Tortilla Espanola
Spanish potato & onion omelette
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Join HomecookedIngredients
- 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.
Nutrition per serving
Estimated from ingredients; varies with exact portions and brands.
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?
One serving of Tortilla Espanola has about 237 calories, with 14g of protein, 22g of carbs, 11g of fat and 4g of fiber. These are estimates based on the ingredient amounts in this recipe and will vary with your exact 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.