By Jon Yeomans, for CNN

(CNN) – It’s fair to say Spain was late to the table when it came to recognizing the global superpowers of food .

While Italy and France have spent years in the limelight, Spain was biding its time.

In recent years, however, people have come to celebrate the extraordinary flavors and variety of produce the cuisine has to offer.

High-profile chefs such as Ferran Adrià, mastermind of the now-closed El Bulli restaurant, and the Roca brothers, founders of the El Celler de Can Roca, have brought Spain’s alta cocina international acclaim. And in 2023, Spain had more restaurants on the World’s 50 Best list than any other country.

But the heart of Spanish cooking remains its rustic, homespun nature, a legacy of a time when hard-pressed Spaniards had to w

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