Spanish Cuisine

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Spanish Cuisine

Spanish Cuisine: Tapas

On this page is where you will find and choose from among the most beloved and authentic Spanish cuisine recipes anywhere to be found. And we’re going to kick things off, on our Spanish ethnic food adventure, with several great offerings.

This first one, is a truly traditional Spanish Paella recipe that will have you wanting to not brush your teeth for hours after eating it, reveling in the amazing bouquet of flavors that have just graced your palate.

It is an entire meal unto itself, this one entree, a marvelous blend of chicken and seafood and spices over a tomato sauce infused bed of rice, and folks … it just doesn’t get any better than Paella_de_marisco_01this.

There are three types of paella, all of them with the same bed of rice: paella valenciana, which features duck, rabbit, or chicken, with snails, seasonings, and vegetables; paella de marisco, which is a bevy of seasoned seafoods; and paella mixta, which is a mixture of ingredients featured in the other two types of paella. We’ll start with that one, a fine example of …

Spanish Cuisine at its Finest!

Please note: For your convenience, you can click on the recipes listed below and be taken directly to a page with just that one recipe on it, in printer-friendly format.

You are certainly welcomed to read through this whole page, all the recipes are here as well, and there are some videos and pertinent information on background, history, customs, special notes, etc., so it is well worth the read.

Here is the list, in alphabetical order:

Alcachofas a la Parrilla (Char-Grilled Marinated Artichokes)

Chicken Marbella

Cóctel de Gambas y Aguacate (Avocado and Shrimp Cocktail)

Cordero en la Tagina (Lamb prepared in a Tagine)

Español Pollo y Arroz al Curry (Spanish Chicken with Curried Rice)

Espárragos con Salsa de Naranja y Limón (Asparagus with Orange and Lemon Sauce)

Ham and Cheese Tapas

Paella Mixta

Queso Relleno de Alcaparrones (Cheese Stuffed Caperberries)

Traditional Spanish Paella Mixta

Spanish Cuisine: Paella dish

Paella Mixta

 

Ingredients:
Specialty Item You Will Want to Have:
Directions:
  1. Halve the tomatoes and cut out the tough cores. Make a pulp by using a grater held over a bowl, and grating the fleshy sides of the halves, until you get to the skins. Toss away the skins. You want to have approximately ¾ cup of tomato juicy pulp. Set the bowl aside.
  2. In a medium sized bowl, place the shrimp, season with salt and pepper, and also ¼ tsp. of the paprika. Stir and toss the shrimp until well-seasoned all over, then put the bowl in the refrigerator.
  3. In another medium sized bowl, place the chicken in a medium bowl and season with generous portions of salt and pepper, then set this bowl aside.
  4. Using a grill with a lid, bring the heat up to very high, at least 450°F and even as high as 550°F. Put your 15-inch paella pan on the grill, pull the cover down, and grill until hot, about 2, maybe 3 minutes.
  5. Now add in the chorizo and rabbit to the pan, pull the lid back down, and grille another 2 to 3 minutes, occasionally stirring, until the sausage fat is rendered and the meat is turning brown.
  6. Using a slotted spoon, or tongs, transfer the chorizo to a large bowl and set it aside.
  7. See how much rendered fat remains in the pan. If there isn’t a good layer coating the entire pan, add some olive oil until there is
  8. Now take your seasoned chicken and add it into the pan all pieces side by side—do not stack them—and close the lid. Grille until the chicken is well seared, stirring and flipping once in a while, until all sides of the pieces have turned a nice golden brown—this should only take about 5 to 6 minutes (Note: you made to occasionally rotate the pan’s position, to ensure an even distribution of heat)
  9. Again using a slotted spoon or tongs, transfer the chicken over to the bowl containing the chorizo, and again set aside.
  10. Next, put the onion into the pan, season with salt and pepper, close the lid, and grille, stirring now and then, about 5 minutes, until the onion is soft, translucent and fragrant. You may need to lower the heat for this, or move the paella pan to a cooler area of the grill—you don’t want to burn the onion.
  11. Now put into the pan the remaining ¾ tsp. of paprika, the saffron and garlic, stir until well combined, and grille until nice and fragrant—doesn’t take long, a half a minute to a full minute.
  12. Take your juicy tomato pulp and add it into the pan, and cook until the mixture gets slightly dark in color, about 3 to 4 minutes. As you cook, scrape any browned bits up from the bottom of the pan.
  13. Now it’s time to add in the rice and the measured salt. Stir well, until all ingredients are well coated with the tomato mixture.
  14. Add in the chicken broth and stir and blend all ingredients again until well combined. Use a spatula to pat the rice out, distributed all over the pan’s bottom in an even layer. Important! Do not stir the rice from this point forward.
  15. Place the chicken and chorizo evenly over the layered rice, and add in any juices left in the bowl you had reserved them in.
  16. Close the grille’s lid, and lower the heat until the dish is cooking at a vigorous simmer. Continue to cook, checking now and again, until the grains of rice become swollen and at least half of the liquid has been absorbed, about 12 minutes—you should start hearing a crackling noise coming from the rice. (Again, during this procedure, you may need to rotate the pan occasionally to ensure an even distribution of heat; just enough to maintain that vigorous simmer.)
  17. Place the shellfish and shrimp into the rice, (hinge-side down for the shellfish), distributed evenly across and around the pan. Tuck them in a bit, enough so they are well lodged in position. Close the grill and cook until the shrimp are cooked well through and turning pink, the shellfish have opened, and the rice is getting nice and tender but still a bit al dente—this will usually take about 10 minutes, maybe as much as 12 minutes.
  18. Arrange the reserved shrimp and the shellfish (hinge-side down) in the rice, nestling them slightly. Close the grill and cook until the shellfish have opened, the shrimp are just cooked through, and the rice is tender but still al dente, about 10 to 12 minutes.
  19. You are almost ready to serve. Take the pan off the grille and cover it with tin or aluminum foil, and then allow it to sit for at least 5, maybe 6 minutes. When you uncover it, see if any of the shellfish have not opened: any that have not should be discarded.

