Basque in a Bite

A Beginner’s Intro to Pintxos

BY KRISTINA CASE

In Boise, the Basque-American population swells to around 15,000 people, the second largest concentration in the United States. Their culture is celebrated downtown in an area known as the Basque Block, which includes a museum, restaurants, and market. The Jaialdi Festival, held every five years in Idaho and scheduled for July 26-31, 2022, attracts thousands of visitors and locals with Basque food, drink, music, dance, and cultural traditions during one of the largest festivals in the world.

The Basque country is a small area straddling north-central Spain and southwestern France. Basques immigrated to the United States with the discovery of silver mines in the mid-1800s, but eventually resorted to ranching and feeding the miners with their sheep and cattle.Their knowledge of livestock proved to be indispensable, leading to Idaho’s thriving Basque community and contributing to the state’s active sheep industry.

As a native Idahoan and long-time Boise resident, my experience with authentic Basque cuisine was lacking, but curiosity led me to a class on Basque cooking. To begin, I started with the humble, albeit delicious, Pintxos (pronounced peen-chos). These small, tasty bites are similar to Spanish tapas (Don’t call them tapas around a Basque!) and commonly found in pubs shared family-style.

First, I stopped by the Basque Market and ordered a trio of Pintxos that included a tasty beef and pork meatball in a tomato-choricero pepper sauce, a ham and egg omelette square topped with cheese on a baguette, and my favorite—a croquette. These addictive, crispy fried balls of goodness surround a creamy, Bechamel middle. Basque menus offer a wide variety of croquettes flavored with differing meats, fish, and vegetables.

The recipe for Pintxos is quick and easy and the ingredient list is short. But trust me, the flavors of the garlicky olive oil, crunchy bread, and bright parsley provide a savory surprise in each bite.

GARLIC SHRIMP PINTXOS

Ingredients:

5 slices baguette brushed with olive oil and toasted

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

4 cloves garlic, chopped

15 raw jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined

3/4 tsp sweet smoked Spanish paprika (Don’t use regular paprika!)

handful of freshly chopped parsley

sea salt and black pepper

toothpicks

Directions:

Add olive oil to a frying pan and heat for 2 minutes over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute, making sure the garlic doesn’t burn. Add shrimp that have been seasoned with salt and pepper and after 1 minute, flip the shrimp to cook the other side. After another minute, add smoked paprika, give it a quick mix, and remove from the heat. Spread some garlic oil on a baguette piece, top with shrimp and parsley. Pierce each with a toothpick to hold everything together. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from spainonafork.com