While calçots aren't exactly rocket science, neither are calçotadas, which require extensive knowledge. However, there are a few tips that can help when organizing one. Isidre Coll, president of the Calçot de Valls Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), explains how they prepare them at home. "You can never go wrong," says the farmer, but he advises using vine shoots cut a year earlier to make the fire for cooking the calçots, ensuring they are thoroughly dry. This creates a more consistent flame. Afterward, they should be left wrapped in newspaper for half an hour to finish cooking. There's some debate about whether or not to cut the roots before cooking. Some argue against it, claiming it helps retain the vegetable's natural sugars, but many end up cutting them because they make peeling easier later. Once the calçots are ready to eat, it's time to add large logs to the fire. So, while we enjoy the calçots, the embers are being prepared for cooking the meat. The wine is always served in a porrón (a traditional Spanish wine pitcher).
The fever (and the income) of the calçotades
The Valls Chamber estimates that these festivities generate around 100 million euros
ValleysOn paper, it's just a type of spring onion, rather mild and without much mystery. As the calçot grows, the farmer piles more soil on top of it (that is, he mulches it), tricking it into stretching and stretching until it reaches the right size. Finally, he harvests it, and it's ready for the fire. But these unspoiled vegetables have given rise to calçotadas, almost unique gastronomic and social celebrations that continue to grow in popularity. Throughout Catalonia, and especially in the Camp de Tarragona region, between the calçotadas organized by families, the ones at the local barn, the football team, coworkers, and lifelong friends, two can easily happen in a single weekend. From January until well into April, there's no respite.
The farmers are the first to celebrate. Last year, they sold more than 20 million calçots from the Calçots de Valls Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), which includes the Tarragonès, Alt Camp, Baix Camp, and Baix Penedès regions, and this year they are confident they can repeat that feat, explains Isidre Coll, president of the PGI. Restaurant owners, who are packed during the season, also celebrate this milestone, but the calçotada phenomenon has a much broader economic impact. There are no calçots without sauce, and to make it, you need nuts, oil, and vinegar. Nor are there calçotadas without wine, oranges... And the vast majority also include meat. All these ingredients are produced and sold in the country.
"There are few celebrations, apart from Christmas, that have such an impact on so many products, and which are all local," explains Joan Ibarra, the Valls City Council's Tourism Councillor.
Approximately 100 million euros
The calçotada tradition has so many facets that it's difficult to determine its true economic impact. The Valls Chamber of Commerce has made an initial estimate based on the number of calçots sold each year, adding in the cost of the accompanying sauce, wine, meat, and oranges, among other things. The figure approaches 100 million euros across Catalonia, as the institution's manager, Carles Solé, explained to ARA. Much of that money goes to the Camp de Tarragona region. "It's a very good economic boost for the area," he says. The Chamber is exploring potential agreements with the Catalan government (Generalitat) or with companies and research centers like the Rovira i Virgili University to further this study and more accurately determine the true economic impact of the calçotada tradition. One of the most important areas to investigate is how many of these calçots are eaten at private parties versus restaurants, as the costs vary considerably.
A significant clue about the impact of the calçotadas (traditional Catalan spring onion festivals) comes from the Casteller Museum of Catalonia, inaugurated in Valls in September 2023. Since visitors are recorded, more data is available. "Thanks to the museum, we know how many visitors we have in the city, and we've noticed that the peak tourist season coincides with the calçotada season. The combination of the museum and the calçotadas is very popular, and it's our peak season," explains Ibarra. Some restaurants are already fully booked every weekend until the end of the season and are even operating two seatings. But local businesses and cultural offerings also benefit. Solé, from the Chamber of Commerce, points out that visits to the Santes Creus Monastery, the Poblet Monastery, and even wine tourism packages also increase.
This weekend, Valls celebrates the Grand Calçotada Festival, another indicator that helps to gauge the appeal of these gastronomic celebrations. The celebration, which allows visitors to sample calçots but also includes competitions, live music, and street parades, broke its record in 2025, bringing together up to 35,000 people, mostly from the Barcelona metropolitan area. "We believe that 2025 marked a turning point," says Ibarra. Capitalizing on this enthusiasm, the first edition of Calçofest, a music and gastronomy festival, was organized this November and was also a great success, easily selling out all 10,000 tickets available. It will be held again next year, and the Valls-based group Figa Flawas is already confirmed as the headliner.
Museum, book, and an app
In addition to the Great Calçotada Festival and Calçofest, Valls is also preparing a calçot interpretation center, thanks to an agreement between the City Council and the Agricultural Society. "The calçotada festival needed a dedicated space, and since we are the birthplace of the calçotada, it had to be in Valls," said Mayor Dolors Farré. The future museum, whose master plan is already being drafted, will be located in the Agricultural Cooperative building. Meanwhile, this weekend saw the presentation of a new center. The great book of the calçotadaThis encyclopedic publication attempts to explain the significance of these gastronomic festivals. The book draws on the accounts of nineteen authors who have recovered a wealth of information from newspapers and historical documents. They explain, for example, that calçotades were originally prepared as an afternoon snack. Published by Cossetània and coordinated by Guillermo Soler García de Oteyza, the book also includes recipes from chefs such as Carme Ruscalleda, Ada Parellada, Ferran Adrià, and Adrià Xatruch.
The success of the calçotades has been so significant that there's even a mobile app that lets you find all the calçot producers with Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status, restaurants that host calçotadas, shops selling pre-cooked calçots, Catalan brands that make calçot sauce, and bakeries. The Calçotapp also includes articles and reports about this festival.