Serve with lemon wedges as a garnish.

This next dish is among the most famous Spanish food recipes, a chicken entree with a delightful combination of spices and flavors that are distinctively Spanish.

Chicken Marbella

chicken marbella

Ingredients:
Directions:
  1. Make the marinade by combining the oregano, pureed garlic, salt and pepper (to taste), along with the prunes, capers (and capers juice), olive oil, vinegar and bay leaves in a large bowl.
  2. If your bowl is large enough to hold all the chicken pieces, place them into the marinade. If not, use large resealable plastic bags (as many as needed), divide the marinade equally among the bags, and equally divide the chicken parts and place them in the bags. Cover the bowl (or seal the bags, and let the chicken marinate in a refrigerator for at least 6 hours, better yet, overnight.
  3. In an oven pre-heated to 350°F, place the chicken on one or two large, shallow baking pans—do not stack the pieces, each should have its own place directly on the pan bottom. Before sliding the trays in all the way and closing the oven door, pour the white wine around the chicken pieces and sprinkle the brown sugar over them.
  4. Bake until well done. A good test is taking a thin blade sharp knife and inserting it into the thickest part of the thighs (test at least 2 of them)—the blade should come out with clear yellow juices on it. If there is any pinkness at all, bake some more. Usually an hour is about right, but it depends on your particular equipment. During the hour, every 10 minutes or so, baste the chicken with the juice-infused wine in the pans.
  5. When well done, remove the pans from the oven and, using a large slotted spoon, transfer the chicken, olives, capers and prunes onto a large, attractive serving platter. Put the pan juices in a pouring container and pour some over the chicken, the garnish with a generous sprinkling of chopped cilantro.
  6. Any remaining juices can be set on the table in a serving bowl for each diner to use au jus.

Ready for a traditional Spanish snack, one of the easy and quick Spanish food recipes to dine on for lunch?

Spaniards love to treat themselves to an assortment of tasty treats, what we in America would call “appetizers”, and what the people of Spain call “tapas”.

The next several recipes will be a selection of especially delicious Tapas, chosen from literally hundreds of authentic Spanish foods recipes in this category. And as this page gets built out further, there will be many more to come.

One of the favorite Spanish tapas is taking ham and cheese together. But it is not the same ham or cheese that you will be likely to find at your local grocery store, if you live outside of Europe.

