Even if you haven’t made a trip to the Camino de Santiago organized or visited Galician lands surely you know or have heard of its famous drink called “La Queimada”. Being as or more popular than their homemade coffee or herb liqueurs.

A little glass of queimada sings you in the stages of Camino de Santiago from Sarria to Santiago it will be the best revulsive!

HISTORY AND OBJECTIVE OF THE BURN

There is a lot of controversy with the real origin, but it is true that many historians place it in the celtic tradition and its popular castros that run throughout Galicia.

The Celts shaped their cultural footprint in the various petroglyphs, the most common being “The trisquel” spiral-shaped symbol, where a kind of cross drawn with three heads appears. It is said to represent the three basic elements of humanity: earth, water and fire.

We find ourselves with a sacred pagan ritual that has come down to our days and that continues to be very popular in any self-respecting meeting or party in Galicia. Any excuse is good to do it!

The ritual of the Queimada seeks the purification of the body and the salvation of the soul. It constantly turns around looking for scare away evil spirits and call the good ones to protect us.

INGREDIENTS AND METHOD OF PREPARATION OF THE “RITUAL” BURNED

We require the following for its preparation: pomace brandy (if it is with the denomination of Galician pomace, better), white sugar, lemon and/or orange rind and a few coffee beans

PREPARATION

  1. In a clay container we pour the Galician pomace brandy and sugar.
  2. Later we add the lemon and/or orange rinds and the coffee beans.
  3. Stir the mixture well and set it on fire.
  4. We wet a ladle with brandy distributing it throughout the container so that it ignites the entire surface.
  5. We stir slowly so that the flames of the alcohol rise: the fire purifies, illuminates and heats in the tradition of the Celts.
  6. We do not stop stirring until at least 15 minutes. If we let the flames go out on their own, the alcohol would completely evaporate and the sugar would be consumed, leaving the queimada in a very bland drink.
  7. We serve in clay cups in the purest Galician style!! And remember a cup purifies and protects the soul of the meigallo*; the second cup illuminates and clears the mind of prejudices and will be the light that illuminates the path; the third, heats up and awakens passions, warns that we are on the threshold of hell…

SPELL OF THE BURNED

To complete the ritual we must recite the burn spell aloud as soon as it begins to burn and we are stirring:

Mouchos, coruxas, toads and witches.
Demos, trasnos e diaños, spirits of the snowy Veigas.
Corvos, pintigas and witches, feitizos das menciñeiras.
Poor furious cannons, burning two worms and vermin.
Lume das Santas Compañas, mal de ollo, negroes meigallos, cheiro dos mortos, thrones e raios.
Oubeo do can, proclamation of death, fouciño do satiro e pedo do coello.
Sinful lingua da bad muller married to home hair.
Hell of Satan and Beelcebu, light two ardent corpses, mutilated bodies two indecent, two infernal skinned cus, mud of the raging sea.
Useless belly gives muller spinster, talk two cats that walk to xaneira, guedella club gives badly born goat.
With this fol I will lift the girls from this light that resembles the hell, and the witches will run away from their brooms, going to bathe in the fat areas beach.
Hey, hey! The roars that they give in such a way that they cannot stop burning hot, thus being purified.
And when this concoction sinks into our fats, we will be free of two evils of our soul and of all bewitchment.
Forces of air, land, sea and light, I do this call to you: if it is true that you have more power than human beings, even now, two friends who are abroad face each other’s spirits, participate with us this burned.