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La Chinata

Our Company.

Our company NETASA (Norte Extremeña de Transformados Agrícolas S.A.), which is a family firm, was founded in 1975. More than three decades later, it is still holding onto the very pillars on which it was raised: to offer their customers the highest quality and most rigorous control in its Smoked Paprika Powder "La Chinata".

Thanks to these premises, and after a selective process, the Guarantee of Origin "Pimentón de la Vera” chose us among its member companies. This award confirms "La Chinata" as a brand of quality and warranty.

The name "La Chinata" comes from the name of the inhabitants of the village (Malpartida de Plasencia) where the company founder, Florentino Oliva, was born. His children and grandchildren, three generations later, are still going on with his exciting work, providing small innovations that do not distort the traditional production process.

You can completely rely on a product made from the beginning to the end in its land of origin and subjected to many quality control tests from when the raw material is purchased from the farmers until it reaches our customers.

Where are we?

Currently, our "La Chinata” Smoked Paprika Powder has gained international prestige and it could be said that it is the most recognized brand worldwide, exporting to over 40 countries and being present in main supermarkets and gourmet markets around the world.

Our main markets are the United Kingdom, USA, Canada, France and Australia.

Smoked Paprika Powder

What is Smoked Paprika Powder?

A bit of history.

Smoked Paprika powder is the product resulting from the milling of ripe red peppers, dried in a traditional process with either oak wood or holm oak wood. It is cultivated and produced in the region of La Vera, located north of the province of Cáceres¹, Spain. This paprika powder is protected by the Guarantee of Origin "Pimentón de la Vera" certifying its lineage and quality.

The "Pimentón de la Vera" is a product that has a smoky flavour and aroma due to its drying process; and its colour is red with relative brightness. In addition to its high colouring power, its flavour, its aroma and its colour are very stable due to the slow drying process used in its elaboration.

The story goes that the peppers used in the manufacture of "Pimentón de la Vera" come from the New World that Columbus discovered back in 1492. Due to the undeniable support of the Catholic Monarchs, he offered those fruits to them as a token of appreciation. This event took place in the Monastery of Guadalupe (Cáceres), from where, according to the legend, the Hieronymites monks spread their cultivation all over their convents.

That is how it arrived to the Monastery of Yuste, in the region of La Vera, whose priests were showing off those peppers to the neighboring villages and regions. The industrial process for the production of "Pimentón de la Vera" started in the late 17th century, achieving a large development in the mid-18th century.

In line with these events, the desired red fruits also came to the Monastery of Ñora (Murcia), where, through a similar process, the characteristic Murcian Paprika Powder began to be developed. Through the years this led to the fact that both the Region of Murcia and the region of La Vera became the two great producing areas of Paprika Powder in Spain.

You may be wondering now, how can the characteristics of both products vary so much if they have the same origin? The reason lies in the climatic peculiarities of each region: The sun, reigning in the autumn of Murcia, allows the product to dry in the open air; whereas the autumn rains, a feature of our region, forced us to design an alternative process: drying with smoke.

In order to carry on with the smoking process, vertical power dryers were built on the same farms. They are of variable dimensions and they consist of a ground and upper floor. In the ground floor, the oak wood or holm oak wood is placed. When ignited, the hot air and combustion gases from the wood rise to the upper floor, which consists of a wooden grating and it is where the peppers, freshly picked from the fields, are placed. Thus, in a very laborious process from 10 to 15 days, the peppers dry gradually until they reduce its humidity content from 80% to less than 15%. Daily, the fruits are turned off to get a homogeneous drying.

¹Cáceres is the capital of the same name province, in the autonomous community of Extremadura, located in the south-west of Spain, near Portugal.

This genuine drying process gives the "Pimentón de la Vera" a distinct aroma, a deep and rooted flavour and colour stability, distinguishing it from any other paprika powder. Do not miss the taste of this natural flavouring. Its bouquet has been leaving its trace generation after generation.

Varieties

Sweet

Bittersweet

Hot

Subdued but intense taste, ideal to be introduced to and discover our fantastic product. It is thought for all those people who do not like the strong taste of pepper, and highly recommended to be used in fish, soups and rice dishes. It will add a special something to your dishes.

Variety used: Bola and Jaranda.

With a very nice bouquet and a soft spicy touch, it will provide a grace to your dishes. It is the variety used by the master butchers to elaborate the typical Spanish Cured

Chorizo. We recommend its use in sauces and marinades for meat.

Variety used: Jaranda and Jariza.

If you like hot spices, this is the most suitable variety for you. It is ideal to give a brave and exotic touch to your dishes. Using just a little enough. We recommend its use for any recipe that could use a spicy touch.

Variety used: Jeromin.

Proceso de Elaboración

Sown

Cultivation begins in the middle of winter with the planting of the fruit in seedbeds; afterwards, in the months of May / June the plant, already grown up, is transplanted to the field so that it can complete its growth. Pepper varieties used are Ocal, Jaranda, Jariza, Jeromin, and Bola2.

Harvest

Fruits are collected mature, healthy and clean from fields during the months of October and November. The collection process is done by hand, given the difficulty of implementing a mechanical process to do it.

Drying

Afterwards, it is immediately transported from the field to the dryers in order to be dried later. The drying process is a completely manual process. The farmer uses drying places where, thanks to the oak or holm oak wood, the peppers dry in a process of about 15 days, to finally obtain the desired dried and smoked fruit.

Milling

The milling begins with a first phase where the dry peppers are grinded and cleaned. It then goes to the milling system, which consists of eight stone mills distributed in line that operate rubbing two stones of granite, through which the powder pepper passes until getting the right degree of milling.

