Five EASY Spanish Tapas recipes!! All your favourites from the tapas bar – garlic mushrooms, marinated olives, Chorizo, Spanish Garlic Prawns/Shrimp, Spanish Marinated Olives and the famous Spanish Omelette (Tortilla).
This is the first of a 3 part Spanish Feast Special series that I’m sharing this week – complete with Spanish Wine pairings!
Hola! Who loves Spanish Food?? Me, me, me!!
Spanish food is made for gatherings. Tables laden with rustic food for sharing – no fussy giant white plates with a tiny portion of fancy food with names I can’t pronounce, garnished with tiny herbs and assembled using tweezers.
Spanish food is the polar opposite. Flamboyant, colourful, celebratory, generous, loud – and absolutely lip-smackingly delicious. Totally my kind of food.
And in the spirit of Spanish extravagance, this week I’m sharing something a bit special – a three part SPANISH FEAST MENU!!! 5 EASY Spanish Tapas recipes to start, a Chicken & Seafood Paella for the main and Churros for dessert. Woah! What a spread!
But wait….there’s MORE! What Spanish Fiesta would be complete without WINE??? So for each course, I have a wine pairing suggestion. 🙂 And to start? I’m grabbing this one for tapas – a Spanish Tempranillo from Rioja, Spain’s most famous wine region. 🙂
I love the name of this wine – La Mesa Y Los Amigos which means “The table and the friends”. Perfect for tapas, no? 😉
Besides the name being perfect, it’s a really great pairing with tapas! I wanted something pretty neutral – medium bodied and smooth so it didn’t overpower the kaleidoscope of flavours in my Easy Tapas menu. This Tempranillo is a dry red with a subtle warmth of spices and it is exceptional drinking for the price which I never would have guessed as being only $12 a bottle at Dan Murphy’s (I kid you not, I was shocked). I love finding gems like this – and I love sharing these finds with you!!
A note for wine nerds: Tempranillo is a Spanish black grape variety that is native to Spain, used to make medium to full bodied wines. It’s grown fairly widely around the world now, including in Australia and the States.
EASY SPANISH TAPAS RECIPES
I think that tapas, paella and churros are probably the most well known Spanish dishes in the world and I’m pretty darn excited to be sharing those with you this week! To kick things off, five easy Spanish Tapas recipes. I’ve added notes in the recipe for how to prepare these ahead so you don’t have to be scurrying around in the kitchen when your friends arrive. 🙂
Here’s a little run down of each of the recipes in this Tapas spread.
Garlic Prawns/Shrimp and Chorizo – The two dishes that I always order at tapas bars!
Garlic Mushrooms and Spanish Marinated Olives – Possibly my favourite way with mushrooms! The olives are just plain store bought olives that are dressed with herbs and citrus. Yum!
Spanish Omelette (Tortilla) – Arguably one of the most delicious omelettes in the world and commonly served as tapas in Spain! Because this requires a few more steps than the other recipes in my Easy Tapas recipes spread, I’ve included it as a separate recipe – get it here.
Jamon, Spanish Manchego Cheese and White Anchovies – Jamon is the Spanish version of prosciutto and it’s now widely available in Australia, even in supermarkets! Manchego is a Spanish cheese that is made with sheep milk that is beautifully buttery with a mild tang – one of my personal favorites (and you know how much I love cheese!!). White anchovies are completely different to the black anchovies that come in a jar (used in things like Caesar Salad dressings) – they are way less salty and marinated in vinegar, not oil. Perfect for antipasto!
Tiempo a la fiesta!! (It’s time to feast!)
– Nagi xx
PS Don’t forget Paella and Churro to complete your feast!!
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5 Easy Tapas Recipes
Ingredients
Garlic Prawns / Shrimp
- 1/4 cup / 65 ml olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves – 3 smashed , 1 minced
- 250 g / 8 oz raw prawns , peeled
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- Finely chopped parsley
- Optional: lemon
Garlic mushrooms
- 1/4 cup olive oil (65 ml)
- 4 garlic cloves – 3 smashed , 1 minced
- 300 g / 10 oz Swiss brown or other small mushrooms
- Finely chopped parsley
Chorizo
- 2 (~250g / 8oz) chorizos , sliced (Note 3)
- 1/2 tsp olive oil
Marinated Olives (Note 4)
- 250 g / 8 oz plump black and green olives
- 1 clove garlic , minced
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 tsp Lemon or orange zest
- 1/3 cup olive oil (85 ml)
- 1 tsp fresh rosemary leaves (or 1/2 tsp dried oregano or 1 tsp fresh thyme)
Spanish Antipasto
- Jamon cured ham
- Manchego Spanish Cheese
- White Anchovies
Spanish Omelette
- Spanish Omelette recipe here
To Serve
- Bread , Olive oil, Lemon wedges
- La Mesa Y Los Amigos Tempranillo Spanish Wine (great with tapas!)
