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You’ve reached the final (magnificent) Cantabrian anchovy in a jar. After you savor the fillet, what do you do with the umami-packed olive oil that remains?
Please let us know how you use the anchovy oil and we’ll spread word of your ingenuity, and show other anchovy aficionados the way. Together, we shall not let any of the flavorsome golden oil go to waste.
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A tinned fish recipe for our times. Below you will find the directions necessary to transform our sardines in escabeche into what will quickly become the preeminent fishcakes of all the fish cakes (there seems to be no consensus on spelling as one word or two; this will do nothing to solve that issue). You will also dip anything and everything that is dippable into the escabeche aioli, until the tiny bowl is clean.
Total Time: About 1 and 1/2 hours.
Servings: Six, three inch sardine cakes (from just one tin of sardines!).
for the sardine cakes
for the escabeche aioli
1. Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees. Brush whole potatoes with a luxurious coating of olive oil, for they are about to be part of an appetizer fit for a king. Sprinkle with kosher salt and roast for 45-50 minutes. Let them cool as you move to the next step.
2. Open the tin of sardines in escabeche and place the sardines in a medium size bowl while being sure to save as much of the escabeche in the tin as possible for the aioli. It's worth taking your time here to be diligent, and not let a drop go to waste. The reward later is immense.
3. While you wait for the potatoes to cool enough to handle, mix together the escabeche, 1/2 cup mayonnaise, and garlic for the simplest, most exquisite sauce fish cake have ever known.
4. When the potatoes are a non-finger burning temperature, cut them open and scoop out the insides, adding to the sardines waiting patiently in the medium size bowl. Have fun mashing the sardines and potatoes with a potato masher. Don't hold back. Mash. Stir in mayonnaise, one beaten egg, capers, lemon pepper, shallots and salt. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
5. Beat the second egg and put in a shallow dish. Place breadcrumbs in another dish (make sure to have plenty of dishes on hand for all of this). Form the sardine-potato mixture into two to three inch cakes, dip each cake in the egg, then coat with breadcrumbs. Place the formed sardine cakes onto a pan lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate for another 10 minutes.
6. Heat a quarter of an inch of oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Fry for about 2 minutes per side or until mouth-watering golden brown.
7. Serve with the escabeche aioli to what will quickly become a jubilant gathering of human beings.
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8. BONUS! Made a whole bunch of crispy sardine cakes because you expected more people at your party, but plans changed and weak excuses were made, but oh well, these things happen and you have some cakes left over? You're in luck. They remain sensational sardine cakes the next day, this time as sandwich patties on your favorite style of bun with lettuce, tomato, and if you're lucky, some of that escabeche aioli.
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Octopus in olive oil and mojo picón and French fries. A kind of Pulpo poutine without the cheese curds (unless that's something you want to experiment with, then by all means please include them with our full support).
Total Time: If you do as I did and simply walk down the street to purchase perfect French fries, then accentuate their perfection with the below, 5-10 minutes. If you make your own fries, according to one of the recipes below? Longer.
Servings: One nice appetizer, best served on an artisan pintxo plate.
1. Simply pop a tin of octopus in olive oil and sizzle briefly in pan. Keep it low to avoid splatter, if you have the time for such prudence, or call upon the aptly named splatter screen to do its duty if you're hungry and have little time to waste.
2. French fries. As confessed above, the ideally formed fries you see were purchased from a fine local takeaway establishment for expediency. If you care to make your own, three excellent options: this recipe, if you want to commit an afternoon to soaking potatoes; this baked fries recipe, if you'd like that oven-cooked vibe; and this air fryer recipe, if you have an air fryer.
3. Place a heaping portion of your sizzled pulpo atop the French fries you’ve made (or purchased down the street). Add Mojo Picón, as desired. With each bite nod your head in recognition of life’s simple and delicious joys.
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Light and easy, yes. Deliciously fire-roasted and smoky? Also yes. If you're short on time you don't have to skimp on flavor with this vegan sandwich. All that fire-roasting, you see, goes a long way.
Total Time: Dependent on your toasters ability to achieve your ideal crispiness and color.
Servings: One stacked sandwich, or two more reasonably-sized ones.
1. Slice and toast those slices from your fresh loaf of sourdough.
2. Open a tray of escalivada and drain the juices. You can leave the juices, but if the sandwiches structural integrity is important to you, drain the juices.
3. Apply your desired amount of vegan pesto or salsa verde to your freshly toasted slices, and build upward.
4. Eat, joyously.
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The traditional dish of Catalonia, escalivada is fire-roasted eggplant, pimientos, and onion. Slow-cooked and smoky, a delicious dish on its own or with a variety of other conservas (as we will photograph and eat shortly). And? Just as you see, straight out of the tray. Also? Available for order now.
The finest selection of fresh eggplant, peppers, and onions are roasted over fire and packed in their own juices. Vegan and healthy and flavorful. You'll love it.
