Easy Spanish Omelette (Tortilla Espanola)
A traditional dish in Spain, this easy Spanish Omelette is simple to make in minutes. Made with potatoes, eggs and onions, dinnertime just got even simpler to throw together at a moment’s notice!
Spanish Omelette
The end of the week is near and I’m running low on groceries. Take out dinners are getting expensive so I’m trying to pull together easy meals that use up kitchen staples like eggs, potatoes and onions. We always have them lying around no matter how bare the kitchen seems to be.
This authentic Spanish Omelette recipe is super simple to make and you can get it on the table in as little as 30 minutes. It’s kind of like a crustless quiche or frittata and we’ve been eating them for as long as I can remember.
We love to top them with a few splashes of hot sauce or a sprinkle of chopped bell pepper to add some freshness but it’s fantastic just on it’s own. You can even eat it cold, straight from the fridge as a snack if the mood strikes.
My favorite tapas restaurant serves the BEST mini Tortilla Espanola topped with fried chorizo sausage and they’re so amazing I crave them on the regular. I didn’t realize how simple they are to make at home until I was desperate for one and the restaurant was closed.
So, as usual, I started making them myself at home and the results were better than I imagined!
What is a Spanish Omelette?
The Spanish Potato Omelette, also knows as Tortilla Espanola and Spanish Tortilla, is a signature Spanish recipe that’s made of potatoes, onions and eggs. For the record, it’s also called Tortilla de Patatas….the Spaniards don’t like to call this an omelette at all. But since the rest of the world does, that’s what we’re calling it here.
Often served at room temperature, as tapas, you can adapt this recipe just about anyway you want.
How To Make It
To make a Spanish Omelette, most of your time will be spent peeling potatoes. If you’re like me, it’s very therapeutic so it’s not so bad….but if you hate it, it only takes about 5 minutes.
- Prep the potatoes by peeling them and then thinly slicing. I like to cut them into quarters and then slice them about 1/4 inch thick.
- Cut the onions into thin slices.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Add the potatoes and onions to the skillet and cook until the potatoes are crispy.
- Drain the oil from the skillet.
- Whisk the eggs in a large bowl with salt and pepper.
- Add the eggs into the skillet and cook until the omelette is just set.
- Invert the omelette by placing a large platter on top of the skillet and turning the omelette onto the platter.
- Slide the omelette back into the skillet and continue cooking until crispy and golden.
- Serve the omelette with hot sauce, chopped parsley or red bell pepper, if desired.
What Oil To Use
It’s best to use an olive oil that’s meant for cooking (not extra virgin olive oil) for your Spanish Omelette but it’s also fantastic with canola oil since olive oil can be pricey.
Variations
Sometimes we like to mix things up and add some extra things to our omelette.
Here are a few of our favorites:
- Fresh chopped herbs
- Sausage, like spicy Italian or chorizo are both fabulous
- CHEESE, any type of well melting cheese, like gouda, Manchego or Cheddar are all great.
- Chopped Bell Peppers, just sauté them with your onions and potatoes.
Feel free to use your imagination but know that adding other ingredients will not make this an authentic and traditional Spanish Omelette. That’s just my two cents.
What To Serve With It
Whenever we make this, I like to serve it with a light salad like this Wedge Salad. It makes it a complete meal without breaking a sweat.
We also love it with a pile of green beans or this baked asparagus for something green….the kids love that. 🙂
If you love this recipe, you may also like these French Lyonnaise Potatoes and this recipe for roasted baby potatoes is simple and amazing. OR try these easy Scalloped Potatoes with Ham for a comforting meal all in one dish.
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Get the Recipe: Easy Spanish Omelette Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 5 Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 cup thinly sliced onion
- 8 large eggs
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
Equipment
- skillet
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Add the potatoes and onions to the skillet. Cook the potatoes until tender and crispy, approximately 5-6 minutes.
- Drain the oil from the skillet and return to the heat.
- Whisk the eggs in a large bowl with the salt and pepper.
- Add the eggs to the skillet and, using a spatula, move the potatoes around so the egg can get into the nooks and crannies. Cook the omelette until it’s just set around the edges but still a little wobbly in the center.
- Carefully, Invert the omelette by placing a large platter on top of the skillet and turning the omelette onto the platter.
- Slide the omelette back into the skillet and continue cooking until crispy and golden, an additional 3 minutes.
- Serve the omelette with hot sauce, chopped parsley or red bell pepper, if desired.
4 Comments on “Easy Spanish Omelette (Tortilla Espanola)”
This was very good and easy to make. I halved the recipe for two people and it was still very generous portions. Great, hearty breakfast. Thank you!
Thank you so much for your comment! I’m so glad you liked it!
Thank you for sharing your recipe. I’ve made this before in the oven like a casserole but your version is much easier on the stovetop. I also juj mine up with finely chopped colored bell peppers and curly leaf parsley for more sabor. turned out great! Wanted to post pic but didn’t know if I could.
You sure can post a pic! Thank you for your comment!