Horchata in Valencia is not the rice-and-cinnamon drink many Americans know from Mexican restaurants. It is orxata de xufa: a cold, pale, faintly sweet milk pressed from tiger nuts grown in the fields just north of the city. It tastes of almond, a little of vanilla and a little of the earth. On a hot afternoon, with a long, soft pastry to dip in it, it is the most Valencian thing you can order.
This guide explains what horchata is, where it comes from, how to order it like a local and where to drink it, from the tiled rooms of the old town to the farm town of Alboraya.
What is Valencian horchata?
The tiger nut
The tiger nut (chufa in Spanish, xufa in Valencian) is not a nut at all. It is the small, wrinkled tuber of a sedge, Cyperus esculentus, about the size of a chickpea. It is thought to have arrived in the region with the Moors, who farmed the irrigated plain around Valencia for centuries.
To make horchata, the dried tubers are soaked, washed, ground with water, pressed and strained, then sweetened with sugar and chilled. Nothing else should go in. Good horchata is naturally free of dairy, gluten and nuts in the botanical sense, which makes it a gentle choice for many guests with allergies.
Fresh, not bottled
There are two kinds of horchata in Valencia. The fresh one, made daily in a horchatería, keeps only a day or two in the fridge and has a slightly grainy, living texture. The bottled, pasteurized one from the supermarket is shelf-stable and sweeter. Both are real horchata, but they are not the same drink. Order the fresh one wherever you can.
Where the name comes from
Every Valencian child learns the legend: King Jaume I, tasting the drink after he took the city in the 13th century, told the girl who served it “Això és or, xata”, “this is gold, sweetheart.” Linguists agree it is a folk tale; the word most likely comes from the Latin hordeum, barley, from an older barley drink. Nobody in Valencia minds. The story is too good.
Alboraya and the Denomination of Origin
The tiger nut fields of L’Horta Nord
Almost all of Spain’s tiger nuts grow in L’Horta Nord, the market-garden plain just north of Valencia, and the town most associated with them is Alboraya. The tubers are planted in spring, and the fields are burned and harvested in late autumn and early winter. The tiger nuts are then washed and slowly dried for around three months before they are ready to use.
Driving out of the city toward the sea, you pass low, dense green fields cut by irrigation channels, with farmhouses (alquerías) among them. That is tiger nut country, ten minutes from the old town.
The DO Chufa de Valencia
Since the 1990s, tiger nuts from a defined group of municipalities in L’Horta Nord have been protected by the Denominación de Origen Chufa de Valencia. Horchata made with these tiger nuts can carry the DO’s seal, a useful sign when you buy a bottle to take home.
How to order horchata
Horchata, granizada or blanc i negre
- Horchata líquida. The classic: poured very cold, in a tall glass.
- Granizada. Half frozen, slushy, the version locals order on the hottest days of August.
- Blanc i negre. Horchata with a scoop of coffee granita, “white and black.” A good choice if you find plain horchata a little sweet.
Sizes vary: many horchaterías offer a small, medium and large glass, and the small one is enough before dinner.
Fartons, the pastry made for dipping
A farton is a long, light, glazed bun, dusted with sugar, designed to be dipped into horchata and to soak it up. It was created in Alboraya in the mid-20th century. Order two per person; they are lighter than they look. An older alternative is the rosquilleta, a thin, crisp breadstick, and some horchaterías serve slices of sponge cake as well.
When to drink horchata
The season
Horchata is a summer drink. The traditional season runs from spring to early autumn, and some of the horchaterías in Alboraya close for the winter months. The historic places in the old town stay open all year, so you can taste it in January too. It is simply at its best when the afternoon is hot.
The time of day
Valencians drink horchata in the late afternoon, between the end of lunch and the start of the evening: merienda time. Around five or six on a summer day, the terraces of the horchaterías fill with families, couples and grandparents with grandchildren. It is not a dessert after dinner, and nobody drinks it with a meal.
Where to drink horchata in Valencia
Each of the places below is a long-established address. Opening hours change with the season, so your travel designer confirms them for your dates.
In the old town
- Horchatería Santa Catalina. In the heart of the old town, by the church of Santa Catalina, with walls covered in old Valencian tiles. Sit inside for the room itself, which looks as it has for generations.
- Horchatería El Siglo. Facing Santa Catalina across the little square, with an equally long history. Locals tend to be loyal to one or the other. The only fair test is to try both.
These two sit a few minutes’ walk from the Mercado Central, so they fit naturally after a morning at the market. See our guide to the Mercado Central for how to plan that walk.
In Alboraya
- Horchatería Daniel. In Alboraya, the home town of horchata, at the edge of the tiger nut fields. It is a short drive from the center and a classic family stop on a summer afternoon.
Going to Alboraya is the best way to understand horchata. You see the fields, then you taste the drink a few hundred yards away. It combines well with a late-afternoon walk along the beaches north of the city.
How horchata fits into a private journey
On our private food tour, horchata and fartons are often the sweet end of the walk, after the market stalls and the old town bars. With a private guide, the horchaterías of Santa Catalina become part of a longer story about the old town, the Moors and the irrigated plain that still feeds the city. On our three-day journey, we usually set aside one summer afternoon for the drive to Alboraya.
Horchata is one part of a wider table. For the dishes to try next, from all i pebre to fideuà, read our Valencia food guide, and for full meals, our guide to the best restaurants in Valencia. If you are choosing when to come, horchata is one more reason to consider late spring or September: see the best time to visit Valencia.
A few practical notes
- Drink it very cold and fairly quickly; it separates as it warms. Stir before you sip.
- Taking some home? Fresh horchata will not survive a flight. Buy a bottle with the DO seal, or a bag of dried tiger nuts from the market.
- For children, horchata is a natural favorite; ask for a small glass, as it is sweet.
- Lactose-free and dairy-free by nature, but check with the horchatería if allergies are serious.