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White tuna belly fillets, particularly these sensational slices of ventresca of Bonito del Norte, are something to savor all on their own. Which is an odd statement to make immediately preceding a recipe for an accompanying sauce. But, sometimes you want a little more, a different perspective, and when you find a complement like this mango vinaigrette you get just that. The pairing of buttery ventresca with the subtle sweetness of the emulsion will satisfy and delight.
Total Time: Not an unreasonable amount. Twenty mintues, tops.
Servings: several.
1. Puree the mango in a blender with the water, then put into a small saucepan and add the sugar.
2. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until reduced by half.
3. Remove from heat and add oil, sherry and a dash of salt. Add additional water until you've achieved your ideal consistency.
4. Ladle a small portion on a plate and layer the tuna belly fillets in any way you see fit. Above we went with the fanning out of the fillets, which was nice.
5. A bit of lemon zest on top and a garnish of cilantro, and you'll have a tapa ready to serve.
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The wait has seemingly been interminable, but that wait has now met its end. Our extra thick white asparagus D.O. Navarre, the tender delicacy emblematic of the region, renowned for its unique flavor, so very delicious and good, is back in stock and available for order.
In celebration of such acclaimed asparagus, we suggest preparing it in the style above: on toasted pita with za'atar, pistachios, cream cheese, and drizzled with olive oil. See the full recipe for details of this quick and easy appetizer (in this instance made vegan with vegan cream cheese) and you'll agree it was worth the wait.
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Tinned squid tacos. Back to a personal favorite for the alliterative dinner so popular on Tuesdays. A tin of our squid in American sauce combined with a honey mustard slaw and wrapped in a corn tortilla. Supremely simple, and far more delicious than other tacos that claim to be supreme.
That honey mustard slaw? A delightfully light mix of well, a bag of slaw from the local market, old-fashioned coarse grain mustard, honey, salt, black pepper, and a couple of tablespoons of milk.
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Purple. Ninja. Radishes. If ever you have an opportunity to feature purple ninja radishes in appetizer or entrée, you must. So we have this: what we'll refer to on this page as tinned mackerel cakes, using the same recipe as the one for our Better Big Mac(kerel) patties, but here setting the mackerel atop a slice of olive oil drenched toast and slathered with roasted garlic hummus, those purple ninjas with a place of prominence for a good pop of color and delicious crunch.
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A better Big Mac(kerel). That’s right. Tins of mackerel turned into sweet paprika-spiced patties, with a saffron-Dijon special sauce, for a burger that'll make everyone swoon. Sure, the drive-thru beef option has its place, but with mere minutes of preparation you can do so much better.
Picture yourself on a warm summer's afternoon in a backyard patio full of lush greenery, sitting at a table surrounded by friends, a crisp and cold pint in hand, and this beauty of a burger before you. Make the dream reality.
Total Time: 15-20 minutes, or thereabouts.
Servings: 4 burger sandwiches.
for the dressing
for the patties
for the rest
1. Mix up all the ingredients for the dressing in a nice little bowl. Whisking is probably the way to go about this.
2. In a much larger bowl, empty the tins of mackerel fillets, crack the couple of eggs, add paprika, sea salt, garlic, and scallions.
3. Go to town mashing and mixing and shaping the combination into patties of appropriate size. Above, you'll see patties shaped just so for the buns procured. Maybe you'd like to go vertical with the double-decker style. Or perhaps you're more a fan of the oversized patty, boldly stretching beyond the edges of the bun. The choice is yours.
4. Over medium heat, cook patties about three minutes on each side.
5. Top with more scallions, radish slices for a pleasing crunch, and the saffron-Dijon sauce.
6. Eat in silence, not because of any underlying resentment toward those you're sharing a meal with, but because you are all relishing the joyous melody of complementary of flavors inherent in each bite. Nod approvingly at each other, and smile.
Inspired by this video from Gordon Ramsay.
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Sometimes, a small piece of toast and a good slab of butter is all the accompaniment you need.
Our Cantabrian anchovies in a combo that will convince all to love the tiny fish.
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Our first in a series of customer serving suggestion favorites (thanks, Jim L.!) was also a tapa of great renown at Bar Biscay in Chicago (thanks chef Johnny!), that particular incarnation featuring radishes, if you'd like to mix it up a bit.
Get your hands covered in butter and wine and enjoy.
Total Time: 10 minutes.
1. Heat butter and olive oil in a pan of appropriate size, then add that minced garlic until the wonderful scent begins wafting through the kitchen. We'll say this is a minute or two.
2. Pour in the wine, then drink some, because drinking wine while cooking is one of life's great pleasures.
3. Bring it to a simmer and add the razor clams, until the clams are desirably warm. Maybe add a bit more butter here? You really can't go wrong with more butter, but the choice is yours.
4. Top with freshly ground black pepper with an option for a sprinkling of chopped parsley, and serve alongside a sizable loaf of freshly baked bread, very crusty, good for breaking off big chunks to then soak in the sauce so you get every last drop.
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