Storage and Packaging

When the milling process is finished, and after it gets cool, the paprika is saved in our cold store for its perfect conservation. In this way, once the product is packed, we manage to deliver our product to our customers with its non-modified organoleptic characteristics.

The main ingredient of Spanish Chorizo

Culinary uses of Spanish cured Chorizo:

- In tapas, either in slices, hot or cold, or in typical dishes like migas³.

- In stews and vegetable soups, such as the one from Madrid, the podrido, the maragato, the Asturian bean stew and the Asturian pot⁴.

- It is very popular in the pasta dish called macaroni with chorizo.

- It can be also used in preparations with vegetables and sofritos⁵. And with some rice dishes and some casseroles with potatoes

If we did a survey among our Spanish consumers and we asked them how "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder smells like, we are pretty sure that almost 100% of them will respond that it smells like Chorizo.

Since immemorial time, authentic pork butchers from all areas in Spain where pork derivates products are made (Salamanca, Huelva, La Rioja, etc/), "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder has been used to elaborate authentic masterpieces of pork derived products. Using a Paprika Powder with Guarantee of Origin is a quality guarantee, a mark of distinction and a decisive element in order to create a true culinary jewel such as Spanish sausages.

Thanks to the traditional method of drying "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder, a characteristic smoky flavor is given to the pepper; this sets it apart from the peppers produced in other parts of Spain. In addition, the method of production provides the stability of the color or coloring power capacity without getting deteriorated after the passage of time, and this is essential for maintaining the sausage as red as in the beginning of its elaboration during its whole lifetime.

Depending on the producing areas, the amount of "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder used in every kilogram of meat varies, but we could say that about 25 gr. of Paprika Powder is used per kilogram of meat.

Season your meat dishes, Lighten up your barbecues!

Thanks to the intense flavor and color of our Smoked Papprika Powder "La Chinata", it is an ideal ingredient for making marinades or meat marinades.

The marinade meat is a very traditional way of consuming meat in Spain. Since the days of our grandparents, it is very typical to consume meat, especially pork, spread with two of the great jewels of Spanish cuisine: olive oil and ͞La Chinata͟ Smoked Paprika Powder.

Among other ingredients, the traditional marinade consists of Virgin Olive Oil, "The Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder, salt, garlic and oregano.

Apart from providing color and flavor to the meat, the combination of all the ingredients creates a great natural preservative that was already used to preserve meat when the refrigerator was not as present in homes as it is today.

Nowadays, unfortunately, meats are lacking in flavor, it is a great idea when making a barbecue or grilled meat to prepare the meat with this fantastic marinade that is described in the following lines.

How to elaborate a meat marinade?

Ingredients: "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder, Virgin Olive Oil, Garlic, Oregano and Salt.

Elaboration: In a mortar, mash up two cloves of garlic, using the salt as a basis to make it easier to mash. Add two spoonfuls of "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder to your taste (sweet or spicy), a handful of oregano and add oil until the mixing is covered. Then, spread the mixture with the meat and leave it marinating in the refrigerator from 24 to 48 hours. After this time, the meat is ready to be cooked on the barbecue or in the pan.

The ingredient that is a must for your paellas

Probably, paella is the most typical and the most internationally well-known of all dishes from the rich Spanish cuisine. It has its origins in the region of Valencia and its name comes from the container where it is cooked, also called ͞paella͟.

It can be said that the paella is much more than a couple of dishes with rice, there are hundreds of recipes that are a great reflection of the culinary traditions of the area where they are produced.

From its starting period, it has been a dish that brings people together to celebrate an event. It is mainly a festive dish, and to make that Feast much tastier, you cannot miss adding "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder to your paella.

Thanks to the color and flavor of our "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder, your paella takes on a very special taste, a more attractive shade.

A small amount of our "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder will give that special touch that your guests will not to forget, we are sure about it!

Paella Recipe:

Ingredients: Rice, Olive Oil, mixed seafood (squid, prawns, mussels, etc/), chicken, fish stock, tomato, saffron and "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder.

Elaboration: Heat a bit of oil, fry the garlic, and add the meat and the squid. When the meat is cooked, add a couple of spoonfuls of "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder, then, stir quickly to avoid that the paprika powder gets burned, and add some grated tomato and cook everything during 15 minutes. Afterwards, add the fish stock and the required amount of rice (1 unit of rice for every 2 of fish stock). When the rice is about to be ready, you can add the remaining seafood.

Change the colour and flavour of all your dishes.

Giving a touch of flavor and color to all your dishes is as simple as using a spoonful of ͞La Chinata͟ Smoked Paprika Powder when frying a couple of cloves of garlic in Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Take advantage of the synergies that a mixture of virgin olive oil and “La Chinata” Smoked Paprika Powder produce in all your dishes, from a boiled fish, to even a simple fried egg, anything is possible.

The high coloring power of our "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder will give to all your dishes a special shine, in addition to a unique taste. A taste increasingly appreciated by all delicatessen consumers. For all these reasons, the use of our "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder turns every dish into something special.

Tired of boiled fish? Add a sofrito of garlic, oil and “La Chinata” Smoked Paprika powder when it has finished boiling the dish will change completely!

Boiled fish with fried garlic and paprika.

Ingredients: White fish (hake, monkfish, turbot, etc/), an onion, bay leaf, olive oil, garlic and "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder.

Elaboration: First, boil the fish, the onion and the bay leaf in a big quantity of salted water. Once the fish is done (time may vary depending on size), then, add two spoonfuls of oil and two cloves of garlic in sheets to a pan; once the garlic is fried, remove the pan from heat, add a spoonful of "La Chinata" Smoked Paprika Powder and fry the fish with the mixture.