Traveling around Spain, I love to eat tapas and small dishes instead of a big meal, especially since it is so hot. I love the culture of sitting and sipping a sangria or glass of red wine while sampling all kinds of foods in the evening and on into the night.
One of my all-time favorites is a Spanish Tortilla or Tortilla Española, a thick potato-filled egg omelet that can be enjoyed anytime, morning, noon or night. When we were traveling through Córdoba, we had to try it at Bar Santos next to the Mezquita. Since it’s a small shop with only a few seats, most people get their tortilla to go, and that’s what we did. We took our flimsy plastic tray with our golden treat and sat on the steps to eat it.
It was delicious. At any rate, I have fallen in love with this dish so we came home and whipped it up. Not as quick as most omelets since you have to pre-cook the potatoes and onions, it is well worth the extra time.
Here is our recipe for Tortilla Española
Ingredients:
*Note: the size of your frying pan really dictates the amount of ingredients, because you fry the onions and the potatoes in the pan, then combine them with the eggs to make the tortilla. If you use a family size pan, use the amount below, but if you want to make a smaller pan sized tortilla, try halfing the recipe.
4-6 potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1-2 onions, peeled and thinly sliced
½ cup or more of oil for frying. (If you use olive oil, do not get the pan too hot)
6-8 eggs
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1-2 cloves garlic, mashed and heated, optional
Method:
- Gently fry the sliced potatoes until they are tender, for about 10-12 minutes. They should be just cooked, still firm and not brown. When finished, dump them on a paper towel lined plate to drain.
- In the same oil, cook the onions until clear and soft, but not brown, about 8-10 minutes. When finished dump them onto the same plate as the potatoes.
- Wipe the frying pan with a paper towel to remove the oil and any little pieces of potato or onion remaining. Continue heating about 1 tablespoon of oil. Crack and whip the eggs with a fork in a bowl and set aside.
- Carefully layer the potatoes and onions in the frying pan and pour the eggs over the top. Cook until the eggs are completely set on the outside of the tortilla and halfway set in the middle (about 8-10 minutes), then carefully flip and cook the other side, tucking the potatoes underneath so they do not show. Cook until a toothpick comes out clean, about 6-9 minutes.
- Cool at least 10 minutes before serving.
I like to serve the tortilla with a green salad. It’s a great brunch or lunch item.
Have you had a Spanish Tortilla?
Author Bio: Corinne Vail is a travel photographer, food lover, and a perpetual traveler who has been travel writing for over 14 years. For many years she lived overseas in Germany, Japan, Turkey, South Korea, and the Netherlands teaching the children of the US. military. She’s visited over 90 countries, and she’s not stopping anytime soon.
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ourfamilytraveladventures
Friday 28th of July 2017
We spent a month in Spain and I started every day of it with a slice of Spanish Tortilla. I am so excited to try this recipe!
Corinne Vail
Saturday 29th of July 2017
Jen, What's not to like, right? Eggs and potato. Enjoy!
Kristin Henning
Tuesday 10th of May 2016
Picture perfect. I can almost taste it. We like to add a bit of green pepper, prepared with the onions.
Corinne Vail
Tuesday 10th of May 2016
Kris, Yum! Good idea.