Eggs are something that never held any appeal for me. They were always too ‘wiggly’ and I had no interest in them.
And then I had Tortilla Espanola.
I was on a yoga retreat in Spain, staying at the house of an incredible chef who would cook us these grand brunches every single day. One of those days he was serving Tortilla Espanola, and I had no idea what it was but I was intrigued. It looked like a frittata made of mostly potatoes and a little bit of egg to hold it together and you put a potato in front of me, I’ll eat it.
So I took the tiniest sliver possible. 1/2 inch of tortilla slice. And then another one. And another. I was obsessed.
About a year went by and I had no idea what this thing was, I didn’t know how to research it, I didn’t know what to call it. All I knew was it was a giant round omelette filled with potatoes and I looooved it.
This past fall, I was reminiscing about my trip to Spain with my new boyfriend who had spent a good amount of time there and loves loves loves the food culture there. I was like, '“Did you ever have that thing that’s like an omelette but not really and it’s all potatoes and it’s so good?” He immediately knew what I was talking about and made it for me that night.
That was it for me folks. Hook. Line. Sinker.
Tortilla has become a staple in our diets these past few months, it’s delicious, simple, can be made ahead of time, takes three ingredients, and best of all we get to put ketchup on it.
Tortilla is the thing that got this picky girl to even eat omelettes that don’t have potatoes in them- I’ll even eat plain old eggs now if they’re cooked just right!
You can add a few slices of onion in when you’re cooking the potatoes but I love it just how it is.
Personally, I can’t get enough of Vital Farms eggs (this is not an add, I just taste the difference in pasture raised and you can even see it- the yolks are a completely different color). It’s worth paying the $5-6/dozen. The recipe will still be under $10 for a tortilla that will feed at least three maybe four.
Tortilla Española
(makes one 9” tortilla)
6 eggs
1 lb Yukon Gold Potatoes (about 3 small-medium)
1/4 c olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
Start by slicing the potatoes (longways, you want the slices to be long so they stack better) a little less than 1/4 in thick. If you have a mandolin, even better! You don’t have to peel the potatoes as long as they’re cleaned well.
In a 9” NONSTICK saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat for about two minutes. Drop the potatoes in all at the same time, season with salt and pepper and let them cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes, flipping the potatoes every 3-5 minutes or so until they’re just about cooked through. You don’t want the potatoes to brown, you just want them to be a little bit tender.
Crack the eggs into a separate bowl and beat the heck out of them for about a minute before pouring the eggs over the potatoes in the pan. Lower the heat to low and allow to cook, uncovered, for about ten minutes until the eggs begin to set. If you’d like, you can run a rubber spatula around the edges of the pan to make sure the eggs aren’t sticking.
Once the eggs are about set in the middle, flip the whole tortilla onto a plate, (do this over the sink just in case!!) slide it back into the pan, cooked side up, and cook over low flame for another 5 minutes or so until the bottom is set well.
Serve hot, at room temperature, or even cold straight out of the fridge the next morning!
xo
Audrey