Instructions
Garlic Prawns (Note 1)
- Place the smashed garlic in a skillet with the oil over medium heat. Sauté for 10 minutes, squishing the garlic down to squeeze juice out as it cooks, until garlic is golden brown. Then remove and discard garlic.
- Sprinkle prawns with salt and pepper. Turn stove up to high. When oil is hot, add prawns and cook for 2 minutes (for medium prawns) or until charred and just cooked. Just before the end, add the minced garlic and quickly saute, then transfer prawns into serving bowl.
- Sprinkle with parsley and red pepper flakes if using.
Garlic Mushrooms (Note 1)
- Halve or quarter the mushrooms, depending on size.
- Follow Garlic Prawn steps, except cook mushrooms instead of prawns. Cook the mushrooms until they are golden.
Chorizo
- Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Cook Chorizo until golden on both sides, then transfer to serving bowl, scraping in oil in the skillet.
Marinated Olives (Note 4)
- Combine ingredients in an airtight jar. Refrigerate for 24 hours – no longer than 48 hours. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Spanish Antipasto
- Bring cheese to room temperature. Place on platter with ham and anchovies.
To Serve
- Place serving bowls / platters on table with plenty of bread to dunk into the leftover olive oil. Serve with your favourite Spanish wine!
Recipe Notes:
Giveaway CLOSED! Winners announced shortly.
ANNOUNCING: Spanish Fiesta Giveaway WINNERS!
The winners of the Spanish Fiesta Giveaway are:
Australia: Ian from the Hunter Valley, Belinda from NSW/Vic and Brittany!
Rest of world: Caitlin from Canada, Louellen from Sunny California, Sandra in the US
CONGRATULATIONS!! Each winner will receive a Spanish Fiesta prize pack of Spanish Wine, Paella Pan and Paella rice. I will email you shortly to arrange delivery!
4 x AUSTRALIAN PRIZES (Total Value A$600): 4 x Spanish Fiesta Gift Packs, each comprised of 6 x Spanish red wines (, 1 x 32 cm Miguel Maestre paella pan + 3 x paella rice. Delivered right to your door!
2 x WORLDWIDE PRIZES (Total Value US$300): Gift from me! 2 x Spanish Fiesta Gift Packs, each comprised of 6 x Spanish wines, 1 x 12″ paella pan + 1 x paella rice! If delivery is unavailable by Amazon or delivery cost is unreasonable due to winner location, the winner will receive an Amazon or Paypal gift voucher to the value of the prize.
Open To: Everyone, everywhere in this big wide world!!
To Enter: Just leave a comment below, telling me which country you live in and what your favourite tapas dish is! (PS Don’t worry if you can’t see your comment straight away, some need to be approved before they are displayed 🙂 )
Open Until: Monday 5 September 2016, AEST
Giveaway Terms and Conditions – You must be over 18 to enter in Australia, or over 21 in the rest of the world. Six winners will be randomly selected by a representative of Pinnacle Drinks. The winners will be notified by email and on www.recipetineats.com. If the winner does not respond within 7 days, another winner will be selected. For winners located outside of Australia, if the prizes cannot be delivered by Amazon.com or due to winner location, delivery cost is excessive, then the winner will receive an Amazon or Paypal gift voucher to the value of the prize.
Disclosure – This post and the Australia giveaway wine prizes are sponsored by Pinnacle Drinks, the geniuses who discovered and are spreading the love of Spanish wines throughout Australia! Wine and Spanish food lovers of the world such as myself thank you. <3
The paella pan and Paella rice included in the Australian prizes are donated by Maestre Family Food.
The Worldwide Prizes are being provided by me, Nagi Maehashi of RecipeTin Eats.
.Life of Dozer
This is the day I bought Dozer. I took my sister with me under strict instructions to ensure that I did not buy a puppy, that I was just window shopping. We had 3 puppy viewings lined up for that day.
