I recently was watching a series the renowned chef José Andrés, of World Central Kitchen fame, did with his daughters called José Andrés and Family in Spain. Throughout the episodes they tour the various culinary delights of the different regions of Spain. It made me think of my time teaching English in Madrid and had me craving some of my favorite foods and tapas. You have probably heard of both pintxos and tapas, but have struggled to differentiate between the two. Understandable!
Both tapas and pintxos (pronounced like pinch-oos) are typically small, appetizer like delicacies. Pinxtos is a Basque word, and they are usually found more in the northern regions of Spain. They are distinguished by a small slice of bread topped with any number of different toppings, and skewered with a toothpicenck. This is where they get the name Pinxto which means “spike”. The toppings could be any type of meat like jamón ibérico (Iberian ham), bacalao (cod), morcilla (blood sausage), or chorizo, queso (cheese, typically Manchego), tomato and olive oil, olives, peppers, or even a little piece of tortilla española!
While pinxtos are more typical in the north of Spain you can definitely find some pinxto bars in, say, Madrid.
Tapas, on the other hand, are small, snack sized plates of food typically found throughout the rest of Spain. In the past these had been given as a free treat by the bar when ordering a drink, and you can sometimes still find a small plate of olives, queso or jamon for free, but you typically pay for tapas these days. The best way to experience tapas, since there is a wide range of options, is to bar hop and make a meal out of sampling different tapas. You can often find tapas crawls in many cities in Spain.
Tapas can be as simple as a bowl of chips or as large as a plate of jamon and queso. They can be hot or cold. First up, two of my favorite tapas that are always a must; tortilla española and patatas bravas. Tortilla española is a lot like a frittata. It’s basically an egg omelette with egg, potato and onion and it’s delicious! I had a friend of mine teach me how to cook the tortilla and it’s a juggle of cooking the potatoes and onions, then adding the eggs, doing a flippy-flip by sliding it out on a plate and turning it back over into the pan to finish cooking. It’s as fun to make as it is to eat. Patatas bravas are basically potatoes (sometimes french fry style) served with a spicy tomato sauce. So simple, it’s like comfort food. Croquetas are also a favorite of mine. They are little fritters that are stuffed with a creamy béchamel sauce and usually ham or seafood. So good!
Another one of my favorites that is perhaps a less traditional tapa is a cold, white almond soup call Ajo Blanco. It’s often referred to as a white gazpacho. It’s basically Spanish Marcona almonds pureed with rustic bread, garlic, and olive oil, and water. So simple to make and such a refreshing, flavorful dish.
There just doesn’t seem to be an end to the delicious tapas options.
I hope you will enjoy your pintxos or tapas journey the next time you are in Spain, or that you are fortunate enough to have a Spanish restaurant near you. A flavor explosion awaits you. Just don’t order tapas in the north!
Buen viajes, gnomies!
Just made albondigas for Mom. So tasty.
When I studied abroad in Spain… my favorite food item was anything tapas! Especially the croquettes and patatas bravas. This blog made me hungry and nostalgic.
We spent about a month exploring San Sebastián and surrounding region and absolutely loved the Pinxtos and tradition of eating and drinking late at night. So fun!
Love small bites! Fried eggplant with honey, tomato toast, iberico ham, patatas brava. So many great choices!!