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Spanish Tortilla with Roasted Red Peppers
In Spain, a tortilla is a thick, hearty, frittata-like omelet made with potatoes, onions and plenty of olive oil. We whisk a little smoked paprika into the eggs, and also add some roasted red peppers for pops of color. If you prefer to stick with the simple and classic version, simply omit the paprika and roasted peppers. And for an added Spanish touch, serve the tortilla with garlicky mayonnaise or aioli on the side. This recipe starts on the stovetop but finishes in the oven, so you will need an oven-safe nonstick 10-inch skillet.
4
Servings
Tip
Don't slice the potatoes thicker than ¼ inch or they may not cook through. Also, don't forget to pat the roasted red peppers dry before chopping. Excess moisture from the peppers may make the final texture of the tortilla too watery. Finally, don't forget that the skillet handle will be hot when you remove the pan from the oven, so make sure to use a potholder or oven mitt.
50 minute
20 minutes active
Ingredients
-
8
large eggs
-
¾
teaspoon smoked paprika
Directions
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01Heat the oven to 350°F with a rack in the middle position. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, paprika and 1½ teaspoons salt. In an oven-safe nonstick 10-inch skillet over medium, heat 3 tablespoons of oil until shimmering. Stir in the onion, potatoes, 2 teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until a fork inserted into the potatoes meets no resistance, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in the roasted red peppers and cook, stirring, until the peppers are heated through, 1 to 2 minutes.
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August 17, 2022
Easy, delicious, customizable
I had a bunch of already cooked potatoes and peppers, so I just shorted the time they spent in the pan (added after onions), kept everything else the same, and it was totally delicious! Made a garlic aioli as an accompaniment, served with a green salad and roasted broccoli, a few olives - delicious!
July 30, 2022
A household staple
This dish has become a household staple and my favorite way to keep my cast iron seasoned. If you accidentally get too large a jar of roasted red peppers, don't worry, throw them all in! A little sour cream and hot sauce make leftovers all the better.
June 12, 2023
Excessive Salt
This was a good recipe overall. As we all know, a recipe is to be made as written the first time that it's made. I regret my choice not to follow my instincts on the amount of salt added to this. 1-1/2 tsp. to the eggs, then another 2 tsp. to the potatoes. This came out horrendously salt, so much so that I could barely eat it. Going forward I would pare this down to 1-1/2 tsp. total most likely. The recipe was easy to make and despite my having to use a cast iron skillet (I don't own non-stick oven safe), the tortilla released from the skillet without incident.
January 7, 2023
Tasty but weird-looking...
The first time I made this, I followed the recipe exactly. The eggs were a dark pink from all of the paprika--very unappetizing. It still tasted good, but after that I halved the amount of paprika and while there is still definitely a pink-ish tinge, the eggs look like eggs and it tastes great.
I was able to pull this off with a stainless steel pan as i do not have a non-stick oven safe pan! Buttered the sides of the pan right before adding the egg mixture. It did turn out a bit salty - i wonder if anyone else has had that issue? Will make this again but might add a half tsp less of salt and dice the red peppers instead of chop as the bigger bits dont have an awesome mouth feel.
Otherwise - a joy to make and eat!
Yes--VERY salty, and I'm from a long line of Southerners who salt everything, including apples & watermelon. Still, I had to significantly dial back the salt after the first time I made this. An old piece of advice from The Frugal Gourmet in the 1980's was never to salt eggs prior to cooking anyway, as he thought it toughened them, but to add salt @ the end. W/2 tsp. salt in the potatoes & onions, I doubt if you'll need more: it came out right for me the 2nd time & like salty things.
This is basically a great dish but I think the proportions are a bit off: 1.5 lbs of potatoes is a LOT of potatoes, and a whole onion is a LOT of onion, for a 10" skillet which is also going to have 8 eggs in it. Also, the amount of salt in the eggs is far too great--the first time I made this I followed the recipe exactly. I'm from the South & my family picks up the salt shaker immediately after the blessing, but it was still far too salty. I just eliminated the salt from the eggs the 2nd time. The amount of smoke paprika is also quite high, and dialing it back to 1/4 or 1/2 tsp still gives you beautiful color & flavor w/o overpowering anything else.
Yes of course you need a lot of salt for potatoes & onions, but I'd say a small onion & 1 lb. (instead of 1.5 lbs) of potatoes is plenty of filling for an 8-egg tortilla baked in a 10" skillet.
Also: not for nothing, but where is the Milk St staff finding decent frying pans & skillets that come w/lids?
Hi Russell -
This is a pretty common proportion of potato to egg to onion. A Spanish tortilla is more potato and onion than egg which is bit different than, say, an Italian frittata. If you're potatoes were a little thicker than 1/4" slices it could have created more volume in the pan too.
I'd recommend buying a universal lid. These can be super helpful for those pans that don't come with a lid already. You can find one that will fit a variety of skillet sizes so you only need one. I would recommend buying one that does not have a steam hole since, when you cover a pan, you generally are trying to trap heat inside, not let it escape. Hope this helps!
Best,
The Milk Street Team
A nice streamlined take on a lot of the classic recipes for tortilla española, which require a lot more olive oil (they essentially boil the potatoes and onions in oil) and flipping the tortilla to cook the top (a messy and nerve-wracking process that doesn't lead to a better final result). Even with these modifications, it tastes exactly like what you'd get in a tapas bar in Spain. It's supposed to be on the salty side, as it is a bar snack, meant to stimulate one's thirst. Try it with a cold beer. I agree with other commenters that it is a tight fit in a 10-inch skillet. I have an 11-inch skillet, and that extra inch makes a big difference in helping everything fit in.
Why don’t you flip it while cooking? That’s how they do it in Spain. I’ve never seen them put it in the oven although sometimes the middle is underdone so that would certainly help that
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A hearty and delicious breakfast course - wonderfully appealing in appearance - lots of great flavor, yet relatively simple - the pan flipping is always fun and makes a great presentation!