Spanish potato tortilla, the protein-packed tapa

This week for I Made it So You Don’t Have To, I decided to venture into tapas territory and experiment with Spanish cuisine. The potato tortilla, or Spanish omelet, is my favorite tapas dish to order at a Spanish restaurant.  I will admit, it is a lot easier eating it than making it. But, if you want to put your culinary skills to the test, this is the recipe to do it.  

Please allow yourself about one hour to make this because, in this case, slow and steady wins the race. The recipe I found is on TikTok, for those that still have it downloaded, on @Sad_papi’s page. For those that do not have TikTok, to follow along video-wise, you can either go on Ebay or to GameStop and purchase yourself a $2000 phone with the app downloaded or follow along here for free. 

First up is chopping the vegetables. It is not your traditional slice and dice of some of the past recipes we have covered. First, cut the onion in half on top of the bushy end and then peel the skin and rinse with water. Place the onions down on the newly created flat ends and cut both the bushy and pointy end off. In the same direction you cut the ends off in, slice down the middle of the onion but keep it all together. Then, rotate the onion so your middle cut is perpendicular to the knife and slice vertically all the way through, creating quarter slivers almost like the letter C.  

Next up are the potatoes. We use golden Yukon potatoes, which are a lot softer and have a nice yellow color. Peel the potatoes, rinse them and cut them in half. Place the flat side down and slice top to bottom vertically, making about one quarter inch slices. Add your oil to a sauté pan. If the amount of oil indicated in the recipe is not enough, don’t worry, just make sure it is about a fingernail’s length deep as an indicator.  

Set this to medium heat and then add onions and a rosemary sprig. Cook the onions, moving them around to cook evenly for about three minutes. Then, add the potatoes and turn the heat down to medium low. Cook this for eight to ten minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender and the onions are translucent. Once this is done, strain out the oil in a colander and let your mix cool for a little.  

Prepare your egg mixture, whisking it all together and adding in the rosemary and a generous amount of salt. Add in the potato/onion mixture to the eggs and let that sit for about 15 minutes. In the meantime, put a bit of olive oil onto a pan like four minutes before your egg mixture is ready. Set that pan to medium low.  

If you are wondering what kind of pan to use, I suggest the most non-stick one possible because you do not want the eggs to stick. I also recommend adding a sliver of butter to ensure that no sticking occurs.  

Add in the mixture and spread it out along the area of the pan. Cover this with a plate for about four minutes to get some cooking on the top using steam. Make sure the sides are cooked and not liquid, then use a spoon or a mixing spatula to go along the sides and separate it from the pan. Then, for the most stressful part, use all the muscle you can to flip the pan onto the plate and if all goes well the omelet should drop on it. If some of the uncooked egg mixture spills out, that is okay!  

Then, use the plate—regular side up—and slide the omelet onto the pan to cook the other side. Once you achieve this, you have won because it is a waiting game for the rest. Let it cook for about four minutes and transfer to a plate for serving. Top off with salt and pepper and, if you are feeling experimental, a bit of oregano. 

This dish was a lot of fun to make, but also very stressful, as it tests flipping skills. As everyone knows, the hardest part of any omelet is the flip, and this recipe is no different. It takes the flip to another level. You can use either a plate or pan lid to achieve this as long as you ensure smooth sliding from plate to pan.  

I think this is more of a wow dish than a regular, everyday dish, but who doesn’t love a wow dish. It comfortably serves three people, and you can serve this with ham, bacon, or steak. It also satisfies gym-bro requirements as it uses eight eggs, so it is packed with protein. One last thing to recommend is not to be shy with salt. The number of eggs in the mixture will tame down the acidity so if you feel you should add more, then add it. 

Ingredients: 

Eight large eggs 

Salt 

Pepper 

One tbsp Rosemary and a sprig (for oil) 

Three-quarters cup of extra virgin olive oil 

Five Yukon or Yellow potatoes 

One Large Yellow Onion 

Price: $18.43 

Rating: 4.8/5