When visiting tapas bars in Seville, it’s a must to try the popular tapas, bull tail ragout, spinach with chickpeas and eggs a la flamenca. Here are the recipes for tasty, classic Andalusian tapas.
1. Tyrehale-ragout (rabo de toro)
Bull’s tail ragout dates back to Roman times and is still a popular speciality in Seville in particular, but also in other parts of Spain such as Andalusia and Madrid. Every classic bar and restaurant in Seville has its own version of the stew with tender meat and a rich sauce seasoned with either red wine or sherry. The dish is easy to make and either bull or cow tail can be used.
Ingredients
11/2 kg sliced bull or cow eel
1 large onion
3 carrots
1 red pepper
2 cloves of garlic
6 to 7 black peppercorns
1 1/2 glasses red wine or dry sherry
2-3 bay leaves
Olive oil
Salt
½ litre beef stock
Mel
4 whole cloves
½ leek (can be omitted)
How to make bull neck ragout
Lightly coat the tail pieces in flour and season with salt and pepper. Brown them in the oil in a frying pan and set them aside.
Finely chop the onion, cut the pepper into small pieces and slice the carrots and leek. Peel the garlic. Sauté the vegetables and garlic in the same oil as the meat over low heat. Then add the bay leaves and cloves.
Put the meat and vegetables in a pan and add the stock and wine. Cover the pan with a lid and simmer for about three hours. Add more stock (or water) if the sauce dries out. Simmer until the meat can be separated from the bone. The sauce can be thickened by mashing the leeks.
Serve with French fries, fried or boiled potatoes.
2. Spinach with chickpeas (espinacas con garbanzos)
This vegetarian tapa is one of the main specialities of Sevillian gastronomy. The spinach dish with chickpeas is a symbol of Easter week, when it is traditionally eaten, but it is available at tapas bars all year round. The dish is of Sephardic (Jewish) origin, and the special blend of spices combined with spinach and chickpeas makes it a local gourmet find.
Ingredients
1/4 kg cooked chickpeas
400 g spinach
1 tbsp sweet paprika
1 tbsp cumin
2-3 slices of white bread
Olive oil
Wine vinegar
1 dried chili pepper
3 cloves of garlic
salt
How to cook spinach with chickpeas
Fry 3-4 slices of white bread in oil in a frying pan with the whole, peeled garlic. When the bread slices are golden and crispy, remove them and the garlic. Keep the oil in the pan.
Crush and mix cumin, chilli, garlic, crumbled bread (save 1-2 slices for serving), salt and a splash of vinegar in a mortar or blender.
Quickly stir the mixture in the pan into the oil you used earlier, then pour into a clay bowl. Simmer over a low heat. Add sweet paprika and cooked chickpeas.
Add the washed, chopped spinach a little at a time and stir. Garnish with the bread you have set aside. Serve the dish warm.
3. Eggs a la flamenca (huevos a la flamenca)
This dish is one of the most authentic from the Sevillian cuisine. Modern dishes and new flavours have pushed it a bit into the background, but it’s still available at several restaurants in town. The dish is colourful and cheerful, hence the name flamenca (female flamenco dancer). The dish is as much a part of Seville’s history and traditions as flamenco, and is served either as a tapa or ración (portion).
Ingredients
4fresh eggs, 2 per person or tapa
100 g lightly cooked peas
1 pickled red pepper in strips
1 large clove chopped garlic
1 small chopped onion or red onion
1 medium potato
2 slices of good serrano ham
5-6 slices Spanish chorizo
200 g tomato sauce (homemade or 1/2 can chopped tomatoes/tomato sauce)
Olive oil
Salt and white and black pepper
Green beans, green asparagus and extra garlic if desired
How to make eggs a la flamenca (huevos a la flamenca)
Peel the potato and cut into slices. Fry the potato slices in a pan in olive oil. Put them aside.
Put the onion and garlic in an ovenproof clay dish, add the peas and red pepper and sauté in oil. Then add the tomato. Add beans and asparagus if desired. Sauté for about three minutes over low heat.
Arrange the potato slices, chorizo and ham in the pan, beat the egg mixture over the dish and add a dash of olive oil. Put the dish in the oven for four to five minutes at 200 degrees. If you like, divide the dish into two portions and serve hot.
Recipes and photos provided by Turismo de Sevilla
