How to Throw an Easy Tapas Party
Want to Entertain By Making Tapas? There’s No Need Even to Cook!
Aug 3, 2009
Tapas, Spain’s delicious bite-sized appetizers or finger foods, have made the transition from a popular food trend to an established way of eating. Tapas bars thrive everywhere, offering a wide array of treats.
The range of tapas is impressive: cured meats and seafood, tangy cheeses, roasted or grilled and pickled vegetables, wedges of the thick flat potato omelet known as tortilla, crunchy flatbreads, and a breathtaking variety of other dishes. All are accompanied by wine, the wine punch known as sangria, or Spanish sherry.
Some Tapas History
Indeed, tapas evolved out of Spain’s love of sherry, the tawny-colored, sippable fortified wine made from white grapes grown around Jerez, near the country’s southern tip. The word tapas actually means “lids,” referring to the thin bread slices bar owners centuries ago would place atop glasses of sherry to keep out dust and flies.
Gradually, smart hosts began placing tasty bits of food atop the bread lids. Sherry bars gained followings for the quality of their tapas.
Preparing Easy Tapas at Home
The best tapas bars can put as much effort into cooking as any fine restaurant does. Home cooks, too, could conceivably spend hours preparing tapas feasts.
But it’s also possible to serve superb tapas at home with virtually no cooking. High-quality supermarkets and delis offer so many ready-to-serve delicacies that a quick shopping trip and a minimal effort to arrange purchases attractively can add up to a truly impressive tapas spread.
Ready-to-Serve Tapas from the Market
Consider the following when shopping for a tapas party:
- Fresh fruit. Fresh figs make luscious offerings; leave small ones whole, or cut larger ones in halves or quarters. Slices of ripe, juicy melon are also excellent.
- Dried fruit. Look for plump dried figs or apricots. Pitted dates are also good.
- Cheeses. Firm and tangy Manchego, made from sheep’s milk, is one of Spain’s preeminent cheeses. Cut it into bite-sized cubes. Also consider fresh, creamy domestic goat cheese.
- Quince paste. Known in Spanish as membrillo, this thick, jamlike, dark-brown paste of the tree fruit has a richly satisfying tart-sweet flavor and luxurious texture that makes a perfect complement to salty, tangy cheeses and cured meats.
- Nuts. Look for roasted, salted Marcona almonds, a flavorful Spanish variety that looks as broad and flat as a thumbnail.
- Cured meats. Similar in taste and texture to Italy’s prosciutto, Spain’s Serrano ham is a must. (In a pinch, though, use prosciutto.) Order it sliced wafer thin, and make sure the slices are arranged on separate layers of paper so they don’t stick together. Stack the paper layers on a platter to make the meat easier for guests to peel off. Thin slices of Spanish chorizo or other spicy cured salami are also good.
- Cured fish. Look for salt- or brine-cured anchovies or sardines to arrange on a plate for guests who enjoy such briny pleasures.
- Roasted or pickled vegetables and olives. Many supermarkets and delis display outstanding arrays of prepared, ready-to-serve vegetables. Look for roasted bell peppers; grilled and marinated baby artichokes; pickled whole baby onions; and a wide variety of green and black cured and marinated olives. Buy a pleasing assortment.
- Breads. To complement the tapas, buy good-quality crusty country-style or sourdough bread. At home, use a sharp bread knife to slice it thinly, and cut large slices into smaller individual pieces. For added crispness, the slices can be spread on a baking sheet, drizzled with olive oil, and toasted under the broiler for a few minutes until golden brown. (Keep a close eye on them to prevent burning!) The bread can also be transformed easily and quickly into Parmesan Toasts, perhaps with shredded Manchego substituted for the Parmesan.
Putting It All Together
All that remains to do to throw a tapas party is arrange the above assortment attractively on platters or in bowls and put them out on the table along with suitable serving forks, knives, and spoons, napkins, and individual serving plates and cutlery.
It’s also possible to get a bit more creative by combining ingredients. Stuff plump figs with a smear of goat cheese, for example; or wrap fig wedges in strips of ham. Roll up anchovy fillets inside roasted bell peppers. Or stuff slivers of Manchego cheese into pitted dates. Let the imagination soar! (Want to add a quick, easy-to-cook dish? Try Spanish-style Grilled Garlic Shrimp Kabobs.)
Sherry: The Final Touch
Of course, no tapas party is complete without something drinks. Feel free to offer a favorite Spanish wine, such as a robust red Tempranillo, a chilled sparkling Cava, or a pitcher of cold, fruity sangria.
Better still, accompany tapas with the wine that started it all, Sherry. Varieties range from ultra-dry and light Fino and Manzanilla to richer and darker Amontillado and Oloroso to various sweet Sherries. In generally, more dry Sherries better complement the range of flavors in tapas. For the best sipping pleasure, chill the Sherry well in the refrigerator, and pour it into slender Sherry glasses or white wine glasses.
And, raising a glass, as the Spanish say, “Salud, pesetas, y amor!”—“Health, money, and love!”
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