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JUANS KITCHEN SERVICE

Here at Huerta Montero we would like to offer you the chance to taste some of these wonderful dishes.  All of them are freshly prepared with,local ingredients and where possible we use free range and organic products.  Wether you are arriving to late to cook your evening meal or you just would like a night off from cooking this may be the solution.

 

WHAT ARE TAPAS?

Tapas are small portions of foods, both hot and cold, served in bars, bodegas and tascas to accompany a copa of fino-- dry Spanish Sherry--or draught beer.  Tapa-hopping is part of the convivial Andalusian way of life. With a few friends you stop in at several bars to have a glass of wine and sample the tapa specialities of each. It's customary to stand up at the bar.   You can enjoy tapas in most bars before the lunch hour (in Spain this is very late--tapas at 1 pm, lunch at 2 pm or after), and here's a tantalizing taste of some of the dishes--hot and cold-- you might find in a tapa bar in southern Spain.

Certainly the superb ham, both serrano , which just means mountain-cured, and the pricey iberico , produced from special Andalusian pigs which grow sweet on acorns. This salt-cured ham is served raw, very thinly sliced. It makes a marvellous combination with fino Sherry.   And, of course, Andalusian olives. They can be the famed Seville olives, sweet, meaty manzanillas ; or gordales , the size of small plums; or home-cured ones, slightly bitter, flavoured with herbs and garlic, or olives stuffed with anchovy. A tapa of mixed olives might include fat caper-berries too

TAPAS – EXPLANATION OF SOME DISHES

Albondigas – Meatballs in tomato sauce

Albondigas Con Salsa de Almendras y Azafran - Meatballs in Saffron-Almond Sauce

Boquerones – deep fried tiny fresh anchovies

Boquerones en Escabeche – marinated raw anchovies

Calamares – deep fried squid rings

Carne Mechada - Larded pork meat slices

Cazón en Adobo - Marinated Fried Dogfish

Champignones al Ajillo – Garlic Mushrooms

Chocos Fritos  -  Deep Fried Battered Squid

 

Chorizo al Vino - Chorizo sausage slowly cooked in wine.

Croquetas de Jamón  -  Ham Croquettes 

Empanadillas -  small square pastry filled with tuna & goats cheese

Ensaladilla Rusa  - Spanish Potato Salad

Ensaladilla - Mixed boiled vegetables with tuna, olives and mayonnaise

Ensalada Campera – Lemony potato salad

Gambas al Pil- Pil – prawns sizzled with garlic & oil

Gambas a la Plancha – Grilled shrimps

Gambas en Salsa Negra - Prawns sauteed in peppercorn sauce

Patatas (Papas) Bravas -  Spicy and hot fried potatoes, with Chilli &Tomato Sauce & Mayonnaise

Pinchitos Morunos - Small Spicy Moorish Pork or Lamb Kebabs

Piperada  -  A filling egg dish

Pollo con Ajillo – Chicken with garlic

Pulpo a la Gallega  - Octopus in Garlic & oil

Queso con Anchoas - Castilla or Manchego cured cheese withanchovies on top.

Rajo -  Pork  seasoned with garlic and parsley. A variety with added paprika is called Zorza.

Remojón - Orange and Cod Salad with onions & olives

Riñones al Jerez  - Sherry Kidneys

Salpicón de Mariscos - Shellfish Cocktail with chopped onions tomatoes & peppers

Solomillo a la Castellana - Fried pork scalops, served with an onion and/or Cabrales cheese sauce.

Solomillo al Güisqui - Fried pork scalops, marinated using whisky, brandy or white wine and olive oil, generally served with chunky chips.

Tortilla – round omelette with various fillings

Tortillitas de Camarones  - Battered-prawn fritters

Tortilla Paisana  - As above but with vegetables and chorizo.

Tortilla de Patata - A type of omelette with chunks of potato & sometimes onion  The-paella

 

 

Helpful Menu Glossary

pinchos: bite-size portions
pinchito: tiny portions
tapas: snack-size portions
raciónes: larger meal-size portions
media ración: half a meal-size portion
fritos: fried
la plancha: sauteed
Quanto cuesta un tapa?: How much for a tapa?
aceitunas: olives
almendras: fried almonds
bombas: fried meat and potato ball
caracoles: snails
champiñones: mushrooms
croquetas de…: crispy-fried croquettes with...
empanadas: pies filled with meat or seafood
ensaladas (rusa): salads (Russian)
espinaca: spinach
gazpacho: cold garlic and/or tomato soup
guiso: stew
pan: bread
paella: saffron rice dish with fish, shellfish or meat
picos: little breadsticks (usually free)
pimiento (relleno): peppers (stuffed)
pisto: mixed sautéed vegetables
queso: cheese
queso manchego: sheep cheese
rabo de toro: oxtail stew
revuelto de…: scrambled eggs with…
setas: wild mushrooms
tabla serrana: a plate of cured meat and cheese.

Fish and seafood tapas words.

almejas: clams
atun: tuna
bacalao: cod
boquerones (al vinaigre): fresh anchovies (in vinegar)
boquerones fritos: deep-fried anchovies
chiperones: fried whole baby squid
cazon en adabo: marinated white fish
gambas (a la plancha, al ajillo): prawns (sauteed, with garlic)
mejillones: mussels
pescaditos fritos: assortment of fried little fish
pulpo: octopus
rabas: squid tentacles
sardinas: fresh sardines
variado fritos: typical Andalusian plate of mixed fried fish

 

Meat tapas words.

charcuteria: selection of cured meats
salchichon: sausage
jamón serrano: dry-cured ham
jamón iberico: best quality ham from Iberian pigs
chorizo: cured spicy sausage (usually eaten un-cooked)
lomo: cured pork loin

Tapas snacks.

bocadillo: baguette sandwiches
montadito: tiny bocadillo
pulguita: small closed-baguette sandwich
flauta: sandwich made with a thin baguette
pepito: another word for a little sandwich
canape: tiny open-faced sandwich
sandwich or tostada: common sliced bread (usually toasted or fried) with a choice of fillings
con jamon/queso/mixto: with ham/cheese/both

 

Desserts.

flan: crème caramel
arroz con leche: rice pudding
helados: ice cream
fruta del tiempo: fruit in season
queso: cheese

 

Drinks.

aqua con/sin gas: bottled water with/without fizz
Un vaso de aqua del grifo: glass of tap water
Una jarra de agua: jug of tap water
refresco: soft drink
caña: small glass of draft beer
cerveza: beer
vaso or copa: a glass
vino de mesa: table wine
tinto de la casa: red house wine
blanco de la casa: white house wine
rosada de la casa: rosé house wine
un tinto: a glass of house red wine
Rioja: the best known of the Spanish wines (red, white or rosé). For better quality wines ask for crianza (old), reserva (older) or gran reserva (oldest).
sangria: a mix of red wine, brandy, fruit and anything else they might have handy. (Strictly for the tourists, this one!)
tinto verano: red wine with a light lemonade
afrutado: fruity
seco: dry
dulce: sweet
vermu: vermouth
‘Salud!: cheers!

And finally, just when you were enjoying your tapas:
la cuenta por favor: the bill please.

 

One last thing: if you are in Spain and make a small effort to say something (anything!) in Spanish, you will find that a warmer welcome and a bigger smile awaits you, wherever you go.