Jijona

Appearance & taste

Jijona is a whitish-brown mass. Small pieces of almond of different sizes are unevenly distributed in it and break up the colour. There are two quality grades: “Calidad Suprema” contains at least 64 % roasted almonds, “Calidad Extra” at least 50 %; both contain at least 10 % pure honey. The proportions apply to the finished product.

The turrón is sold in portions, bars, slabs, round slices or blocks, but also in liquid, creamy or paste form. The pack bears the name “Turrón de Jijona”, the quality grade and a guarantee label.

Production

The main ingredients are roasted sweet almonds (Prunus amygdalus dulcis), pure honey and egg white. Sugar and water are added; cinnamon is permitted as a flavouring, as a stick, ground or as an essence.

First the almonds are roasted. A caramel is cooked over high heat from sugar, honey and egg white and kneaded with the peeled, chopped and roasted almonds until an even mass forms. This is cooled, ground and finely milled, then cooked once more and finished. Finally the block is cooled, shaped and cut. A turrón journeyman or master (turronero) supervises production.

Packing and labelling also take place in Jijona, soon after cutting, so that the characteristics are preserved. However, the traditional “sale by the piece” is permitted, which is common in the province of Alicante above all at Christmas time: the turrón arrives at the shop as a block and is cut into bars or slabs in front of the customers.

Origin & history

Jijona lies in the comarca of Alacantí, only 25 km from the port of Alicante, through which the turrón was shipped all over the world. According to the specification, the town is regarded in Spain as the “cradle of turrón”. Almond trees grow around the town, and in the mountains beehives stand among rosemary, lavender and thyme; the growing of sugar cane (canyamel) was also famous. Turrón came from the almonds and honey of the area.

According to the specification, numerous documents show that turrón has been made in Jijona for over 500 years. One of the oldest comes from the court cook Francisco Martínez Montiño, who is said to have introduced turrón at the royal court of Philip II. In his book “Conduchos de Navidad” (Christmas dishes) he tells of a fictitious visit by three Japanese princes to Jijona and writes that the houses of the town were “filled with the scent of hot honey”. The knowledge of the turrón masters is still passed on from generation to generation today.