What to Cook for a Mexican Tapas Party

Mexican Tapas Ideas

One of the most popular cuisines, Mexican food combines the best of a wide array of vegetables and spices, including courgette, corn and tomatoes (red and green!).

Disclosure: Post in collaboration with McCain.

World-renowned for its chillies, enchiladas and tacos, authentic Mexican is naturally fresh, healthy and boasts a mix of superfoods.

Native ingredients include avocados, cocoa, tomatoes, squashes and vanilla.

In more recent years, the cuisine has experienced some strong European influences, among these include meats such as beef and chicken, cheese and a host of herbs and spices.

If you’re planning a Mexican tapas party, you may be looking for a little inspiration.

The good news is that most dishes are quick and easy to make, and you’ll also find you can reuse many ingredients that form staples of many dishes, which means excellent value for money.

Mexican food is best served fresh, and the ingredients listed above feature in abundance, offering delicious cuisine for your guests.

Mexican Chicken Wings

A small but perfectly formed food for a tapas party and a Mexican twist on normal chicken wings. Easy to make and oven-ready in around 45 minutes; you’ll need chicken wings, flour, chilli, salt and garlic powder.

Looking for the perfect accompaniment for your wings?

Try McCain Lightly Spiced Wedges, a tasty way to create Mexican chicken and chips.

Bake for 18 minutes, turning them every now and again until they’re crisp and lightly golden; alternatively, grill for 12-14 minutes.

Guacamole

No Mexican tapas is complete without lashings of creamy and delicious guacamole.

Made using a refreshing blend of Mexico’s finest and freshest ingredients, for this dish you’ll need avocado, red onion, garlic, tomato, lime and a pinch of salt.

See this recipe for homemade guacamole for inspiration.

Grilled Sweetcorn

Such a simple but pleasurable food, and an absolute must-have for your tapas, grilled sweetcorn couldn’t be easier to make.

Simply grill your sweetcorn until it's nicely browned and cooked throughout. Then ladle on cheese sauce – or vegan cheese for those who don’t eat dairy; scrumptious.

Fried Jalapeños

What’s a Mexican meal without some spice? Your guests will love to indulge in fried jalapeños, but they’re not for the faint-hearted! Slice your peppers into one-inch rings and choose a batter to please.

Quick and easy to make in around 15 minutes, you’ll need flour, red chilli powder, garlic powder, eggs, salt and oil.

Tomatillo Salsa

A healthy dish that enables you to use lots of the ingredients from your guacamole, including, onions, chillies, avocado and lime.

The key ingredient in this recipe is tomatillo, otherwise known as the Mexican husk tomato. This dish is a great accompaniment served with burritos and tacos.

Nachos

A perfect sidekick to your salsa and Mexican side dish for all occasions, nachos are widely available in supermarkets. Load them up with cheese, chicken, corn, black beans, chiles, onions, tomatoes, jalapeños and more.

Chicken Mini-Burrito

Who can resist a burrito? Traditionally a food of Ciudad Juárez, a city bordering El Paso, Texas, located in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua, this dish blends the best of Mexican flavours perfectly in a flour tortilla wrap.

Burritos take a little longer to prepare and cook than most, so give yourself time to get the ingredients together. The great part is you’ll get to use up any spare jalapeños and salsa.

Baked Sweet Potatoes, Avocado & Queso Fresco

It’s nice to add sweetness to all that spice and baked sweet potatoes, avocado and queso fresco (literally 'fresh cheese') do not disappoint.

This is a simple dish to make with a handful of ingredients including avocados, Mexican queso fresco and sweet potatoes. Jamie Oliver’s recipe is well worth a try.

Spicy Refried Beans

Last but not least, don’t forget the beans. Great for your tapas, beans are nutritional powerhouses. Mexican spicy fried beans are a great side dish perfect for your tapas - simply leave out the chillies to keep them mild. This dish works well with cheese melted on top.