The art of Alioli and Tomato bread
How could such a brutal human being invent such a fine dish? It is the Roman emperor Nero, loathed as the man who burned Rome, who is credited with inventing the combination of garlic and olive oil now known in Spain as ajaceite or alioli, and so basic to Spanish cuisine.
Today, this creamy garlic mixture is especially popular with the Catalans, and the name comes from the Catalan words all (garlic) and oli (oil). True alioli (the Catalan word is pronounced all-ee—ohlee) consists only of these two ingredients, plus a pinch of salt, and nothing else. The garlic is pounded with a wooden pestle and the oil added to the mortar very gradually. The addition of egg used to be frowned on, but now, almost everyone uses a little. The test of the cook’s skill is to be able to turn the mortar upside down with the finished alioli inside, without any of it falling out. Not many people manage that! Alioli is served as a piquant sauce to accompany a whole variety of fish and rice dishes, and also with broiled meat as well as vegetables.
ALIOLI
Original version:
3 large cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped
¼ – ½ tsp salt
½ -1 cup/125-250 ml olive oil
Lemon juice to taste
Pound the garlic and salt to an even consistency, using a mortar and pestle. Then add the olive oil drop by drop at first, increasing to a thin stream and stirring constantly until a thick paste is formed. Add lemon juice to taste.
Modern alioli imitation:
3 Large cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped
½ tsp salt
1-2 egg yolks
I cup/250 ml olive oil
Lemon juice to taste
Cut up the garlic and pound it with salt to an even paste, using a mortar and pestle. Stir in the egg yolk. Then add the olive oil drop by drop at first,, increasing to a thin stream and working it in by stirring constantly. Flavour with lemon juice to taste and serve cold. A balloon or hand whisk may be used to stir in the oil if preferred.
Tomato Bread
The Catalans’ simplest dish has something of a symbolic significance for them, and brings back fond memories: the deliciousness of that tomato bread that their mothers prepared for them when they came home from school. The well-loved pa amb tamaquet (bread with tomato, Spanish pan con tomate) is so much part of Catalan everyday life that people tend to think of it as an ancient tradition. In fact, the tomato was introduced from America, and only became common in Catalan cooking in the 18th century. The magnificent combination of tomato with bread and olive oil probably only came about in the mid-19th century
The basic ingredient for tomato bread is the large, round country loaf pa de pages. It should have a firm texture, and beneath its brown baked crust it keeps fresh and moist for a day or two. The best tomatoes to use are small, deep red, and, above all, very ripe and juicy Any well-ordered Catalan greengrocery store will have separate displays of salad tomatoes and bread tomatoes. Pa amb tamaquet is quite unlike a tomato sandwich. The way to make it is to cut a tomato in half and rub it over the slice of bread. A few drops of the best cold-pressed olive oil, followed by a scattering of salt, and it is ready.
Tomato bread is either eaten just as it is, or with cheese, smoked ham, or one of the many regional types of sausage. It also goes well with Spanish tortilla or meat cooked on a charcoal grill. The bread is sometimes toasted before rubbing with tomato. This tastes particularly good when combined with preserved sardines from the coastal village of L’Escala (anxaves de l’Escala).
Restaurants that like to observe tradition bring the bread and tomatoes to the table separately to allow guests to prepare their own tomato bread. Others specialize in llesques de pa (slices of bread); these consist of tomato bread with a host of different ingredients — from plain ham to escilvada, roast vegetables served cold with virgin olive oil. The possibilities for pa umb tomdquet are seemingly endless, despite its simple nature.
Alioli and other Spanish Recipes with Bill & Sheila>/b>(click on the graphic for more information)
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