Pintxos in Pamplona. Gilda pintxo at Bar Mô. Fernando Madariaga/©ICEX.
From Foods & Wines from Spain, a look at the multitude of culinary options and beyond in Pamplona.
People from Pamplona have two fixed dates with the world of pintxos, one at midday (the aperitivo hour, before lunch) and another in the evening. After imbuing ourselves with the culture of Pamplona, our stomachs need something to nosh on. Our suggestions: the Gilda XXL (a pintxo comprised of an anchovy, Gordal olive and pickled pepper) at Bar Mô (calle Espoz y Mina, 11), the tortilla de patata pintxo at the bar La Navarra (calle Amaya, 10), and the thinly sliced panceta pintxo and the ajoarriero (desalted cod with boiled potato) at the elegant La Barra del Goloso bar (calle San Ignacio, 8). Whet your palate with a glass of fragrant rosado from Navarre made with Garnacha grapes, a Chardonnay also from Denomination of Origin Navarra, or a local craft beer.
For more information, visit foodswinesfromspain.com.
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Another pintxo that can be made pronto. What do you need? A tin of mussels in escabeche, goat cheese, crackers (or bread, or some other edible foundation to place the other two ingredients upon). What's a good beverage accompaniment? Beer. Or wine. Or cocktails. Or water. Whatever feels right.
Total Time: 42 seconds. Serves several.
1. Unnecessary. Put the above ingredients together, as pictured.
2. Enjoy the concert you may or may not be at while eating these on the lawn with a nice bottle of wine and some friends.
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Looking for some inspiration on how to use anchovies to maximum effectiveness? Look no further. As Melissa Clark of the New York Times states:
Anyone who reads my column has probably noticed that I’m obsessed with anchovies. They are my secret weapon, and after salt, olive oil and lemons, the thing I can’t live without in the kitchen.
A few tips on choosing them: go for the ones packed in glass where you can see their little reddish-brown bodies, rather than in tin where you can’t. Also always read the ingredients. They should be packed in olive oil rather than lesser quality cottonseed or soy oil.
For a collection of recipes utilizing this secret weapon, we offer our Pinterest board:
Simple doesn't have to lack for flavor. This recipe for rillettes calls for sardines in olive oil, to avoid prolonged prep-time. It's mostly just mashing. Good times.
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Total Time: 10-15 minutes (plus however long you'd like the rillettes to chill in the refrigerator, perhaps overnight). Around eight servings or so.
1. Mash up the sardines in a bowl with the minced shallots, the chives, the butter, the black pepper and the salt. Want it smoother? Use a food processor.
2. Squeeze the lemon for that fresh juice and mix and mash a bit more.
3. Top with the piment d'Espelette for some nice color.
4. Leave the whole thing in the refrigerator for eight hours, but serve at room temperature. Or don't, you decide.
Make it ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator for up to three days. You can even serve the rillettes in the very same tin the sardines come in, which everyone will find adorable.
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Recipe adapted from David Lebovitz.
Txakoli, pronounced "Cha-co-lee", is poured from high above across Basque Country and the perfect wine for summer. Adam Rapoport of Bon Appetit describes txakoli as "bright, zingy, and slightly effervescent without veering into sparkling wine territory", the ideal wine for pairing with appetizers on the patio on a summer's evening.
The wine is produced from two indigenous grapes, Hondarrabi Zuri and Hondarrabi Beltza and typically poured from about ten inches above the glass to aerate the wine and give a hint of foam. As S. Irene Virbila writes for the L.A. Times:
In the Spanish Basque country, whenever people get together, they drink Txakoli — at brunch and also with a snack in between lunch and dinner. And then again with pintxos or tapas before dinner. At the Ameztoi wine estate near the town of Getaria, I once was served their wines with local salt-cured anchovies slicked with a little olive oil, accompanied by slices of crusty bread. The anchovies from this part of the world are extraordinary, and the combination with Txakoli is brilliant. It works like Barbera with salumi. The bright, singing white wine plays against the fat brininess of the anchovy, leaving you eager for the next bite, the next sip.
Basques will swear by Txakoli not only with anchovies but also with tuna and all the seafood served up in the fishing village's rival fish restaurants: Elkano and Kaia. Its minerality and saline quality make it a perfect match. If you go pintxos-hopping in San Sebastian's Parte Vieja, every bar is pouring Txakolina.
Txakoli is an excellent accompaniment to our seafood conservas, like Cantabrian anchovies, sardines, and Bonito del Norte tuna. Wine.com offers a good selection available for order, or ask at your local store.
For World Tapas Day on June 16 the Spanish Tourism Board offered a primer on the tapas-going experience, including 20 of the most popular tapas in Spain and tips for trying tapas if you're thinking of visiting.
The best tip? "Ultimately, the most important thing when going out for tapas is to enjoy the food, the company and, of course, life itself."
photo by Turespaña / Segittur
In Basque Country, you'll find piment d'Espelette sprinkled on salads in place of cracked black pepper, rubbed onto cured ham, or stirred into sauces and stews. The eponymous peppers of the village of Espelette in France are harvested in late summer and early autumn and strung by hand on the facades of buildings throughout the hamlet to dry in the sun, and dried further in wood-burning ovens prior to being ground into powder.
Complex, with a subtle spiciness, we thought we'd try adding piment d'Espelette to some summer cocktails to make unique twists on tried and true beverages of summer. When you have a friendly gathering on the deck on a warm summer's day, it's always good to shake up something new to drink.
Bloody Mary with piment d'Espelette
Whether you have your own secret Bloody Mary recipe or enjoy one of the many mixes readily available, you and your guests will enjoy a bit of piment d'Espelette along the rim of the glass and stirred in to taste. For a ready-made accoutrement, add a banderilla of gherkin, guindilla, olive, piquillo, and cocktail onion.
Maragrita with piment d'Espelette
We followed Geoffrey Zakarian's classic margarita recipe with piment d'Espelette added to the sugar and salt along the rim. A refreshing, resounding success.
You might also try experimenting by adding piment d'Espelette to grapefruit juice and vodka cocktails, mango daiquiris, or your other favorite summer drink. The possibilities are endless.
