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Spanish Tapas

December 13, 2019December 14, 2019 by Jackie's Eats & Treats

We’ve just returned from visiting Tenerife, Spain, in the Canary Islands, and I’m still dreaming about the delicious food we ate, particularly the tapas. This post is focused on highlighting tapas we’ve enjoyed throughout Spain and if you love tapas continue reading and make sure you visit James Blick’s YouTube channel, Spain Revealed, because he has lots of content on delicious Spanish tapas.

Potato and cheese croquettes (top) and a montaditos sampler (bottom) 😋

Tapas is a small plate or appetizer and you know me, that’s my favorite kind of food. What I love about tapas is the delicious, fresh and simple (yet complex) ingredients. Some of my favorites include:

Gambas al Ajillo, aka garlic shrimps or prawns
- This is a go-to tapas for us and a very common one when traveling near the ocean.
Croquettes
- Who doesn’t love creamy fried potato bites 👍
Montaditos, aka yummy open-faced sandwiches
- Another very common tapas and one where chefs are able to be very creative.
Jamón ibérico, only the greatest cured ham known to man 😋

Another favorite is anchovies. Whether they’re crispy, grilled or pickled; I’m in love. And trust me, I’m with you, anchovies are typically not appealing, but the Spanish know how to make these AMAZING!

Another reason I love tapas is because typically you order a few plates and share among the table, which allows you to sample various dishes.

Just thinking about yummy tapas has me drooling 😋

This next section includes some of my favorite tapas memories.

Nou Manolln in 2014 in Alicante, Spain. We sat at the bar and our server brought us their specialities and this meal is still one of my all-time favorite dining experiences. The food that was presented was perfectly cooked and very memorable. Excuse the photo quality from 2014.

From left to right –

Spanish Rose – Boy do I love ❤ you and look at that box of freshness on the bar
Jamón ibérico – This was sliced in front of us and melted in the mouth 😊
Papas with some different sauces
Montaditos with a tomato relish on top
Gambas Rojas de Dénia – These are prized shrimp and it should be noted that the Spanish love presenting the shrimp whole

El Tapeo de Cervantes in Málaga, Spain. When we traveled to Málaga in 2016, this restaurant was suggested as a foodie must-visit and it did not disappoint. The food was amazing and the dishes were equally beautiful. We tried a few things we wouldn’t normally have (pigs cheeks, blood sausage) and boy was I glad we did! Please don’t judge the amount of food, we LOVE OUR SPANISH TAPAS and we definitely overdid it here, but it’s because the food was AMAZING 😉

Anchovies with guacamole and citrus pearls🍈 – I often dream about this bite of food because the anchovies were so fresh and the citrus added so much brightness to the dish.

Pig cheeks with tomato sauce and chimichurri – They were so tender and yummy 😋

Blood sausage, sweet potato and fried quail egg – Another delicious dish

Chicken croquettes with pineapple relish – Croquettes are a very traditional tapas and we always try a few during our Spanish travels and these croquettes did not disappoint and were plated beautifully ❤

Rolls of manchego cheese, jamon iberico and rocket – Typically cheese and ham are presented on a platter and this was an interesting presentation and AMAZING!

Finally…

El Taller in Callao Salvaje, Adeje, Tenerife, Spain. This was our most recent tapas experience and the serve was outstanding. We sat down and immediately were served a montaditos, which was a nice touch.