TAPAS—THEY'RE NOT LIKE THE OLD DAYS

Where are the tapas of yesteryear? The meatballs, croquettes and boquerones al natural? Even that old favorite, ensaladilla rusa? Traditional tapas, the ones I learned to love when I first came to live in Mijas pueblo, were nowhere to be found on a recent tapas excursion in the same town. 

With a friend visiting from the U.S., I made the rounds on the Ruta de la Tapa, the “tapa route,” of 11 participating bars (and a couple of ice cream shops), each offering a tapa and a glass of wine for €2.50 (about $2.95). Each bar served a fixed tapa—no choices.  

We managed to try five bars, enjoying the stroll through village streets and meeting up with others out for the occasion (Tuesdays and Thursdays through August). Of the five tapas sampled, only two somewhat resembled traditional tapas. 

Potato tortilla filled with peppers and mackerel.

Our first stop was Bóveda del Flamenco and the tapa Tortillada de Caballa. It was a not-quite-traditional potato tortilla that was split in half and filled with a mixture of sautéed red peppers and mackerel. Pretty good and the Verdejo white wine, totally quaffable. Good value for €2.50.

Pastry with shrimp.

The bar Tapintxo is a bright, modern establishment, white and glass walls hardly separating the (air-conditioned) interior from the tables outside. The tapa: Pastela de Marisco con Fideos, a brik pastry, dusted with powdered sugar, filled with shrimp and rice noodles in a slightly spicy sauce with a sprinkling of dill. Once the sugar was brushed off, it was tasty, but nothing about it was Andalusian.

Brochette chicken curry.

We doubled back to the Bar Porras, on the Plaza de la Libertad in the center of Mijas pueblo. The Porras is one of only two bars on the plaza (there once were five) that existed when I first set foot in the village (1966). It’s where I cut my teeth on tapas, at the bar and in the kitchen, collecting recipes from the women who prepared the tapas. To its credit, the bar still serves traditional dishes such as pescaito frito, a platter of fried fish. 

The tapa on the ruta: Pincho de Pollo al Curry, a brochette of chicken bites with curry sauce. The chicken was grilled to order and was delicious. But, curry sauce? The white wine was not quaffable. The waiter said, in effect, what did we expect for €2.50? (To its credit, the Bar Porras has some excellent wines, including Viña Tamisa, made in Mijas.

Mijas burro-taxis, heading home.

Wrap with chili con carne.

At Chema’s Terrace we sat at a table outdoors and watched the train of Mijas Burro-Taxis head home for the night after a day of carrying tourists around the village. The tapa here was Wrap de Chili con Carne, a flour tortilla enclosing a mixture of red kidney beans and meat, not unlike canned chili. It was nicely presented, but had absolutely no connection to anything typical of Mijas. (Tortilla wraps and chile are not Spanish.) Switching to chilled rosado (rosé) was a good move. (Footnote: this bar-restaurant is located on the entrance plaza to Mijas in an old building that once was La Malagueña, a pensión where I stayed for a couple weeks when I first arrived in Mijas in 1966.)

Lars tries chicken "Popeye."

Our tapas route finished at Bar Fiesta where the tapa presented was Cilindro de Pollo Popeye, a roll with chicken “Popeye.” Sure enough, spinach was the main ingredient!

My friend, Lars Kronmark, who is a chef-instructor at the Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena, CA., said it was the best tapa of the evening, multi-dimensional and the most integrated. I agreed. It was based on a very traditional dish, espinacas a la catalana, spinach with raisins and pine nuts. The spinach was mounded on a base of potato puree. Hidden beneath the spinach was a chicken cutlet. The spinach was topped with crisp bacon. José Moreno, owner of Bar Fiesta, said tapas have “evolucionado,” evolved, over the years. 

I suppose that, for the Ruta de la Tapa, each bar tries to be as original as possible to distinguish it from all the others. Same old, same old, meatballs just wouldn't cut it. (Participants who get their “tapaporte” stamped by all 11 establishments can vote for their favorite tapa.) Still, I was nostalgic for the tapas of yesteryear!

Spinach with Raisins and Pine Nuts, Potato Puree and Pork Cutlet

Espinacas con Pasas y Piñones, Puré de Patatas y Filete de Lomo

Potato puree on the bottom, a pork cutlet topped with spinach with raisins and pine nuts.

A garnish of crisp bacon and cooked quail's eggs.

This is my adaptation of the tapa served at Bar Fiesta. I used pork loin cutlets instead of chicken. A vegetarian version could be made using quail eggs. (To hard-boil quail eggs, cover them with water, bring to a boil and cook 3 minutes. Drain the eggs and cover them in cold water.)

The classic rendition of this dish is with Málaga muscatel raisins, which need to be seeded. You can use sultanas or any seedless raisin. 

Mediterranean pine nuts.

I’ve got a handful of pine nuts gathered from the tree beside my patio. They are difficult to crack and extract. And, apparently, this year they are scarce, because the ones in the market are a different variety, imported from China. 

Local pine nuts (left) and Chinese.

Makes 4 tapa servings.

For the potatoes:

1 pound potatoes

Salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

½ cup milk

Freshly ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon smoked pimentón (paprika)

For the pork:

Olive oil

4 thick-cut slices of bacon

4 thinly sliced cutlets of pork loin

Salt and pepper

Pinch of oregano

Few drops of Vinegar

For the spinach:

14 ounces fresh spinach, stems trimmed

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons pine nuts

1 clove garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons raisins

Salt and pepper

Garnishes

Hard-cooked quail eggs

Bread sticks or crisps

Peel the potatoes, cut them in chunks and cook in salted boiling water until they are very tender. Drain, saving about ½ cup of potato water (to use in thinning the puree).

Mash the potatoes with the oil. Stir in the milk, salt to taste, pepper and pimentón. Thin the mashed potatoes with enough potato water to make a smooth puree that can be easily spread. 

Put a few drops of oil in a small skillet and fry the bacon until browned on both sides. Remove. Season the pork cutlets with salt, pepper, oregano and vinegar. Brown them in the fat remaining in the skillet. They need only 1 minute per side. Remove

Sauté pine nuts, garlic and raisins.

Wash the spinach, if necessary, and chop it. In a large pan heat the oil and add the pine nuts on medium-high heat. When they begin to brown, add the garlic and raisins. Stir until garlic begins to turn golden. Add the spinach and, if spinach is very dry, 1 or 2 tablespoons of water. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring to mix in the pine nuts and garlic, until the spinach is wilted and tender. 

Potato puree, pork cutlet.

To assemble: Place a large spoonful of potato puree on each plate and spread it to make a base. Place a cooked pork cutlet on top of the potato. (If making a vegetarian plate, omit the pork and imbed a cooked and peeled quail’s egg in the center of the puree.) Mound the spinach on top of the pork and potatoes. Garnish the plate with halved quails’ eggs and bread sticks.

More about tapas:

Tapa-Hopping Round Town  (The Ruta de la Tapa 11 years ago!)

The Tapas Way of Life.

Sevilla Tapas--The Immersion Course

How to Plan a Holiday Party--With Tapas

Gran ambiente con la Ruta de la Tapa

More about Mijas: Mijas sea and mountain, unique destination