Suffice to say, I never made the other two puppy visits.
Nagi, I am in Sydney Australia and I can never pass on Chorizo! Everything tastes better with Chorizo!
I whole heartedly agree Christine!!! 🙂 N x
Hi Nagi, Thanks for all the great recipes, I can’t go past garlic prawns.
I am located in Brisbane Queensland Australia.
I love Paella. My step mom used to make it as a kid. Of course then I thought it was strange!
I live in the USA, California.
Hello from Central Queensland!
Nagi, your Spanish Feast looks amazing – the tapas especially. I am really looking forward to making (and eating!) the chorizo and Spanish marinated olives.
It seems Dozer has always been gorgeous and BIG (even as a wee puppy). 😉
Hi Nagi,
Am so looking forward to christening my Paella pan with your recipe, I just love receiving your recipes and have started a file for them on my computer, so I don’t loose them 🙂
Anything Spanish is a winner for me !
Cheers
Karen
Hey Nagi!
I’m in Brisbane, QLD (but my true home is Sydney), and I love Garlic Prawns and Chorizo.
I almost religiously follow your blog as I love the foods you create and the amount of care you take into giving tips and alternatives is amazing! 🙂
Looking forward to your future work!
-Natalia
Thanks for reading Natalia! So glad you are enjoying my recipes! N x
Hi Nagi,
Thanks for your blog, I really enjoy it 🙂
I live in Australia and my favourite tapas would have to be deep fried crispy garlic mushrooms. Yum!
Hi Nagi,
I’m loving the Spanish Feast series, looking forward to the rest of them! You’re my go to whenever I have friends over for dinner and they love your recipes as well! Love garlic prawns, can’t wait to try your Spanish Omelette as well 🙂
Thank you!
Hi Nagi!
Greetings from Niagara’s wine region in Ontario, Canada….I can’t even remember how I discovered your blog but am so, so happy I did! Have been loving your recipes and spend lots of time drooling over the great photos of the finished products. Will soon be making a Tapas feast while on vacation for 3 weeks with my partner in Texas….can’t wait to try the Spanish Tortilla and your Paella recipe….will be checking out your mom’s blog too…..yummy! Your Dozer is such a handsome devil….reminds me so much of my sweet girl Quincy who I miss every single day!
Anyways, thank you for sharing recipes, photos, and Dozer with us and keep them coming…great job!
I love it all!! US- Seattle
Hi Nagi
Absolutely love your recipes.
I live in New South Wales, Australia and I love Spanish Antipasto and garlic prawns.
I’m going to use your recipes for a Spanish Feast for Fathers Day.
Lyn
I live in Reseda, California and my favorite would have to be Paella!!! and of course Garlic Mushrooms…I love anything with garlic!!! Also really like your blog because one can really tell that you love what you are doing! Have shared you with several friends who like to cook too!
Hi Nagi,
My absolute favourite tapas would be garlic mushrooms, Spanish Omelette and Spanish marinated olives!!!! I have been enjoying in trying your recipes for a while now. It had saved me a couple of times when I struggle to think of what food to prepare each week. So thank you from the bottom of my heart!! I tried your Asian Marinated Chicken this week and they were delicious and my partner absolutely loved it! I can’t wait to try your Paella as I have always wanted to cook this but I get intimidated with the whole process. When I look at your recipe, you and made it look so easy that I will definitely try it. See how I go.. ;p) .. wish me luck!
Greetings from Sydney!!
Love those prawns, chorizo and paella! Can’t wait to try yours!
Hi Nagi – I am in Melbourne, Australia. Chorizo, mushrooms and olives for me – OMG a match made in heaven washed down with a wine of course!! Movida beef cheeks are pretty good too 🙂
Hi Nagi,
I love your posts, with the stories behind the dish and all your tips, but most particularly I love seeing what Dozer has been up to, he’s so cute. I live in Tasmania, Australia and your Garlic Mushrooms Tapas recipe is the one I’ll be trying soon 🙂
I live in Illinois, USA. I love a yummy Spanish omelet and also marinated olives.
Love a Spanish omelet! I live in Illinois, USA. Thank you!
I live in Las Vegas, where Tapas are all over the place “I Love Them” but my favorite is anything with seafood and sausage. I love garlic shrimp!
I live in Tallahassee, Florida, USA and my favorite tapas is the garlic shrimp!!