The tapa that catches people off guard
Order berenjenas con miel in a Córdoba bar and what arrives looks deceptively simple: golden rounds of fried aubergine, glistening with honey. The first bite lands differently than expected. The crust shatters, the inside is soft, and the honey — slightly warm, slightly floral — hits after the salt of the fry. It's one of those combinations that sounds strange on paper and makes complete sense in the mouth.
This is not a heavy tapa. Done well, it's light and immediate — the kind of thing you finish before you've decided whether you wanted more.
From the caliphate's kitchens
The pairing of honey with fried vegetables goes back to Al-Andalus, when cane honey was abundant in the Córdoba countryside and aubergines were a Moorish staple across the region. Medieval Andalusian cookbooks describe similar preparations — the sweet-savoury contrast was deliberate, not accidental. What changed over the centuries was the honey: today, bars typically use orange-blossom or eucalyptus honey from the surrounding mountains rather than cane.
The fry is everything
The aubergines are cut into thin rounds, dusted with flour, and dropped into hot olive oil. Temperature control matters here. Too cool and the rounds absorb oil; too hot and they colour before the centre cooks. They need to come out with a real crust — golden, not pale — and drained quickly so the texture stays. The honey goes on warm, not cold from the jar. Some kitchens add toasted sesame seeds for an additional crunch layer.
Pairing and timing
Eat them hot, straight from the kitchen. The contrast between crisp and soft degrades fast as they cool. A chilled Montilla-Moriles fino is the local match — its dryness and slight bitterness balance the sweetness cleanly. A rebujito works at festival time. Pedro Ximénez for those who want to push the sweet notes further.
Where to find them in Córdoba
Most traditional tapas bars in the city serve them. In the Judería, Casa Pepe de la Judería and Bodegas Mezquita do reliable versions. Taberna Salinas follows an older recipe. Garum 21 occasionally offers a contemporary take that stays close to the spirit of the original.
