Montaditos

    Montaditos are little pieces of bread that have something on top.  In Spanish, Montar means to mount so, it literally means “little something mounted”.  Some regions in Spain are known for the wide variety of montaditos that they offer.  In the north of Spain, the Basque Country is known for their pintxos (the same thing as montaditos) and the restaurants have their bars full of different bites from meat to vegetables to fish.

    In Valencia the most popular are the ones made with pork or swordfish.  On Sunday I decided to go with turkey because we already had some pork in another tapa. The meat is generally grilled and then topped with picaeta (which is just diced garlic and parsley pan fried in olive oil) to bring out the flavors.  Picaeta is the base for many tapas , as garlic, salt and parsley are the most used condiments in a tapas dinner.

Here’s what you will need:
 

MATERIALS:

-          Grill for the meat

-          Pan to cook the picaeta

-          Wide plate to serve

INGREDIENTS:

-          1/2 lb of meat (pork, chicken, turkey, tuna, or swordfish)

-          A loaf of white bread

-          Lettuce leaves

-          Tomato

-          Virgin olive oil

-          Sliced cheese.

-          2 cloves of garlic

-          2 tbsp of minced parsley

 

    As for cheese, I used Swiss cheese and some cured cheddar.  I wouldn’t use any type of spicy cheese because it would kill the natural flavors of the rest of the ingredients.  

HOW TO PREPARE IT:

1.       Clean the vegetables and cut them in pieces that will fit on top of the bread.

2.       Dice garlic in small pieces and mince parsley.

3.       Add some olive oil in a frying pan and sauté the garlic and parsley until the garlic gets that golden color.

 

 

4.       Slice the meat in thin cuts, season with salt, and grill.

 

5.       Cut the bread in ½ an inch slices and toast it. 

6.       Start by assembling the bread into the serving plate and create a small assembling line. Start by pouring some olive oil on top of the bread.  Continue with the lettuce and tomato, then the meat topped with picaeta, and finally crown it with the cheese on top.  Secure it with a toothpick.

 

 

 

7.       Serve them warm!

          Make sure you prepare this tapa when all the other ones are ready so it doesn’t cool off.

 

Hasta pronto!