"tapas" news and stories

The Lady loves tapas. Who knew? When we read Eater's report that Lady Gaga spent part of New Year's Eve partying in small Spanish bites at Caliu, the newish West Village tapas restaurant, we had to give her a shout out. Although we hear the singer, who has herself invested in Upper West Side restaurant Vince & Eddie's, didn't eat much. Slashfood editors went to Caliu when it opened in November, and loved what we ate. So we join Gaga in giving the thumb's up to chef Franco Barrio (formerly of Mario Batali's Casa Mono and Boqueria, two of NYC's hottest tapas spots), not only for his tapas-bar standards such as sliced housemade morcilla, chorizo and cheeses (such as the caña de cabra goat's-milk), patatas bravas (fried potatoes crusted with spicy paprika and drowned in white mayo) and dates wrapped in bacon, but for his invented dishes such as tiny shrimp shish kebabs mounted on toast, and a strange paella with ground-lamb meatballs. Caliu is off the map in a West Village backwater many blocks south of the Meapacking District, and it's dark and quiet -- the perfect place for a first date, or maybe a bad romance? By the way, when we were there, Caliu hadn't yet been approved for a liquor license, so they poured complimentary sangria, which not only added to the spirit of the place but also made for a pretty cheap tab.

The best place to take your first bite of a potato-filled frittata-like Spanish tortilla (not to be confused with a Mexican tortilla) is in a madrileño-packed tapas bar, with a good bottle of Albariño (not to be drunk, unless you're incredibly graceful, from the spouted glass porrón; I warned you). Then come home from Madrid and make the tortilla yourself. Blogger formalfallacy gives his tortilla just the right degree of doneness on the outside, with a solid interior (the potatoes and onions are poached in olive oil before the eggs are prepared).

Variations can include adding pimiento (as above), spinach and Manchego cheese (as in this Kitchen Daily recipe), or kale. And for the tapas-bar-at-home experience, whip up this recipe for mussels with chickpeas, pimiento, and saffron.

Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool for a shot of having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes.

• Frigid winter weather calls for black bean soup and cornbread cassoulet.
• The secret to a well-assembled cheese board is contrasting tastes, textures and colors -- and capping the selection at six different varieties.
• Tired cooks can get more shut-eye by preparing their breakfast dishes before going to bed.
• Sliced beef filet on baguette rounds is a winning tapas recipe for timid eaters.

I love Spanish tapas, those small dishes of food served by the dozen as you sip wine or hard cider and talk the night away. Of all the types I have had, hot or cold, meat, fish or vegetable; my favorite are the marinated white anchovies called boquerones. Now these are not the typical salty and fishy anchovies the people love or hate to have on pizza. They are a totally different kettle of fish.

Fans of ceviche, or anything vinegary or with olive oil will love them. Of all the brands I have tried, my favorite is Benfumat from Barcelona. The delicate, small white anchovies harvested in the Bay of Biscay between Spain and France are carefully filleted and headed and tailed. Then they are flattened by heavy stones to mature and firm up the flesh. Then the anchovies are rinsed in brine, rolled up inside cotton cloth, and centrifuged to remove any excess water before being packed in the finest Spanish oil and white wine vinegar. Simple ingredients: white anchovies, oil, vinegar, and salt. But the taste is anything but simple.

Some boquerones are way too salty or have too much vinegar and not enough olive oil. Benfumat's have the perfect balance between the three. Typically boquerones are served draped over a thin slice of baguette or rolled around an olive. They are also great laid on top of a salad of fresh tomatoes or greens, and are a wonderful accompaniment to any dish that could use a bit of tangy, salty goodness. A small 15-30 gram serving is plenty and full of healthy omega-3's, but light on calories with only 25-50. I pan sauteed some fat, sweet, local sea scallops the other day; and then curled a boquerone on top of each and finished them in a very hot oven for a few minutes. The combination of sweet, caramelized scallops and the slightly tart boquerones went together fabulously.

Lately I've found myself in the mood for raw oysters. This extreme closeup that I found today over on Chez Pim has made me crave them even more. I can almost taste the briny juices from this beautiful, ultrafresh specimen. I don't know about you, but I take my oysters neat, so as to better savor the taste of the sea. Tabasco and lemon only mask the flavor. Chez Pim took this shot at Paco Meralgo, a tapas bar in the mecca of tapas bars, Barcelona. Pim heaps much praise on the tapas at Paco Meralgo, but points out that the real star is the incredibly fresh seafood, including razor clams and langoustines. I've always known that there's a lot more to tapas than jamon, cheese and olives, but this whole fresh seafood thing takes it to another level. Enough tapas talk, I'm off to the nearest raw bar.

[via Tastespotting]

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