Their hams of choice are Jamón Serrano and/or Jamón Iberico. Both are special, dry-cured, Spanish hams, which are typically served in very thin slices.

A little history about these hams: First, the Jamón serrano hams.Jamón serrano

Since long ago in antiquity, Spaniards have carried on the custom of drying salted and cured hams in sheds, high in the sierra mountains, hence came the name “serrano” for those hams. Jamón serrano hams, which are the least expensive of the two types of Jamón hams, are made from the Landrace white pig.

spanish hamJamón Ibérico hams, which are considered the zenith, the highest delicacy to be had when it comes to ham, are much more expensive; typically three times the cost. They are made from black Iberian pigs, which are often referred to as jamón de pata negra (black hoofed pig).

Both types are beloved and, in spite of their differences, both are exquisitely salty, and delectable samplings of fine Spanish cuisine.

 

Now to go along with our ham of choice, let’s indulge in a unique to Spain and absolutely marvelous tasting cheese, which they call Queso Manchego.

Queso Manchego is a cheese made from the milk of sheep, farmed and raised in the La Mancha region of Spain.

Queso manchego

Buttery and firm, yet silky on the palate, with a wonderful bouquet of flavors and a lingering, delicious aftertaste, Queso Manchego is a traditional compliment to a wide assortment of Spanish dishes, and almost always taken together with the Spanish Jamón ham slices.

So enjoy your tasty snack, knowing you are dining on two of the most traditional foods Spain has to offer.

Next up on our Tapas menu, are fresh, marinated artichokes, well seasoned and grilled.

Alcachofas a la Parrilla

(Char-Grilled Artichokes)

Alcachofas a la Parrilla

Ingredients:

 

Directions:
  1. Grab the artichokes one at a time by the stalk, and smack them firmly against a hard surface, such as a wooden or stone countertop. This will open them up, while not breaking off too many of the leaves. Now chop the stalks off, and rinse the artichokes well in cold water, then set aside on cloth or paper towels to drain. Once they are dry, chop them in half, right down the middle, top to bottom. Strip off any of the outside leaves that are tough. With young artichokes, you shouldn’t have many that need removing.
  2. In a very large bowl, place the all the artichoke halves. Season them with a liberal dousing of vinegar, then sprinkle them with some lemon juice and a little drizzling of the olive oil. Stir and toss them, and season some more with all three seasonings. Make sure they are all well seasoned on both sides with this marinade mixture. Cover the bowl and refrigerate.
  3. Continue to marinade for at least 8 hours, every now and then stirring them to ensure an even distribution of the seasoning.
  4. Using a good quality hardwood lump charcoal, ignite the coals and bring to red-hot. Put the artichokes on a rack over the coals and grille them, basting with the marinade frequently, until they are nicely browned and tender.
  5. Serve them piping hot, four halves per person, and place the artichokes on the serving plates with the sliced flat side up.

Note: If you can’t get good, premium quality, real hardwood lump charcoal locally, and trust me, you do want it, not the chemically infused, petroleum-based typical charcoal briquets, you can get some through our affiliate online store; just Click Here.

This next selection is a splendid blend of sparkling and fruity citrus flavors with either white or green asparagus. It is truly one of the most savory, and best Spanish tapas recipes to be found and enjoyed.

Espárragos con Salsa de Naranja y Limón

(Asparagus with Orange and Lemon Sauce)

Asparagus with Orange and Lemon Sauce

Ingredients:

(2 servings)

Sauce:
  • 2 yolks of hard-boiled eggs
  • 1 raw egg yolk
  • 1 egg white
  • 1 small tsp. lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp. orange juice
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 fresh ripe pears, peeled, cored, and thick sliced, for garnish
  • 1 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
Directions:
  1. Trim off the tough bottom parts of your fresh asparagus, and steam the remaining spears until tender.
  2. Chop the hard-boiled egg yolks and mix with the raw egg yolk.
  3. Add the orange and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.
  4. Gradually add in olive oil, beating continuously, until you have reached a thickened, mayonnaise-like consistency.
  5. Do a taste test, adjust the amount of salt and pepper to taste.
  6. Beat the egg white until stiff and add blend it into the sauce.
  7. Drain your asparagus and pat dry with cloth or paper towel.
  8. Arrange asparagus spears on an attractive serving dish, pour the sauce over them.
  9. Serve with garnishes of sliced pears on the side, and finely chopped cilantro sprinkled over the top.

