Active Time
1 hr
Total Time
1 3/4
María de los Angeles Rodrguez Artacho, co-owner with her husband of Bar Jordi, was kind enough to share her recipe.
Ingredients
Serves 4 to 8 for tapas or lunch
Preparation
Step 1
Heat oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderate heat until hot but not smoking and add potatoes, onion, and half of salt. Cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are very tender but not colored, about 45 minutes. Drain vegetables in a large colander set over a bowl and cool 5 minutes. Lightly beat eggs in a large bowl. Gently stir in vegetables with 1 tablespoon oil, salt, and pepper to taste.
Step 2
Return 1 tablespoon oil to skillet and add mixture, pressing potatoes flush with eggs. Cook over low heat, covered, 12 to 15 minutes, or until almost set. Turn off heat and let stand, covered, 15 minutes. Shake skillet gently to make sure tortilla is set on bottom and not sticking to skillet. Invert tortilla onto a large flat plate and slide back into skillet, bottom side up. (Alternatively, especially if top is still loose at this point, slide tortilla onto plate first. Cover it with skillet and invert tortilla back into skillet.) Round edge with a rubber spatula and cook over low heat, covered, 15 minutes more, or until set. Slide tortilla onto a serving plate and serve warm or at room temperature.
· Tortilla keeps, covered and chilled, 2 days.
Leave a Review
Reviews (41)
Back to TopI read all the reviews and can't believe no one commented that the photo has a lot more ingredients than just potatoes. This recipe looks incomplete. You have to rate this to post a review so I gave it 4 forks based on others experiences although I hate to 'skew' a recipe rating.
Anonymous
huntington Beach, CA
3/4/2017
Great Recipe just as it should be made. Thank you
FreddyC
Tucson, AZ
6/14/2013
Made this for an appetizer reception - my first trial I tried to bake in a sheet pan but had forgotten much of the salt which is crucial. For the real thing, did all cooking in a non-stick skillet as directed, thinly sliced yukon gold potatoes and onions, added a few dashes of paprika and 2 smashed garlic cloves to the oil as it heated, fished the garlic out as the veggies drained. Placed the pan under the broiler for 2 minutes to set the top enough to be able to flip. YUM!
ebjacobsen
Walnut Creek, CA
7/2/2011
This recipe is great except that it says to simmer the veggies in oil for far too long. My potatoes were done at 15 minutes. Mark Bittman's recipe is better. I also like a few of Bittman's tips like: the potatoes should not be put in the oil until hot enough to make the potato bubble. I also like his direction that tells you to turn the temperature down until the oil bubbles lazily, what a perfect description.
scoplen
San Diego
3/16/2011
What a pain in the patootie this was! All that oil in the painstaking prep of the veggies and then ruin it all with only a scant tbl in the pan and the thing sticks and isn't cooked anyway because "Low" meant medium so the thing had not even BEGUN to cook after 15 minutes. Sheesh. I returned the mess to the pan, cranked it up and cut little squares out of it when done. THe painstaking prep at least resulted in a tasty if ugly result. Find a simpler recipe.
KMEC12
Berkeley, Ca
12/3/2010
I can't write a review of this as I made a significant change, recommended below by another reviewer. Rather than slow cook the potatoes in oil I used kettle cooked potato chips (Route 11 chips, a local Virginia brand). I slow cooked the onions in about 1/4 olive oil and let them cool. Then combined about 4-5 oz of chips with the onions, fresh ground pepper, and 5 eggs. Once the chips had softened I cooked the mixture as directed in about 1 T of the oil from the onions, pressing down with a spatula. This served four as part of a tapas buffet with few leftovers. After dinner I asked my foodie friends if they could tell I had taken a shortcut and no one could. Great time saver!
Anonymous
Charlottesville, VA
11/8/2010
Delicious and useful base that gets better with time. We spread cambazola cheese on top. I did add red pepper flakes, chopped fresh oregano and parsley and garlic. Did bake in a rectangular, well-buttered pan as we didn't have a nonstick skillet that was large enough.
45parallelchef
8/15/2010
Perfect recipe! Used my 10.25" well-seasoned cast iron skillet, 1.5 pounds red potatoes sliced at 1/4" on my mandolin, 1 large yellow onion, and 3/4 cup olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 6 large eggs. Followed all directions religiously and ended up with a magnificent tortilla. Recipe is amazingly easy and requires very little active work--just use a timer and check on it occasionally.
klokanek
York, PA
3/28/2010
It's a great base for the essential Torta Espanola. I made three today for a dinner party, with more experimentation on the second and third. Adding fresh chopped thyme and sage when sauteing the veggies was a nice touch. It adds a little different, but complementary character.
mrido47
1/24/2010
use fewer eggs, put in paprika, and use olive oil.oh, and put in cut pieces of spanish chorizo.
boricualax
12/29/2009
This is a fantastic recipe for a basic Spanish Tortilla. I like this one because of the "low and slow" cooking method which yields more consistent results -- the version I've been making for years that I learned in Spain from my friend's Grandma is delicious, yet it is made quickly over high heat, and is a little more difficult to control the final product.
terrance817
10/11/2009
Good recipe, although I would make a few changes next time to make it more authentic-seeming. I'd use fewer eggs, maybe 6; you want the tortilla to be mostly potato, with egg as a binder. Olive oil is best. Don't worry about the amount of oil because you drain out a lot of it - use the remainder in other dishes because it has a wonderful flavor. And I just kept inverting without waiting in between - worked fine for me. Tastes awesome!
Anonymous
Oakland, CA
9/24/2009
A tip from a friend saves me some time: I microwave, in batches, the onions and potatoes (post slicing) with a bit of oil tossed in, until tender. then finish off in pan before soaking in the egg and returning to pan. I like to let it soak for about 10 minutes.
Anonymous
Laguna Beach, Ca.
8/13/2009
this recipe is great! i've tried other tortilla recipes, and they just didn't have that same deliciousness that i remembered from eating in spain. i also agree that thinly sliced potatoes is definitely the better way to go. though i'm not a huge believer in the need for authenticity, that's how the tortilla i ate in spain was done for the most part. it also makes a great stacking effect. you can definitely use less oil than 1.5 cups. i've made this several times and have done between 1-1.25 cups, which is plenty.
luckycbear
oakland, ca
6/22/2009
This was my favorite meal when I lived in Spain...it's best as a bocadillo (served cool on crusty hard bread). I love the potatoes sliced thin so they make layers in the tortilla instead of cubed. My shortcut? Kettle cooked potato chips (Cape Cod Potato Chips are best but Lays makes some too). Just soak them in the egg mixture. Cook the onion in MUCH less oil and add when cooled. The rest is the same. Ooooo....leave out the extra salt. Your chips will be salty enough!
CaseysCookbook
Cape Cod, MA
5/29/2009