Las tapas, base fundamental de la cocina de José Andrés, son una de las principales aportaciones españolas a los tesoros culinarios del platos de ingredientes mediterráneos sencillos, como su preparación, hábilmente combinados para proporcionar estallidos de sabor puros y limpios. Esta obra, organizada por alimentos como base de cada una los capítulos (tomates, patatas, setas, legumbres, pimientos, verduras, arroz, huevos, pescado, mariscos, pollo, cerdo y otras carnes) es el primer gran libro que celebra una cocina de renombre mundial, creada por el nuevo cocinero de Televisión Española, discípulo aventajado de Ferran Adrià, galardonado con varios premios, propietario de seis restaurantes en Washington y portavoz oficioso de la cocina española en Estados Unidos.
José Ramón Andrés Puerta, más conocido como José Andrés, es un cocinero español-estadounidense. Desde 2013 tiene también la nacionalidad estadounidense.
Chef/Owner of ThinkFoodGroup, star of the "Made In Spain" television series, and culinary creator and advocate.
After receiving this as a gift in 2007, I've tried its individual recipes over many years, yet I always went straight to the directions on the pages and was intentional about getting just the right ingredients in advance. Of course, there is nothing wrong with that process, but I did not take the time to slow down and really enjoy this as a book. As I'm now taking time to revisit my culinary books, I'm slowing down to read those which present more than recipes alone.
So many reasons I recommend "Tapas: A Taste of Spain In America" to you:
1) Chef Jose Andrés is one of our world's finest chefs, yet here he is accessible while teaching us professionally about tapas. The eighteen chapters of this book are well-organized: starting with olives and olive oil, dedicating a chapter to rice midway (chapter 10), and dedicating individual chapters to various seafood and meats towards the end (chapters 12 - 16). I noted that he was generous and respectful in referring to his mentors, so increasingly I paid attention to various techniques he passes on to us. Numerous times in the chapters there are succinct references to the history of the ingredients, enhancing my appreciation of the food. The writing also emphasizes the integrity of food, of eating, and of providing genuine hospitality -- all delivered with a light touch.
2) You'll learn more about tapas from this master chef who assures us, "This book is aimed at the home cook, not the professional, because tapas are for eating at home or with friends." I recognized and followed directions for many of the traditional tapas I learned from my housemother in Madrid (back in the 1980s) and quite a few I've enjoyed in restaurants in Spain and United States both. In addition to those, I also learned some new tapas (such as "watermelon and tomato skewers") and found them to be delicious. Again, emphasis is given to home cooks and allows for ingredients that are not purely Spanish. In fact, details I entirely missed before were numerous teaching tips that allow for substitutions (Japanese restaurants, an Iranian market, and so on) or outright compliments for food from other parts of the world, including numerous references to food collectives or independent gardens throughout the United States. Just as he has a light touch as mentioned in #1, it becomes evident that Chef Andrés truly cares about the people who cook at home (common people like me) and those who provide the ingredients, restaurant meals, and international flavors.
3) Echoing the idea that tapas are for loved ones and the home, Chef Andrés provides ample stories of his family, and these were so heartwarming. In fact, he compliments and presents his wife Tichi's gazpacho before he honors his world-renown mentor Ferran Adrià (creator of the watermelon-tomato skewers). References to his wife, parents, children, and friends are found throughout, and sometimes there are outright funny stories that never belittle the others.
Reading this slowly and bit by bit trying the recipes from before and new ones, too, I found the food to be delicious yet again, and so did my husband. Right now, in spring of 2020, I can't find "exactly the right" ingredient, but that doesn't matter. I'm able to cook and appreciate the history and dignity of what I'm able to gather. These past weeks, I came to feel a bit like a chef, and I hope the same will be true for you.
My wife and I used to watch Jose's TV show, Vamos a Cocinar, on the Spanish language station. We didn't know who he was at the time, but we loved the show and how he made it more than just throwing recipes your way--he explained why he did everything and what the differences it made in the making of the food. I think only Molto Mario really reached this level of teaching on American TV. So, imagine our surprise while we were visiting a friend in DC when we were treated out to dinner in his restaurant there (we didn't even know he was in the US) for one of the best meals of our lives. Jose brings the same level of passion in his cooking to this book. It might be ostensibly about Tapas, but in learning these recipes you're learning how to cook Spanish. Simply a great book. Be warned, if you use his recipes and techniques to make paella at home, you'll never be satisfied with restaraunt paella again,
This is a really fascinating cookbook. I loved tapas in Barcelona and the recipes in this book certainly have a distinct flair that I appreciate. Particular favorites are the "Pipirrana Andaluza con atun de almadraba" (tomato, green pepper and cucumber salad with tuna and olive oil) and "Codorniz con lentejas" (quail with smoked bacon and lentil stew).
After visiting Spain several times over the years, I became a huge fan of tapas. I've never been able to get the same tastes in America. If you love tapas the way I do, I think you'll enjoy this book.
Great book...wonderful resource for food for gatherings. I lived worked in DC and have eaten at Jaleo. My favorite was the garlic shrimp. Now I can make some these for friends.
This is absolutely the best book on Spanish cooking I have found. All the recipes are nearly identical to how my host mom in Spain taught me to make them (at least the tortilla, sopa de ajo, sopa de pescado, paella, gazpacho, and white almond gazpacho are dead-on). And, it has all the recipes I wish she had taught me! An added plus for all you foodies or DC-locals: the author is the incredible Jose Andres, chef of Jaleo -- one of the best tapas restaurants in America.
Wow! recipes, well written, interesting and do-able. Cut back the olive oil by lots (tho it's probably not authentic) and look real for Spanish products (it's part of the fun). Then have a tapas party with lots of friends. Great stuff!
Another from the library. Made a marinated cheese appetizer. The type of food appeals to me - and the photos in the book are beautiful - but a lot is meat based. I like his style, though.