I'm off out to a certain Spanish restaurant in Granada at the weekend and I know exactly what I shall be eating. Isn't that great?
To not have to waste time studying a menu is, for me at least, a relief. What is the point when you know exactly what you'll be having? You will order your favourite.
When dining out in Spain I believe in going along with the strengths of a certain tapas bar or restaurant. After all, if it isn't broken, why fix it?
My message to anyone who is a little timid when it comes to eating seafood is to think again once in Spain. I am willing to bet that in a restaurant, or through buying from your local fish delivery van or market; there will be a creature from the seas which - once prepared and cooked correctly - will become a new favourite meal for you. Here is a case in point. My favourite, Octopus, with lemon and garlic.
I love using Cayenne Pepper in Spanish cooking. It adds so much to a meal. Cayenne Pepper can be too hot for some, but not for me. It livens up food that otherwise would not live long in the memory. Here are two meals which, with the benefit of cayenne, will do just that.
Should my spice rack ever be even close to empty, I would panic. A Spanish chef recently admired my collection of spices, and then proceeded to use many of my spices liberally in a meal i was meant to be cooking for him. I wept as i saw the jars of cayenne pepper and paprika emptying fast. I have restocked now and here are two recipes using my favourite spices.
Here's a recipe with legs! I love pulpo (octopus). Cannot get enough of the creatures. At least when it comes to superb servings of Spanish meals or tapas dishes that are based around the creature of the seas. This recipe combines octopus with chilli.
An octopus correctly predicted Spain would win the World Cup in 2010. Ever since then sales of Octopus have risen in the country. Frankly, I'd rather eat Octopus than follow its football tips. My favourite serving has to be pulpo gallega, as it is known in wider Spain, or pulpo feira - as it is called in its place of origin. Gorgeous Galicia. It rains often in Galicia. The consolation is that the region serves some of the finest seafood to be found anywhere in Spain.
