Did you know that you can make a delicious dinner with only potatoes and eggs? (Assuming you have oil and salt in your kitchen, of course.) They don’t even have to be good potatoes. Maybe you have some rubbery looking, wrinkly potatoes lurking in the back of your larder. Have no fear. This Spanish Tortilla Española (potato omelette) will be the answer.

There are many variations on this classic dish, where you can add onion, garlic and/or peppers. But they really aren’t necessary. This is a dish I learned while studying abroad in Barcelona. Many of my fellow student friends had already learned how to cook a tortilla española and it even appeared to be a point of pride as to who could make the best one. Whether they would fry each potato slice separately, use copious amounts of oil, or swear by putting the lid on the frying potatoes… the potato omelette found a special place in my heart!

The concept is simple: Slice potatoes, fry them in oil, whisk a few eggs, and don’t forget the salt. Let it set in a large pan over gentle heat, and then carefully flip it, allowing it to slide into the pan. I have been practicing this, quite literally for 20 years, which makes me feel both kind of old and very confident. Let me share my method with you – it’s not difficult!

What to do with it: Once you have made a Tortilla Española, it keeps well in the fridge, it travels well to picnics, kids love it’s simple ingredient taste. Warm or cold – still good. Serve it for lunch or dinner alongside Roasted Cherry Tomatoes. In fact I often eat it alongside my own “pan con tomate” by squashing those roasted tomatoes on my Easy Sourdough Bread. The Spanish fast food restaurants offer it on a baguette!

Ingredients

• 1 kilo potatoes
• 8 large eggs
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. Peel the potatoes and slice into rounds of roughly the same width.
2. Meanwhile, pour the olive oil into a large frying pan and set to warm to medium heat. I find this works with any frying pan so long as it is smooth (a non-stick pan that hasn’t been scraped off). The oil should cover the pan substantively. Tip – don’t skimp on the oil – it doesn’t taste as good and you may have trouble flipping it.
3. Place the potatoes into the oil and stir to coat them. Leave to fry, stirring occasionally, carefully as to not mash them, to try to allow all potatoes to brown in the oil. Tip – covering the pan will tend to steam the potatoes, so they break apart more easily when you stir.
4. Crack the eggs into a large bowl and whisk to combine. Add the salt and whisk again.
5. When the potatoes are cooked and most of them are slightly browned, it’s time to combine. Lift the potatoes out in batches, letting excess oil drip off, and add to the egg mixture. Gently stir to combine, again attempting not to break the slices too much.
6. Check the quantity of oil in the frying pot. If it is sparse, you’ll want to add a bit more. Then pour and gently shake the egg and potato mixture into the pan, flattening out the slices and trying to get an even layer into the pan.

8. Flip! When you shake the pan and can see the eggs don’t wobble and wiggle too much, and the sides have separated away from the pan, it’s time to flip. Place a large dinner plate over the top of the pan. Hold the pan handle with your strongest hand and put your other hand flat on top of the dinner plate. Announce to your family to stay out if the way just in case… take a deep breath, and flip the omelette into your weaker hand plate.
9. Return. Marvelling at the golden omelette you just created, set the pan back down on the heat. Then slide the omelette back into the pan to finish cooking – it only needs a few minutes.
10. Plate. The more beautiful side will be the fist side that cooked (unless you turn up the heat again and brown the second side). So to plate it, you need to repeat the flip onto a plate, and then slide the omelette off to have the browned side up. Serve immediately! But then, Tortillas are also good at room temperature or even cold. So do as you wish, but do enjoy!

I hope you try this Spanish Tortilla Española. If you’re into omelettes, try my Three Green Omelette too!