| "Going out to Spain again? How wonderful!" many | | | | tapas revolution now means that they are available all |
| friends say to me. | | | | hours and many can be eaten at the same time to |
| Well, no actually it isn't. Yes I admit the weather | | | | make a meal in itself and it's this concept that makes |
| makes a pleasant change from the dreary | | | | tapas ideal for the barbecue grill. |
| precipitation of North West England and I do have | | | | Some do need a little adaptation and take for |
| some great friends where I work in Spain but at the | | | | example Esgarrat which is bacalao (dried salted cod |
| end of the day it's not a holiday it's work. | | | | fish) and roasted red peppers in olive oil. The |
| Dressed in a suit and tie travelling on a plane full of | | | | sweetness of the peppers combines beautifully with |
| holiday makers to Alicante is depressing enough but | | | | the salt of the cod to produce a wonderful |
| then it's the taxi to the plant, a full days work in an | | | | combination of flavours. Share a plate with friends |
| air conditioned office followed by the taxi to the | | | | and dip your bread in the oil - fantastic on a hot |
| hotel. Back to the plant in the morning, another full | | | | summer's day! |
| day etc. etc.....get the picture? What's the weather | | | | Preparation of Esgarrat take time (a week) and uses |
| got to do with it? | | | | two basic techniques of barbecue smoking, firstly |
| The one saving grace for me is the food. Spanish | | | | curing and then fire roasting so here's how to do it. |
| food ranks right up there with Italian for me in that it | | | | Take 150g or 6oz cod loin fillet (skinned) and place it |
| relies on the freshness of the ingredients and a | | | | in a polythene bag with two tablespoons of salt. Seal |
| simple cooking process. The only difference is the | | | | the bag and slam it in the refrigerator for a week. On |
| array of snacks available in the bars - Tapas. | | | | the day of consumption, remove the cod loin from |
| Because of the simplicity of cooking and the variety, | | | | the bag, wash under the tap and slice thinly as you |
| many tapas lend themselves to the barbecue smoker | | | | would with smoked salmon. Technically bacalao should |
| and have found their way into my free barbecue | | | | be dried in the air but I find the process above more |
| recipes web pages. Every day I try a new bar, new | | | | than adequate and certainly the best that I can |
| tapas, ask the barman how it is prepared and then | | | | achieve in a damp maritime UK climate. |
| punch it out on the laptop during the flight home. | | | | When the barbecue charcoal is good and hot, place |
| Maybe there is an upside to business travel after all. | | | | two red peppers on the smoker grill and roast until |
| The word tapas (plural) originates from the word | | | | the skin is black and blistered and the flesh is soft. |
| tapa meaning a cover. In the bars and bodegas of | | | | When complete, place the peppers in a polythene |
| Andalucia in the days before air-con, the barman | | | | bag, seal it and allow to cool. When cool, remove the |
| would provide a tapa to cover his customer's sherry | | | | peppers from the bag and peel away the black skin |
| glass to stop the flies getting in. It wasn't long before | | | | and you'll be left with a beautifully soft sweet pepper |
| the barman would place a little bread on the tapa and | | | | that's ready for slicing. Cut into strips, place in a |
| this is where the tapas evolution started. | | | | shallow serving dish with the salt cod and gorge it in |
| Technically tapas are appetizers designed to be eaten | | | | olive oil - job done, give it an hour just to let the |
| in the bar with an aperitif before going home for the | | | | flavours mingle and you are ready to serve. |
| main lunchtime meal and of course the siesta. The | | | | |