SPANISH COOK: RECIPES OF TRADITIONAL SPANISH DISHES

SPANISH COOK BOOK
“RECIPES OF TRADITIONAL
SPANISH DISHES”

TAPAS, STARTES AND DISHES

RECIPE FOR MARINATED BOQUERONES
Boquerones are a kind of anchovy and are delicious cold and marinated as tasty tapas, or marinated and then fried as a first course. Mari Lourdes has sent us her recipe for marinated boquerones.

Basic ingredients for 4 people
1 kilo of boquerones (anchovies)
1 cup vinegar
1/4 cup rock salt
slices of ginger
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
1/4 cup vinegar
2 tbsp. finely chopped garlic
1 tbsp whole black pepper corns
chopped hot peppers

Steps

1. Clean fish and marinate overnight in the vinegar, salt and ginger mixture.
2. The following morning discard the liquid. Prepare all the other ingredients and add the fish.
3. Mix well and put in bottles. Leave refrigerated for at least 2 weeks before serving.

EASY QUICK RECIPE FOR SPANISH OMELETTE (TORTILLA ESPAÑOLA)
A delicious potato omelette which can be served as a tapas, warm, cold with salad....
Ingredients (for 3 people):
4 eggs
1/2 kilo potatoes
Olive oil (one glass, or 1/4 litre)
Salt
Steps
1: Wash and cut the potatoes into thin slices. Heat the oil in the pan, and add the potatoes and salt. Fry, stirring occasionally. Tip: If you prefer the potatoes to be soft, use a spatula to mash them as they are frying. As soon as they are a golden colour, remove from the pan and put the potato mixture either in a sieve or on kitchen paper, so that as much oil as possible drains away or is absorbed.
2: Beat the eggs well with a pinch of salt, and add to the potatoes. Mix well.
3: Put two small spoonfuls of olive oil in the frying pan, so that the bottom of the pan is covered with a thin layer of oil. Once the oil is hot, add the potato and egg mixture. Tip: shake the pan gently as you move the mixture, so that none sticks to the bottom. Once the omelette seems to be cooked, use the lid of the frying pan (or a large plate) to tip the omelette out of the pan, add a little more oil and slide the omelette in again, this time putting the less cooked side first into the pan. If you need to repeat this step, so that the omelette is perfectly cooked and golden on both sides, you may do so. This omelette is delicious hot or cold.

RECIPE FOR TRADITIONAL GAZPACHO ANDALUZ
Spanish cold tomato soup which is the perfect starter to a Summer meal. Gazpacho is easy to make and although ingredients may vary according to region, this is the basic Andalusian Gazpacho recipe.

Ingredients (for 4 people):
1 Kilo tomatoes (preferable plum tomatoes)
1/2 small onion (60 grams)
1 small green pepper
1 small cucumber (the small chubby Spanish type)
1 small cup of olive oil
2 desert spoons of vinager
200 grams of bread from the day before, soaked in water
Small portions of diced tomatoes, red and green peppers, cucumber, onion and bread or croutons to sprinkle on top.

Steps
1: Put the tomatoes, onion, pepper, cucumber, vinager, oil and bread into a liquidizer. If you want to dilute it, add a glass of water. Tip: if you want to go for a tangy garlic taste, add a small amount of fresh garlic to the mixture before liquidizing.
2: Put the mixture into a bowl, add salt and pepper and leave the gazpacho to chill for at least an hour. If you want to eat it straight away, you can put some ice cubes in to cool it down. Gazpacho is a Summer dish which is meant to hydrate and cool down your body. So the colder the better!!
3: Serve the gazpacho en soup bowls, with the portions of diced tomatoes, pepper, cucumber, onion, croutons etc on the table, so that everyone can add them to their bowl as they prefer. Tip: you can also sprinkle diced serrano ham or hard boiled egg.

RECIPE FOR SPANISH SANGRÍA The authentic traditional Spanish Sangria!

Ingredients
1 Litre of red wine
2 oranges (juice - "naranjas de zumo")
4 peaches, cut into small pieces
5 desert spoons sugar
2 pieces of lemon skin

Steps
1:Choose a red wine - Sangria is a refreshing drink and you don't need to use a vintage wine. We recommend a reasonably priced wine from Jumilla, Alicante or Valencia..... Put the wine into a jug, add the sugar, and stir until it is properly dissolved.
2: Squeeze the two oranges, and add the juice to the jug. Save a slice of orange skin to decorate.
3: Wash the peaches, peel them and cut them into small quarters (e.g. six per peach). Add them to the jug. If it is not Summer, you can use any other in-season fruit.
4: Put the jug into the fridge. Sangría should always be served chilled. If you want to reduce the alchohol concentration, add icecubes and slices of lemon. If you want to increase the alcohol concentration, add a small amount of cognac or rum.

RECIPE FOR SPANISH PAELLA

Traditional and easy Paella recipe. There are many Spanish rice dishes. This is the most famous of them.

Ingredients

(4-6 people):
600 grams rice (short grain)
Half a chicken in pieces
2 artichokes
2 medium-sized red peppers
2 mature tomatoes
Black pepper Garlic
Parsley
A strand of saffron
Olive oil (one glass, about 1/4 litre)
1/2 lemon
A sprig eacho of rosemary and thyme
salt

Steps
1: Fry the chicken in some olive oil. Put the browned chicken pieces into a pan with 8 glasses of water, and bring to the boil. Leave simmering for half an hour.
2. Cut the artichokes and red pepper and fry them.
3: Fry the tomato and garlic in olive oil in the large paellera (special paella pan), then add the rice, stir for a minute and then add the chicken, chicken stock (there should be 6 glasses), artichokes, red peppers, the juice of half a lemon, black pepper, parsley, thyme, rosemary, the saffrón strands (grind them first. If you haven't got a grinder, use Colorante which you'll find in the spice and herbs racks in supermarkets) and salt.
4: Once all the ingredients are in the paella pan, turn the heat up to maximum and boil for about 10 minutes. Then lower the heat and leave to simmer for another 10 minutes. After 20 minutes, the liquid should have evaporated. Turn off the heat, and leave to stand for five minutes. If possible cover while it is standing (many Spaniards use paper to cover the pan).

SPANISH RECIPE FOR LENTIL STEW (lentejas)

Basic ingredients
250 gr. lentils
1 chorizo (or a few slices if you can't get a small sausage-shaped one)
100 gr. serrano ham
1 large onion
1 small glass of red wine
2 cloves (optional)
1 red pepper (optional)
Half a small glass of olive oil
1 bayleaf
2 large carrots
3 small potatoes
2 cloves garlic
1 pinch of saffron
fresh parsley
salt and pepper

Steps
1. Soak the lentils for half an hour. Even though small lentils in packets usually don't need soaking, Spanish women tend to soak anyway
2. Cut the ham and chorizo into dice-shaped pieces. Peel and wash the carrots and potatoes. Slice the carrots and halve the potatoes (unless they are very small). Wash and slice a small red pepper (optional).
3. Drain the lentils and put them in a saucepan. Add enough water to cover them and add the ham, chorizo, carrots, potatoes, bayleaf, pepper, parsley, a little salt, saffron and wine. Also add the cloves if you want the lentils to have a slightly spicey air to them. Put the pan over a low heat and cover.
4. Slice the onion and garlic and fry, stirring all the time. After a minute or so, add the sliced red pepper. This is optional and adds a slightly sweet flavour to the lentejas. When soft, add to the other ingredients in the saucepan.
5. Let the lentil stew simmer for at least 40 minutes. Boil off any excess liquid at the end.