pies, Christmas puddings and crackers can be a little tricky to find in some places in Spain, but it’s not impossible.
Those that are going back for Christmas may find that as a result of Brexit, they can't bring their usual treats back with them such as items with milk or fresh cream like cheeses and puddings.
This is because of the EU’s strict customs rules, meaning that imports of animal-derived products brought from outside of the common market are banned or strictly controlled, including anything containing milk, cream, gelatine and the suet you find in your mince pies.
READ ALSO: Christmas travel between Spain and the UK: What can I not pack in my suitcase?
The Local's Esme Fox has scoured the country to find the best places to source your British Christmas treats, for those who can't bring it back with them or who don't feel quite up to the task of making it all from scratch!
Spain-wide
Overseas Supermarkets stock a range of different British products, including many from Iceland and Waitrose. They have branches across the Costa del Sol, the Costa Blanca, Alicante, the Canary Islands, Ibiza, Murcia and Almería. They sell British Christmas stapes including mince pies, sticky toffee pudding, spotted dick and Yorkshire puddings.
The Food Co. a chain of British supermarkets that opened its doors across Spain in 2019, and have branches in Puerto de Mazarrón (Murcia), Sotogrande, Calahonda, Guadalmina, Mijas and Málaga (all in Andalusia), Benidorm and Ciudad Quesada (Alicante). They sell mostly Tesco-branded products, as well as other much-loved British treats.
Taste of America stores can be found in many of the major cities in Spain including Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla, Zaragoza, León and Valencia. While they stock mainly American holiday treats such as candy canes and cranberry sauce, they do sometimes sell British items too like ginger shortbread and gingerbread Digestive biscuits.
The gourmet food section of El Corte Inglés is always a good place to look when searching for anything out of the ordinary that you can’t find in the regular supermarkets here. You should be able to find a selection of mince pies, British cheeses and chutneys, and they sometimes stock Christmas crackers too.
Homeware store Muy Mucho, which has branches across the country and sells things such as boxes of Christmas crackers, candy canes and Christmas hot chocolate with marshmallows.
Prima Prix, which has stores across the country also sometimes sells imported British products such as chocolates.
While it’s easy to make your own mulled wine, if you want to buy it instead, both Ikea and Lidl have good alternatives. Ikea sells the Swedish version called glogg, while Lidl has the traditional German glühwein. Lidl also has a great selection of German and Italian Christmas treats in case you're missing those too, from gingerbread biscuits to panettone.
Barcelona
If you’re spending the holidays in Barcelona, the best place to pick up your traditional British Christmas fair is A Taste of Home supermarket, which also has branches just down the coast in Sitges and in Cubelles. They stock everything from Christmas crackers and mince meat to Christmas puddings, brandy sauce, stuffing mix and chocolate selection boxes.
Valencia
Mercat Central Valencia has a specialist British food stall which sells Christmas must-haves such as mince pies, Christmas puddings, crackers, stuffing mix and gravy, as well as golden syrup to make those all-important Christmas gingerbread men.
Andalusia
Andalusia is one of the easiest regions in Spain to source any British products, including Christmas ones, due to the number of Brits living there and the international shops and supermarkets.
As well as the Overseas stockists of Iceland and Waitrose and the new Food Co. there are Marks & Spencer stores in Marbella and Málaga. Overseas Supermarkets can be found in Puerto Banus, Mijas and Pueblo Nuevo, among others.
Madrid
While a few years ago there used to be several British shops in Madrid, many closed down during the pandemic. Luckily, Living in London is still open and continues to sell a range of Christmas puddings, mince pies, cranberry sauce, jars of brandy butter, and biscuits.
Americans in Madrid may want to check out Yummy Planet, which sells a whole range of imported goods, from cherry and apple pie filling to candy and cake and cookie mixes.
Go for the Spanish experience!
Spain of course has its own Christmas traditions and this being Spain, food is at the very heart of it. Don't miss out on trying seasonal treats such as Roscón de Reyes cake, turrón, polvorónes and so much more!
READ ALSO:
Comments (2)