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Combo Pack: Let’s Make Gildas
$27.50
The gilda is among the most traditional uses for anchovy fillets. Simple and endlessly variable, like all good things to eat. At its simplest it is a one-bite skewer of olive, anchovy, and guindilla pepper. It is often doubled, often riffed on with the addition of pickled cucumber, pickled onion, piquillo pepper, or other crunchy salty bits. We do not disapprove, but we have yet to see any variation surpass the original. If you’ve never had a gilda you’re probably thinking, “Egads, that must be salty.” If you’ve never had saucisson sec on buttered baguette you would think the butter superfluous. Not the case, in both cases. “It’s the acid of the pickled pepper, no, it’s the little bit of heat, no, it’s the two different oils of the olive and the anchovy, no, it’s the umami, no, it’s the crunchewy, no, hmm. More research required.”
Comes with a jar of Bernal Pitted Manzanilla Olives and a jar of Himafesa Guindillas en Vinagre (Basque Green Peppers in Vinegar) and a tin of Olasagasti Anchovy Fillets and a free dozen 4″ bamboo skewers, so that you can begin building right out of the box. But we chose the Olasagasti for no compelling reason other than we wanted the kit to have a default option. We can swap it out for any anchovy fillet we carry (and adjust the price accordingly), or if you already have your own anchovy fillets we can send just the olives and peppers and skewers and adjust the price. Just let us know in the “Order notes” as you check out if you would like us to customize for you.
phdurniak (verified owner) –
I’m not shy about using anchovies in a recipe, but this was the first time I’ve had them whole and as the star of the show. And they delivered! Super delicious fish, tender, but still firm enough to skewer. Can also confirm that despite sounding like a salt bomb, but everything balances nicely and it is not overpowering at all. Will definitely be making gildas again in the future
emajkut (verified owner) –
I didn’t know anchovies could be like this until now! My only experience with them up until this point had been the junk they keep in the back collecting dust at your local pizzeria that no one ever orders (and for good reason). I’ve never had the impulse to describe a tinned seafood product as buttery before, but the Olasagasti anchovies that come with this by default brought this description to mind. Even the aroma coming off the tin after opening it was simply lovely. As for the Gildas, I’m convinced there’s some sort of alchemy going on here. The oil from the anchovies mingles with the oil from the olives, the briny punch from the olive and the pepper, the mild burn from the guindilla on the way down. YUM! I want to order five more of these so I can share them with all my friends and family. Super easy to put together, incredibly delicious and they look great on a serving tray. I can only imagine these would be even better if you splurge and swap out for some fancier anchovies.