TAPEAR THE TAPA

One of the most important actions in the Spanish gastronomy is to tapear: the action of to take little portions of food with the wine and beer. And it receives the name of TAPA. In English this word meaning to cover.

Tapear is one of the symbols of the Spanish gastronomy. The tapas are used between the important food (lunch and dinner). It is one tradition to kill the hungry. The Spanish taverns give some free food with the drink. And it’s usual to go the tavern and tavern to eat some different tapas. This tradition even substitutes the dinner or the lunch.

The origin of this concept (tapa) becomes from the past centuries and some kings were involved in it. The legend says that the King Alfonso X was sick and he had to drink some wine along all day. He started to take some food with the wine for not to get drunk. It is the first meaning of Tapa: to cover the intoxication of the alcohol. For that, the king ordered the taverns to give some free food with the wine and beer. It was typical, like a law, that the customers, first, had to finish the tapa before to drink.

Another meaning of the tapa is the action of to cover the drink for to save it of the mosquitoes and the dust. With the cheese or the ham the customers could cover their wine and beer.

Now, the tradition is alive and with a lot of power. The tapeo in spain is almost like a religion. The Tapa is the little food which you can eat without knife and fork and it is the enough little like to eat it in only one time. For that, is very useful the toothpicks. Olivas, Tortilla de patatas, jamón, ensaladilla rusa, croquetas, patatas alioli, gazpacho, boquerones en vinagre, and queso are the most tipicals tapas in Spain.