- Every Thursday: Market Day in the Plaça del Mercat, Carrer La Pau, Paseo Reina Sofia and Plaça Antic Regne de València. Local bakeries sell the famous coques de llanda (small pizza-like savoury topped flatbreads) with various ingredients including peas, onion or peppers.

- All year round: rice is the basic ingredient of the Pego diet. Classic dishes include arròs amb fesols i penques (rice with beans and cardoon), arròs caldós (rice stew) and paella. But by far the most typical dish is the arròs amb crosta (a rice dish cooked in the oven with an egg crust). On the eve of Ash Wednesday, the town prepares for the arrival of Lent with this dish. Other noteworthy specialities include espencat (a delicious cold dish of baked peppers, aubergines and tomatoes, seasoned with olive oil and a touch of crushed garlic) and figatells (grilled flat meatballs), coques escaldades (corn or wheat pancakes with hard-boiled egg, tuna or prawns), and the pastissets (pastry pies with peas and onion or tomato, red pepper and egg). There is also a large variety of sweets and desserts.

- Holy Week: the mona (a bun with a hard-boiled egg) and the Sant Vicent sponge cake.

- Christmas: bunyols (fried dough fritters), and sweet potato and brandy cakes.

L'ATZÚBIA-FORNA

Some of the most popular dishes include arròs amb crosta (see Pego), paella, putxero valencià (Valencian stew with rice and meat), coques escaldades (see Pego)...

LA VALL DE GALLINERA

These are farming villages and historic producers of almonds, carobs, oil and especially cherries, which boast the official Protected Geographical Territory label.

The most traditional meat products include botifarra (Catalan sausages), bufa (round sausages), llonganissa (lean pork sausages, white and red), and sobrassada (spicy pork Majorcan sausages).

LA VALL D'ALCALÀ

Typical dishes include minxos (flatbreads with a wide range of toppings), blat picat (a stew with grains of ground wheat that resemble couscous) and rice with lentils.

Among the most typical sweets are bunyols, baked pumpkin, honey coques (see Pego), mostatxuts (baked sponge cakes), rosegons (hard pastry and almond fingers) and aniseed rings.

LA VALL D'EBO

The best known dishes of this valley are mainly the putxero (see l’Atzúbia) and arròs amb fesols (see Pego).

This cereal was introduced to Spain by the Arabs.

Rice is planted in April, it flowers at the beginning of August and the grain forms gradually until the end of the month. Harvesting takes place during the first half of September. The grain is separated from the chaff and dried in the sun.

Eating rice regularly helps prevent, and can improve, certain ailments such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol, since one of its characteristics is its low sodium content.

Rice, along with corn, millet and sorghum, are the only gluten-free cereals and are therefore tolerated by people suffering from celiac disease.

Oranges originated in Asia and are one of the most popular fruits all over the world, and are mainly grown in warm and humid climates.

The fruit provides valuable vitamins, fibre and minerals that contribute towards a stronger immune system, offering protection against anaemia, colds and other illnesses.

We must also highlight the importance of this delicious fruit in the Mediterranean diet and its use in salads, as garnish for starters and main courses and of course in desserts and bakery. The essence of Valencia is present in its taste, smell and colour.

Montaña de Alicante cherries are grown across 1,000 hectares of land in the north of Alicante province and the south of Valencia.

The cherry tree blossoms in March and harvesting begins in April. Low in calories and with a high content of vitamins A and C, carbohydrates, calcium, potassium and magnesium, this is a unique, delicious and high-quality fruit.

It is especially recommended to prevent heart disease and cancer, since its fibre has a laxative, purifying effect. In short, cherries are much more than just a dessert.