We waited for Saturdays and their hour of the appetizer like May water. Cane here sweating on top of the bar as a faithful companion of that ray of sun that can be glimpsed through the door of the bar. Vermouth over there, warning that it's coming with force and that, why not, today the thing is going to lengthen with the drinks after eating. "Give me one of those gildas what do you have there", we exclaimed to the waiter, well soaked in its oil, it is the perfect trompe l'oeil for hunger. Now that we are done, we add some anchovies in vinegar, some salted anchovies and some patatas bravas. Let's go crazy and add a splash of gin to that vermouth The weekend was made to be enjoyed... and at home, too.
To replicate it properly, we ran (virtually) to ask the creators of Vallekas Bombs, Lizards and Rockets how to do it. Their fame and reputation precede them as (re)inventors of the gourmet banderilla with its skewers, gherkins and stuffed olives, a task that they premiered more than five years ago at the hands of Michael Angel Vaquer , founder and creative mind behind Casa Mariol vermouth. So if anyone can guide us to success, it's them.
"We have the name of a pyrotechnic establishment. We are colorful, fun and cool," says Kike Martínez from position #68 in the Vallecas Market . The same one in which, together with his team, they have been able to elaborate in an artisanal way, since 1965, the appetizers that supply the best bars (and homes, buying directly from his website) throughout Spain.
Their bombs they are those showy skewers of enormous gordal olives stuffed with all kinds of preserves and salted meats: pickled mussels, tuna, cheese... "For the most fans of vinegar we have a classic such as the lizards ", they emphasize, which would be those crunchy pickles stuffed with tuna, anchovies or boquerón, to eat with your fingers or with a knife and fork." And then there are the rockets , those banderillas or gildas with piparras from the Basque Country, peppers or olives. "The list of varieties is long, but the most iconic is the dali flag , with his piparra-mustache and his quail egg on top", describes Kike, making our mouths water.
Dali rocket
But enough of introductions, let's get down to work.
First, with the drink: A Half Combination , mythical drink that comes from the Spanish cocktail shakers who lived in Cuba in the 1920s. Now, it is a Madrid classic that is drunk at the Lhardy bar (it was also drunk at the Chicote Museum) while in Barcelona, it is the cocktail bar Boadas where they have great affection.
Preparation:
- Mix 2 parts red vermouth with 1 part gin.
- Add 2 drops of Curaçao and 2 drops of Amer Picon (or any bitter).
- Decorate with mint or a lemon peel.
For the appetizer, they recommend us to marinate our own mussels with an unpublished house recipe. And while we're at it, why not give your classic a spin? mussel bomb with her? The original recipe is made with an extra fat olive stuffed with mussels in red sauce, but in this case we will make it in its castizo-thai version.
Ingredients
- For the pickle:
- 50 ml light olive oil
- 90 g of red onion
- 2 minced garlic cloves
- 1 bay leaf
- 120 ml of orange juice and 3 g of orange peel
- 25 ml of lemon juice and 2 g of lemon peel
- 25 ml of lime juice and 1 g of lime peel
- 10 ml of rice vinegar
- 5 grams of salt
- 120 ml cooking water for the mussels
- 4 grains of black pepper and 2 pcs. green cardamom
- 2 g of fresh ginger
- 15 gr. red curry paste
Elaboration- For the mussels: In a saucepan over high heat, steam 1.5 kg of clean, fresh mussels with their own juice along with 50 ml of vermouth until the alcohol is reduced. Reserve the cooking water, which we will strain and use to make the marinade.
- For the marinade: Julienne the red onion and the minced garlic and ginger, poach in the oil and add the bay leaf. Add the citrus juices, the rice vinegar, the salt, the cooking water of the** mussels, the pepper and the cardamom together with the red curry paste**. Reduce 1/3 of the liquid to medium heat to reach the necessary consistency. Finely chop a julienne with the citrus skins and mix them with the hot marinade that we will reserve.
Marinated, finished and presentation
In a bowl place the mussels without the shell, cover with the marinade and marinate in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Finally, place on a plate in advance to temper the mussels and the marinade sauce, season with flaky salt and garnish with fresh coriander leaves and finely chopped peanuts.
Good appetite vermouths of good!