Passport & Plate - Spanish Tortilla
Spain | Friday, February 27, 2015 | 4 photos
Ingredients
2 cups Olive Oil
3 Medium Russet Potatoes
1/2 White Onion
4-6 Large Eggs
Salt
How to prepare this recipe1. Heat 1-2 cups olive oil over medium heat in an 8" nonstick pan.
2. Peel and cut onion into 1/4'' slices.
3. Peel and wash potatoes. Half potatoes length-wise and thinly slice into 1/8'' or transparent pieces. Heavily salt the potatoes.
4. Add onions to olive oil, let simmer for 5 minutes or until onions are aromatic and begin to soften. Add salted, sliced potatoes to onion and oil mixture.
5. After potatoes are golden, remove onions and potatoes from oil with a slotted spoon and place in a mixing bowl.
6. Set remaining oil aside to cool, reserve in a jar in the fridge for future tortillas.
7. Beat 4-6 eggs and add to potatoes and onions mixing contents thoroughly. Heat 8'' non-stick pan to medium-high heat.
8. Pour mixture into the pan. Wait 10-20 seconds, and begin to move pan, seeing that the egg has set and edges are white. Set an inverted plate on top of the pan, and flip!
9. Set the pan back on the stove and slide the tortilla from the plate to the pan cooked side up. Cook 10-20 more seconds. Repeat step 12 if a more golden crust or a less runny center is preferred.
10. Serve and enjoy!
The story behind this recipe"Beth, vete a coger una lengua!" The head chef yelled in the middle of the busy dinner shift.
Una lengua?... doesn't "lengua" mean tongue? Where would I find a tongue? I responded in my broken Spanish, "¿Dónde puedo encontrar una lengua?"
"Está en el cajón," the chef replied as my spirits lowered a little more. Great, so now I'm looking for a mystery item in some mystery place.
Realizing my state of absolute confusion, the most-patient-chef-ever smiled, walked me to a drawer, and showed me where they kept their spatulas and continued to show me how to make this recipe for the first time. This is 1 instance of 1000 that the kitchen staff at A Fuego Negro -- a badass pinxto bar in San Sebastian, Spain -- patiently showed me the ropes and taught me many lessons.
After 6 weeks in the kitchen, doing everything from cleaning seemingly bottomless buckets of chickens (unlike the ones at KFC, these came complete with heads and guts intact), to de-inking large squids, to making eyes out of merengue for a zombie dessert, the Spanish tortilla is the dish that has stuck with my from this past summer in San Sebastian, Spain.
As a college student that waits tables to pay for tuition and expenses, the Spanish tortilla is made of just five cheap and humble ingredients. However, the product boasts a complex flavor that is also filled with the nutrients I need for a meal. The Spanish tortilla has made its way as a staple in my kitchen, and it's not going anywhere soon. Try out a slice of Spain for yourself.
