SERVES 4
Spain’s main strawberry-growing area—some 90 percent of it—is around Huelva, in the southwestern part of Andalucía that abuts Portugal, with the remaining production found largely in Extremadura, Valencia, and the Maresma area of the Costa Brava north of Barcelona. (The industry is large: Spain is the world’s second-largest exporter of strawberries, after the United States.) Their arrival in markets across the country in early spring—or even at the end of winter—is eagerly awaited. Perhaps sometimes a bit too eagerly. From my mother-in-law, I learned that a splash of red wine vinegar helps to pull out every bit of flavor from the fruit, especially those early ones that need a slight nudge toward sweet juiciness. The vinegar goes untasted; it simply draws the succulent juices from the strawberries. Choose plump, brilliantly colored strawberries. Don’t clean or stem them until ready to prepare.
1. Rinse, stem, and quarter the strawberries. Place them in a bowl. Dribble with the vinegar and sprinkle with the sugar. Swirl the bowl and then carefully turn over the strawberries with a large spoon to mix. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, turning over with a spoon from time to time.
2. Spoon the strawberries and any juice into individual dessert bowls and served chilled.