Tortilla Espanola
Spanish potato & onion omelette
Ingredients
- 700 g Potatoes
- 6 Egg
- 300 ml Extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 Onion (optional)
Method
- Peel the potatoes and slice into thin rounds. Salt them, let them rest, then pat dry.
- Slice the onion thin (skip if you prefer tortilla sin cebolla). (optional)
- Warm the olive oil in a pan over low-medium heat. Slide in the potatoes (and onion, if using) and confit, gently poaching them in the oil until tender.
- Drain the potatoes well, keeping a tablespoon of the oil, and let them cool slightly.
- Whisk the eggs with a pinch of salt. Fold in the warm potatoes and let the mixture rest a couple of minutes.
- Wipe the skillet clean. Heat the reserved oil over medium and pour in the egg mixture, swirling to settle.
- Cook until the edges set while the centre still trembles.
- Cover the pan with a plate, hand flat on top, and invert decisively. Slide the tortilla back into the pan.
- Cook a little longer. The interior must stay jugosa — slightly wobbly when you nudge it.
- Slide onto a plate. Serve in wedges, warm or at room temperature.
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About Tortilla Espanola
Tortilla Española is Spain's national dish in omelette form: little more than potato, egg, olive oil and salt, with onion the one great point of debate. The potatoes are confited — poached slowly in a generous amount of olive oil until meltingly tender rather than fried crisp — then folded into beaten eggs and set into a thick, round cake. The famous flip, sliding the half-set tortilla onto a plate and back into the pan to cook the second side, is the technique that defines it and intimidates beginners.
Done well, it has a jugosa center: barely set, almost creamy in the middle, with the potatoes soft and the eggs holding everything in a tender custard. The flavor is gentle and comforting — sweet potato, good olive oil, egg — which is exactly why the onion question (con or sin cebolla) inspires such loyalty on both sides. It's eaten every way in Spain: warm for lunch, cold from the fridge, wedged into bread as a bocadillo, or cut into cubes as tapas. Resting the salted potatoes and letting the egg mixture sit before cooking are small steps that pay off in a tortilla that holds together and stays moist.
Tortilla Espanola: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Tortilla Espanola?
A serving has about 271 calories — 13g protein, 31.2g carbs, 10.5g fat, 3.7g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is Tortilla Espanola gluten-free?
Based on its ingredients, Tortilla Espanola has no gluten-containing components, so it's naturally gluten-free — as always, check that any packaged ingredients you use are certified gluten-free to be safe.
Do I need every ingredient to make Tortilla Espanola?
The core ingredients are essential, but you can leave out onion — it's optional and mainly there for extra flavor or finish.
How many servings does Tortilla Espanola make?
This recipe makes 4 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.