Destination Inspired Recipe Tapas! Photos and recipes by Chef Sean McKay
pier about its arrival. Eating a whole array of bright and flavorful small dishes is my favourite way of eating and sharing an evening with friends. Te way that I was introduced to this style of Spanish cuisine, eating and cooking tapas, was a little unortho- dox and did not even involve a trip to Spain. I attended (when I wasn’t skipping, but that’s another story) an inter- national high school in Belgium until my graduation. My classmates and chums were an eclectic mix from all over the world − Turkish, Danish, German, Argentinean – you name the nationality and they were there. Tis was the ul- timate immersion into world culture and cuisine, especially for a teenage boy who had just started to learn about his interest in cooking; one that would eventually lead him to a restaurant of his own. So where does tapas fit in you might ask? Amongst our
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ragtag crew of united nations, we had our beloved Span- iards. On the weekends my group of Spanish friends would host “Calimocho” barbecues. Tere would be a fire pit, gui- tars being played, soccer balls kicked around and of course amazing food. Along with the traditional beast on the barbecue, there was a whole assortment of appetizers and small bites brought and shared by everyone involved. As a teenage boy who had spent most of his life in Canada, these new food combinations were exciting and foreign to me. Tere were marinated octopus salads, fish prepared in every way imaginable and cured meats with accoutrements of fruit, cheese and pickles I’d never seen before. It was all delicious and elevated the enjoyment of our gatherings to a level that hotdogs on the BBQ cannot rival. To me, tapas isn’t just a way of preparing or cooking food,
it’s about the experience of sharing dishes, stories and mo- ments with friends and family over the dinner table. Here are a couple of dishes for you to try at your next dinner gathering. Enjoy! Sean McKay is the head chef and owner of Te Mitchell Block on McDermot Avenue in the East Exchange District.
48 • Spring 2015
hen asked to write a piece on Spanish cui- sine, I immediately thought, “TAPAS!”. Tapas is one the latest culinary trends to hit North America and I couldn’t be hap-
Gazpacho shots Serves 6
Ingredients 1 hothouse cucumber, halved and seeded 5 plum tomatoes 1 red bell pepper, cored and seeded 1 small red onion 1 jalapeno pepper, halved and seeded (leave the seeds in if you like the extra kick)
4 cloves of garlic, minced 750 ml of tomato juice 150 ml of white wine vinegar 150 ml of extra virgin olive oil ½ tablespoon of kosher salt 1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
Directions Roughly chop the cucumber, tomatoes, bell pepper, jalapeno and red onion into one-inch by one-inch cubes. In a food processor, pulse the diced vegetables until they are small but not completely pureed. Move the contents of the food processor to a non-reactive mixing bowl. Add the garlic, tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix well and chill. Transfer the soup to a pitcher with a good pouring spout and stir well before serving in shot glasses. I have found it is better to make gazpacho the day before you plan to serve it as the flavours develop as the soup sits.
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