The Classic Basque Gilda Is a Single Bite of Salty Goodness

The gilda, a skewer threaded with a piparra pepper, anchovy, and manzanilla olive, is Spain’s most iconic pintxo. Named after Rita Hayworth’s character in the 1946 film “Gilda,” this salty snack is “more than the sum of its parts,” says Alex Raij, chef/owner of New York’s Txikito with Eder Montero. “It’s a one-bite wonder in which all the flavors coalesce.” At Txikito, they serve a classic gilda, as well as a twist. The “hot jilda” is made with smoked Japanese sausage, guindilla pepper, pickled onion, and S&B mustard, the sinus-clearing Japanese condiment. “I’m obsessed with very spicy mustard and hot dogs, and Japanese food is influential at Txikito,” she says.

With only three elements, the gilda requires using the very best ingredients. That simplicity is also what gives chefs leeway to put their own spins on it. At Portland’s Urdaneta, it’s a one-bite dish made with a spherified olive, Cantabrian anchovy, boquerón, and piparra pepper relish. At Cincinnati’s Mita’s, black garlic joins the skewer of Castelvetrano olive, white anchovy, and guindilla and piquillo peppers. And at New York City’s Ernesto’s, it’s a cocktail garnish, in which a dirty martini comes capped with a gilda made with anchovies, olives, and pickled guindilla peppers and drizzled with olive oil and txakoli vinegar. But just remember the main requirement, Raij asserts: “You shouldn’t need to be a fire-eater at Coney Island to get it all in one bite.”

Amy Cavanaugh is a Chicago-based food and drink writer.