The World of Tapas
In Andalucía, as elsewhere in Spain, exciting changes have been made to traditional Spanish food, but at the same time you can still find very many tapas bars everywhere that serve quality traditional food cooked to a really high standard, in which little has changed, including the excellent quality of the ingredients used.
In the last decades the perception of Spanish food outside the country has radically changed. It has moved from something relatively little known and treated with indifference to being seen as probably one of the best in the world. Several reasons have contributed to this, including the opening of top-quality Spanish restaurants and tapas bars around the world. These are now in the hands of professional Spanish chefs, backed up with suitable investment.
But what are tapas? Where did they come from? Who was initially responsible for the creation of such tantalizing food? Well, tapas are collections of small dishes. The word comes from 'tapar', to cover. Originally a 'tapa' was offered by a bartender for free, to customers drinking at the bar, so a copita (glass) of sherry would be covered with a small dish of something delicious, i.e. a 'tapa'. This custom still exists but it is slowly dying out. 'Tapear' is to enjoy tapas in a bar with a glass of wine or a beer or in several different bars, perhaps in the same street, by yourself or with friends. Sometimes one or both will be eaten before lunch, or before dinner at night. A large portion of a 'tapa' is known as a 'ración'.
Today tapas have become more complex and a little more expensive. They are recognized now everywhere, but the real story started not so long ago in a very simple way. Tapas were born in Andalucía, and, to be precise, in Triana, a popular area of Sevilla on the west bank of the historic Guadalquivir river. Since the 19th century, numerous bars and restaurants here have been bringing pleasure to locals and visitors alike in a celebration of the way in which they prefer to eat and also to relate to other people.
Andalucía is a place where socializing matters: socializing with the bartender, with new faces you have only just met or socializing with family and friends around plates of delicious food. Here the real world of tapas exists more than in any other place - a perfect harmony between food, drink and above all people. Andalucians love informality and without doubt this is an informal way of eating.
Tapas can be very simple: a plate of marinated olives, roasted almonds or papas aliñás, which is one of my favourites. Aliñás (see page 31) are potatoes served warm, flavoured with chopped red onion and parsley, dressed cleverly with extra virgin olive oil, vinegar and salt. Tapas offers samples of the extensive traditional recipes prepared at home or in the kitchens of local bars where excellent cooks, mostly women, have always been responsible for the food. Not so long ago we could never see them as they were always working behind the scenes. Nowadays they often come out to the 'front of house' in their chef's whites to greet their customers and recommend the dish of the day, whether that is artichokes in a 'blonde' sauce or a la plancha (from the grill) served with vinagrette or salsa mahonesa (mayonnaise), pescaíto frito (fried fish), which Andalucians know how to cook to perfection, or in spring, perhaps a complex rice dish prepared with mushrooms from the Sierras or seafood from the coast. The diversity of the tapas and their presence in different food scenarios is also part of their success. As well as in local bars they are also offered in restaurants as small sharing plates at the beginning of the meal: a plate of Ibérico ham or lomo (cured pork loin), langostinos (tiger prawns/shrimp) from Sanlúcar de Barrameda, a ración of the house Ensaladilla Rusa (see page 109), some chipirones 'a la plancha' (grilled baby squid), a plate of Pimientos de Padrón (see page 31) or a salad of the best tomatoes to be found, dressed with a fresh olive oil from a local producer and sprinkled with salt flakes and oregano.
Another important factor now is the emergence of modern tapas created by innovative Spanish chefs in Spain and beyond, as well as the way these dishes have been incorporated into what was before a traditionally structured menu with a section of tapas at the very beginning. What intrigues me is how difficult it can be to identify them when a modern chef has altered a classic tapa by innovation, creating something even more delicious. They may appear in a menu as an appetizer or even as a main course with a longer or different name. Is a delicious red tuna tartar on a small square of toasted bread a tapa or an appetizer? Is a succulent and tender octopus leg perfectly grilled, served with the most delicious cream of potatoes and a fashionable Mojo Rojo a racíon or a main plate? The price may not necessarily be an indication of the place a particular dish should be eaten during a meal, nor is the order in which dishes come out from the kitchen, but it cannot be over-stressed, it is the quality of the ingredients and the talent of the cook that make the difference.
