Colm O'Gorman: How to make Patatas Bravas and Pil Pil Prawns in under 40 minutes

My tapas feast is super easy and totally delicious 

I love informal, easy dinners with friends. The kind of meal where you can lay out lots of plates of food and let everyone help themselves. Easy recipes, that taste great but are relatively quick and easy to make. Tapas are perfect for this. Small plates of tasty food to share, which are big on flavour, but will not require you to spend all your time in the kitchen and away from your guests.

I have three lovely tapas recipes for you this week. Dates stuffed with Goats Cheese, Almonds, and Bacon, Patatas Bravas and Pil Pil Prawns. These work beautifully together. You could have them as appetisers or serve them with a cheese board, some good olives, and other nibbles along with some fresh crusty bread for a more substantial meal. Some Peppers Padron would be great too. I shared a recipe for those in an earlier column, you will find that on ieFood.

A few notes on the ingredients. For the dates, use Medjool dates. They have the best flavour and are a good size to stuff. I used Chèvre-style goat cheese, the kind that comes in a little log with a rind like Brie or Camembert. You could wrap the dates in serrano ham or prosciutto if you wish, but I used unsmoked streaky bacon. A single rasher cut in two is the perfect size and thickness to wrap around a date and tastes delicious.

Patatas Bravas are traditionally deep-fried, but I toss mine in olive oil and fine polenta and then air fry or oven bake them instead. You could skip the polenta if you wish, but I highly recommend using it, it gives the patatas a beautifully crisp, golden finish. For the sauce, use a tin of cherry tomatoes instead of regular chopped tomatoes. They have a much sweeter more intense flavour.

Make sure to use fresh raw king prawns for the Pil Pil Prawns. You will find them ready to cook in most supermarkets these days.

Dates stuffed with Goat Cheese, Almond, and Bacon

recipe by:Colm O'Gorman

Serve with drinks or as part of a tapas feast - these bite-sized beauties never last long.

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 25 mins

Course

 Side

Cuisine

 Spanish

Ingredients

• 12 Medjool dates

• 60g goat’s cheese

• 1 tsp orange zest

• 12 blanched almonds

• 6 strips of streaky bacon

• 12 cocktail sticks

Method

1. Soak the toothpicks in some water for about fifteen minutes. This will prevent them from burning when you cook the dates. Use a small, sharp knife to cut a slit lengthways in each date and remove the stone. Cut the cheese into four equal slices and then cut each slice into three.

2. Dip each piece of cheese into the orange zest, you just need a little on each, do not overdo it. Stuff the date with the cheese and an almond and press the edges together to seal. Cut the rashers of bacon in half and wrap each date in a piece of bacon. Stick a toothpick through the bacon and the date to hold everything in place.

3. Place them on a baking tray in an oven preheated to 200°C and cook for 12-15 minutes. 

Pil Pil Prawns

recipe by:Colm O'Gorman

Garlicky, spicy prawns - is there anything more yummy?

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 10 mins

Total Time

 15 mins

Course

 Side

Cuisine

 Spanish

Ingredients

• 250g peeled raw king prawns

• 50ml olive oil

• 3 cloves of garlic

• ¾ tsp hot smoked paprika

• Juice of half a lemon

• Chopped red chilli

• Some rusty white bread to serve

Method

1. Heat the olive oil for the prawn dish in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Finely slice the garlic, add it and the smoked paprika to the oil and sauté for one minute.

2. Turn the heat up high  before adding the prawns. Cook the prawns until they are pink, about four minutes. Add the lemon juice and some chopped red chilli and serve with crusty bread. 

Patatas Bravas

recipe by:Colm O'Gorman

Delicious crispy potatoes topped with a spicy sauce

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 35 mins

Total Time

 40 mins

Course

 Side

Cuisine

 Spanish

Ingredients

• 4 large rooster potatoes

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• 3 tbsp fine polenta

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 1 onion

• 1 clove garlic

• 1 tsp smoked paprika

• 1 tin tomatoes

• 1 tbsp honey

• Mayonnaise to serve

Method

1. Peel and cut the potatoes into 2.5cm cubes. Rinse and then blanche them in a pot of boiling water for three minutes. Drain the potatoes and toss them in the olive oil and polenta. Air fry at 200°C for twenty minutes or roast them in the oven at 200°Cfor twenty to twenty-five minutes until they are golden and crisp.

2. Finely chop the onion and the garlic. Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about three to four minutes. Now add the salt, garlic and smoked paprika.  Cook for another two minutes and add the tomatoes and the honey. Bring to a simmer and cook for another five minutes. Use a stick blender or food processor to blitz to a smooth sauce. Taste and season with a little more salt if required. Cover and keep warm until you are ready to serve.

3. Serve the Patatas Bravas in a warm bowl. Pour over the tomato sauce and drizzle over some mayonnaise.