Marks and Spencer has become embroiled in a cultural appropriation row over its “Spanish” croquettes – filled with the country’s national dish.

The grocer has introduced the “Spanish chorizo paella croquetas” to its coveted “collection” range and claims they are “handmade in Spain”.

But the British Ambassador to Spain has led a backlash, as it was described as “wrong on every level” in the latest cultural dispute to hit British kitchens.

Paella originated in Valencia, a rice-growing region of Spain’s Mediterranean coast, with a mixture of chicken, rabbit and snails with green and white beans.

However, it has become popularised with seafood, chorizo or vegetables in other regions and neighbouring countries.

Croquettes are traditionally French but are cooked with Serrano ham in parts of Spain.

M&S is now attempting to combine the two, a novel idea that features “paella rice, smoky chorizo, saffron and a creamy bechamel sauce”, according to the packaging.

Simon Hunter, a journalist based in Madrid, posted a picture of the M&S product on X, with the caption “NO NO NO”, triggering a backlash with 30,000 views.

The British Ambassador to Spain, Hugh Elliott, soon waded in, writing in Spanish: “Chorizo, yes! Paella, yes! Croquetas, yes! Yes! All together? ….M&S, what have you done?”

Phil Dickinson, a Spanish interpreter for football clubs, wrote: “Wrong on every level. Just call them arancini with chorittzzo.”

Stephen Fahey, managing director for Oxford University Press in Spain, added: “They are missing the tortilla.”

‘Not authentic’

Omar Allibhoy, a Spanish celebrity chef and the founder of Tapas Revolution, said the idea was by definition “not authentic” but he still supports it.

“Unfortunately I haven’t tried them just yet so I can’t give my opinion on the taste and texture – I’m doing that tonight – and the concept is not revolutionary but definitely clever”, he told The Telegraph.

“Three of the most loved Spanish foods are brought into one so the product developer was bang on the money.

“Where the confusion comes is that paella is lost in translation – in Valencia, where paella comes from, they only call one single dish paella which has rabbit, chicken, runner beans, artichokes and snails.

“Everything else is called arroz – which means rice. In the rest of Spain, that doesn’t apply and we will call it paella if it’s cooked in a paella pan. Ultimately taste, texture, flavour, enjoyment and convenience will speak for itself – let the public be the judge.”

Quique Da Costa, a three-Michelin star chef from Valencia who runs the London restaurant Arros QD, told The Telegraph: “If we refer to Valencian paella, it is almost comical from a locals’ perspective, and from a cultural perspective, practically an offence.

“But it is also true that there is a way to take a broader look at a paella, and that is by making paella rice, where the ingredients can be arranged more freely without offending a traditional recipe.”

He added: “I consider it a sacrilege for arancini, croquette and paella to put 3 different ingredients in such a small thing. I ask myself a question: is it a commercial response to a demand from the British public?”

The row comes after a series of other disputes around British twists on foreign food. 

In 2018, Jamie Oliver was forced to defend his “punchy jerk rice” as showing “where my inspiration came from”, after the Labour MP Dawn Butler told him “this appropriation from Jamaica needs to stop”.

The television chef later revealed he hires “teams of cultural appropriation specialists” to vet his cookbooks.

The Great British Bake Off was criticised in 2022 after the hosts wore sombreros, shook maracas and showed tacos and tequila, prompting Thomasina Miers, the owner of the Wahaca chain and author of several Mexican cookbooks to say Mexican was “one of the most misunderstood cuisines out there”.