Croquetas de jamón, huevo y pollo
HAM, EGG & CHICKEN CROQUETTES
Croquetas began as a way of combining leftovers with a béchamel sauce, to then be cleverly converted into another meal. The secret resides in a béchamel full of flavour. It is not surprising I am still making mine the same way as my mother and my grandmother did; they were wonderful. My own son Daniel makes amazing croquetas de gambas (prawn croquettes) and my granddaughter Sophie Maria's béchamel sauce is so delicious that my mother would have been very proud of her.
2 tablespoons Spanish olive oil, plus extra for greasing
½ a white onion, chopped
250 g/9 oz. chicken breast
2 tablespoons fino sherry or 3 tablespoons white wine
2 boiled (cooked) eggs, grated
50 g/1¾ oz. Serrano ham, chopped
FOR THE BÉCHAMEL
60 ml/¼ cup chicken stock (optional)
1 litre/4 cups whole/full-fat milk
75 g/? cup butter or light olive oil
100 g/¾ cup plain/all-purpose flour
sea salt, to season
COATING
2 eggs
250 g/3 cups fine breadcrumbs
sunflower oil, for frying*
MAKES 24 CROQUETAS
*In Andalucía practically all the food is fried in olive oil, but in the case of the croquetas I prefer to use sunflower oil.
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan/skillet and sauté the onion until soft. Add the chicken breast and sauté for a few minutes. Pour in the sherry or wine and cook until the liquid evaporates and the chicken has taken some colour all over. Set aside to cool. When cold, finely chop the chicken as if you were chopping parsley, then set aside.
To make the béchamel, first gently heat the stock and milk in a saucepan. In another saucepan melt the butter over a medium heat. Start adding the flour, little by little, until it becomes fully integrated with the melted butter (I use a wooden spoon). Start adding the warm milk and stock, little by little. To work the béchamel, change the spoon for a hand whisk, stirring almost continuously, until the taste of flour has disappeared completely and you have a smooth sauce - it will take at least 30-40 minutes.
Add the grated eggs, ham and chicken to the sauce and stir for a few minutes before checking and adjusting the seasoning. When ready, the béchamel should be creamy and very shiny with a light texture, but never too thin. It should be cold before frying, so pour the sauce onto a large plate, cover with clingfilm/plastic wrap and transfer to the fridge to chill.
In a bowl, beat the eggs very well (this is important) and place plenty of fine breadcrumbs in two large dishes.
To stop the soft béchamel getting stuck on your fingers, grease your hands first with olive oil. Take a small portion of the béchamel with your fingers or with a spoon and lightly shape into a ball. Place it in the first dish of breadcrumbs. Now it will be easier to shape the croquetas properly. Using a spoon, coat each croqueta in the beaten egg and then again in the breadcrumbs. Shape with your hands for the final time and repeat until all the béchamel has been used.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan/skillet or electric deep fat fryer to about 180°C/350°F. It is vital that this temperature is maintained to avoid the delicate croquetas splitting while they fry. Cook until crisp and golden. Serve the croquetas hot.
Tortilla de patata y mermelada de cebolla
POTATO OMELETTE WITH CARAMELIZED ONIONS
Spanish food is mostly regional, but the tortilla is one of the few national dishes. In Andalucía, you find tortilla offered as a 'tapa' in most bars and restaurants, or served as a light meal at home with a simple salad. Often it is filled with chorizo or peppers, but for me the best tortilla has only egg, potato and onions.
There is no traditional way of cutting the potato. It can be sliced thinly, as I do, sliced thickly or even diced. The potato should not be par-boiled but gently braised in plenty of olive oil with the onions, but the...
