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A tapa () is an appetizer or
snack A snack is a small portion of food generally eaten between meals. Snacks come in a variety of forms including packaged snack foods and other processed foods, as well as items made from fresh ingredients at home. Traditionally, snacks are ...
in Spanish cuisine. Tapas can be combined to make a full meal, and can be cold (such as mixed
olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ' ...
s and
cheese Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During productio ...
) or hot (such as ''chopitos'', which are battered, fried baby
squid True squid are molluscs with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles in the superorder Decapodiformes, though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also called squid despite not strictly fittin ...
, or patatas bravas). In some bars and restaurants in Spain and across the globe, tapas have evolved into a very sophisticated cuisine. In some Central American countries, such snacks are known as ''bocas''. In parts of Mexico, similar dishes are called ''botanas''.


History

The word "tapas" is derived from the Spanish verb ''tapar'', "to cover", a cognate of the English ''top''. In pre-19th-century Spain tapas were served by ''posadas'', ''albergues'' or ''bodegas'', offering meals and rooms for travellers. Since few innkeepers could write and few travellers read, inns offered their guests a sample of the dishes available, on a "tapa" (the word for pot cover in Spanish). According to '' Joy of Cooking'', the original tapas were thin slices of bread or meat which sherry drinkers in Andalusian taverns used to cover their glasses between sips. This was a practical measure meant to prevent fruit flies from hovering over the sweet sherry (see below for more explanations). The meat used to cover the sherry was normally ham or
chorizo Chorizo (, from Spanish ; similar to but distinct from Portuguese ) is a type of pork cured meat originating from the Iberian Peninsula. In Europe, chorizo is a fermented, cured, smoked meat, which may be sliced and eaten without cooking, ...
, which are both very salty and activate thirst. Because of this, bartenders and restaurant owners created a variety of snacks to serve with sherry, thus increasing their alcohol sales. The tapas eventually became as important as the sherry. Tapas have evolved through Spanish history by incorporating new ingredients and influences. Most of the
Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, def ...
was invaded by the Romans, who introduced more extensive cultivation of the olive following their invasion of Spain in 212 B.C. and
irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been devel ...
methods. The discovery of the
New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. ...
brought the introduction of
tomato The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word ...
es, sweet and chili peppers,
maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American English, North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous ...
(corn), and
potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Uni ...
es, which were readily accepted and easily grown in Spain's
microclimate A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often with a slight difference but sometimes with a substantial one. The term may refer to areas as small as a few squ ...
s. There are many tapas competitions throughout Spain, but there is only one National Tapas competition, which is celebrated every year in November. Since 2008, the City of
Valladolid Valladolid () is a municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and de facto capital of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. It has a population around 300,000 peop ...
and the International School of Culinary Arts have celebrated the International Tapas Competition for Culinary Schools. Various schools from around the world come to Spain annually to compete for the best tapa concept.


Origin

Though the primary meaning of ''tapa'' is ''cover'' or ''lid'', in Spain it has also become a term for this style of food. The origin of this new meaning is uncertain but there are several theories: * The tapas tradition may have begun when king
Alfonso X Alfonso X (also known as the Wise, es, el Sabio; 23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) was King of Castile, León and Galicia from 30 May 1252 until his death in 1284. During the election of 1257, a dissident faction chose him to be king of Ger ...
of Castile (1221-1284) recovered from an illness by drinking wine with small dishes between meals. After regaining his health, the king ordered that taverns would not be allowed to serve wine to customers unless it was accompanied by a small snack or "tapa". * Another popular and more modern explanation says that King Alfonso XIII (1886-1941), the last ruling monarch of Spain, stopped by a famous tavern in
Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...
(Andalusian city) where he ordered a glass of
wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented grapes. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different ...
. The waiter covered the glass with a slice of cured ham before offering it to the king, in order to protect the wine from the blowing beach sand, as Cádiz is a windy place. The king, after drinking the wine and eating the ham, ordered another wine "con la tapa" ("with the cover").


See also

* List of tapas * List of hors d'oeuvre * Aahaan kap klaem * Antipasto *
Crostino Crostini (meaning "little crusts" in Italian; singular ''crostino'') are an Italian appetizer consisting of small slices of grilled or toasted bread and toppings. The toppings may include a variety of different cheeses, meats, vegetables and cond ...
*
Hors d'œuvre An hors d'oeuvre ( ; french: hors-d'œuvre ), appetiser or starter is a small dish served before a meal in European cuisine. Some hors d'oeuvres are served cold, others hot. Hors d'oeuvres may be served at the dinner table as a part of the ...
*
Meze Meze or mezza (, ) is a selection of small dishes served as appetizers in the Levant, Turkey, Greece, the Balkans, the Caucasus and Iran. It is similar to Spanish tapas and Italian antipasti. A mezze may be served as a part of a multi-course ...
* Pincho *
Pu pu platter A pu pu platter is a tray of American Chinese or Hawaiian food consisting of an assortment of small meat and seafood appetizers. The ''Thrillist'' called the pu-pu platter "an amalgam of Americanized Chinese food, Hawaiian tradition and bar foo ...
* Smörgåsbord *
Smørrebrød (; originally , "butter and bread") smørbrød "butter bread" (Norwegian language, Norwegian), is a traditional open-faced sandwich in the cuisine of Denmark, cuisines of Denmark, Cuisine of Norway, Norway and Cuisine of Sweden, Sweden that usua ...
* Zakuski


References


External links


About.com Guide to Tapas in Spain.


History and recipes in Spanish and English
Tapa Tells All
{{Authority control Appetizers Serving and dining Spanish cuisine