Tortilla Espanola

Barcelona served food in a traditional Spanish style, where small portions shared by many allow you to sample a variety of dishes. We started our meal with the most delicious and very popular tortilla Espanola or Spanish omelet. This dish, served hot or cold is often made of potatoes and onions has a relatively simple recipe with a few ingredients making it something the home cook might like to try.

No matter what, don’t forget the Sangria! At Barcelona it can be served in the traditional red, white or blush with pomegranate juice, all are scintillating and vibrant.

Tortilla Espanola

Ingredients
6-7 medium peeled potatoes
1 whole yellow onion
5-6 large eggs
2-3 cups of olive oil for pan frying
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Cut peeled potatoes in half lengthwise. Then, with the flat side on the cutting surface, slice the potato in pieces approximately 1/8″ thick. Make sure to separate the pieces that stick together. Peel and chop the onion into 1/4″ pieces. Put potatoes and onions into a bowl and mix them together. Salt the mixture.

In a large, heavy, non-stick frying pan, heat the olive oil on medium high heat. Carefully place the potato and onion mixture into the frying pan, spreading them evenly over the surface. The oil should almost cover the potatoes. You may need to turn down the heat slightly, so the potatoes do not burn. Note: If the oil is too hot, the potatoes will brown rapidly on the outside, but still be raw on the inside.

Leave in pan until the potatoes are cooked. If you can poke a piece of potato with a spatula and it easily breaks in two, your potatoes are done. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon or spatula. Crack eggs into a large mixing bowl and beat by hand with a whisk or fork, fold in the potato onion mixture.

Pour one to two tbsp of olive oil into a small, non-stick frying pan and medium heat. Stir the potato onion mixture once more and “pour” into the pan and spread out evenly. Allow the egg to cook around the edges. The inside of the mixture should not be completely cooked and the egg will still be runny.

When the mixture has browned on the bottom, you are ready to turn it over to cook the other side. When cooked, place a large dinner plate upside down over the frying pan. With one hand on the frying pan handle and the other on top of the plate to hold it steady, quickly turn the frying pan over and the omelet will “fall” onto the plate. Place the frying pan back on the range and put just enough oil to cover the bottom and sides of the pan–approximately 1.5 tsp. Let the pan warm for thirty seconds or so. Now slide the omelet (which is probably still a bit runny), into the frying pan, using a spatula to catch any egg mixture that runs out. Use the spatula to shape the sides of the omelet. Let the omelet cook for three-four minutes. Turn the heat off and let the tortilla sit in the pan for two minutes.

To serve as a main course, slice it into six-eight pieces like a pie with French bread on the side.
If you are serving as an appetizer, slice a baguette into pieces about ½ inch think. Cut the tortilla into 1.5 inch squares and place a piece on top of each slice of bread.

The full recipe can be found here.