This Tapa uses fried, well spiced shrimp, with an avocado-whipped cream purée, and is served chilled. A delightful, refreshing Tapa for a hot summer afternoon.

Cóctel de Gambas y Aguacate

(Avocado and Prawn Cocktail)

avocado-with-prawns

Ingredients:

 

Directions:
  1. Unthaw (if you are using frozen) and peel the shrimp, then cut off the heads—save the heads to make stock with.
  2. Season the shrimp bodies with salt and pepper and fry in 3 tbsp. olive oil until well done and turning a bright pink.
  3. Peel the avocados and remove the pits. Thick slice two of them and set aside.
  4. Take the third avocado, and finely chop the flesh. In a mixing bowl, place the chopped avocado, garlic, whipping cream and the remaining 5 tbsp. of olive oil. Beat ingredients together by hand or with a handheld electric blender, until you have a silky smooth purée. Season with salt and pepper to taste, mixing them well throughout the purée.
  5. To assemble the dish, lay a bed of shredded lettuce on each serving plate, then a layer of avocado slices. Now layer some shrimp over the avocado, and spoon on top a generous portion of the purée.
  6. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving and, just before presenting to the table, sprinkle the crushed cilantro leaves atop each serving.

For our last Tapas entree in our Spanish ethnic foods adventure (at least for now, there will be many more to come, so stop back often, if you enjoyed these), we will make one of the most easy Spanish tapas recipes you will ever come across.

This one is a snap, and the flavor is outstanding, compared to the small effort it takes to prepare.

Queso Relleno de Alcaparrones

(Cheese Stuffed Caperberries)

cheese caperberries

Ingredients:
Directions:
  1. Using a very sharp, thin blade knife, carefully slit open each caperberry, starting at the base of the stem, and opening around the circumference until the caperberry can be spread wide open. Be sure to leave the stem intact—this will be the tapa treat’s handle.
  2. Using a very small spoon, carefully remove all the ribs and seeds.
  3. Make tiny balls of the Mahón cheese, formed just the right size to fill the berry’s cavity, insert, then fold the two sided up gently until the caperberry flesh is fit and held in place by the cheese.
  4. Sprinkle each caperberry with a little vinegar, season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

Looking for the best authentic Spanish Rice recipe with chicken?  There are so many versions of this traditional Spanish meal, it would be hard to call one the “best”.

However, here’s a great recipe for you, an especially tasty one, what with all the complex and subtly combined seasonings. And you can of course use pork, or other poultry as the meat, the rice recipe works well with those, too.

Español Pollo y Arroz al Curry

(Spanish Chicken and Curried Rice)

 Spanish Cuisine - Arroz Curried Con Pollo

Ingredients:

(serves 4)

Directions:
  1. Wash the chicken in fresh water and the pat dry.
  2. Season the chicken with the Adobo with pepper to taste.
  3. Heat the oil in a large, heavy cooking pot, over medium heat.
  4. Fry the chicken until well browned on all sides, (work in batches if you need to), about 8 to 10 minutes, and then set aside.
  5. Now stir the garlic, peppers, and onions, peppers into the pot, and cook until soft—usually around 5 minutes will do the trick.
  6. Add in the rice, yellow curry, and Goya Sazon Azafran seasoning into the pot and cook, stirring continuously, until all the grains of rice are well coated in the seasoned oil mixture—about one 1 minute.
  7. Now stir in the 3 cups of chicken broth, also the frozen peas, and bring everything up to a rolling boil.
  8. Add into the pot your olives and chicken, reduce the heat to where the dish is cooking at just a lively simmer, then cover the pot and allow to simmer for about 25 minutes, until the rice is tender and the chicken cooked well through.
  9. To serve, fluff the rice with a fork, place a generous portion of rice in each serving bowl (or deep sided serving dish), place one leg quarter in the center of each serving, and garnish with a sprinkling of pimiento pieces.

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