Spanish Tortilla

If you put tomatoes in a Spanish tortilla, top it with cilantro and then serve it with salsa, does it then become a Mexican tortilla? A Mexican Spanish tortilla? No lo sé.

Regardless, it's tasty. Spanish tortilla is one of the few dishes I make on the regular, obsessed with these simple slices of egg and potato omelet since 2001 (yes, that long ago) when I did my study abroad semester in Spain. Believe it or not, my Spanish university cafeteria made a mean tortilla. My attempts have never reached the fluffy egg heights of the tortilla in my Spain memories, but I've made plenty of pretty darn good ones (and a few fails) in my home kitchen since then.

I am not a Spaniard, and because of this, I have no qualms about my refusal to flip the tortilla. The traditional way to make a tortilla is to flip the entire thing to cook the other side. I happily prefer to set my pan under the broiler for a few minutes and avoid the clean-up and not-so-nice language that would surely result from my flippin' flip. Choose your adventure.

Aside from the flip, another key to good tortilla is soft (but not too soft) potatoes. I posted about making Spanish tortilla five years ago - check it out here if you'd like, but I no longer boil the potatoes and go for more of a thin slice instead of chunks, sauteing the slices with a bit of onion until soft but still holding themselves together. Tortilla is one of my favorite ways to use leftover roasted potatoes, but alas, I rarely have them on hand because I am a monster who cleans up the potato plate every single time (especially the crispy ones).

Aside from that, making tortilla is an easy, flexible meal that I make for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Sauteed onion and potato are traditional, but if you throw in some grape tomatoes that are starting to get on the wrinkly side of fresh, or maybe a bit of sauteed garlicky kale, or some leftover ham or bacon, I say good on you.

Spanish Tortilla
2-3 potatoes, cut into small thin slices
1/2 an onion, diced
Olive oil
6-8 eggs
Salt and pepper
Any extra add-ins (I put in a handful of grape tomatoes, sliced in half)

Heat a few Tablespoons of oil in an 8- or 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat - don't be stingy with the oil. After 3 or 4 minutes, drop in a potato slice. When tiny bubbles appear around its edges, add potatoes, onions, a good pinch of salt and a liberal sprinkling of pepper. Gently turn mixture in oil with a wooden spoon, and adjust heat so oil bubbles lazily.

Cook, turning potatoes gently every few minutes, until they are tender when pierced with a small knife. Adjust the heat so they do not brown. If potatoes begin to break, they are overdone; stop cooking immediately. As potatoes cook, beat eggs with some salt and pepper in a large bowl.

Pour eggs over potatoes in skillet. As soon as edges firm up, after a minute or so, reduce heat to medium-low. Cook 5 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven broiler and move oven rack to highest position.

After those 5 minutes are up and the tortilla seems to be firmly set on the bottom (but not burnt), slide pan under the broiler for 2-4 minutes. Watch carefully - you want to remove the tortilla when it is set and starting to brown. It will burn quickly if left a moment too long under the broiler.

When the top of the tortilla is set and starting to brown, remove tortilla from broiler. Using a spatula and a little jiggle of the pan, loosen the tortilla to ensure it will slide out from the pan.  Slide or flip it out of the pan onto a large plate - serve warm (not hot) or at room temperature.