We don’t know about you, but we are always on the lookout for convenient, morning-friendly food options, so when Catalonian master chef Ferran Adria turned his “deconstructivist” eye to one of his homeland’s most iconic comfort foods, Tortilla Espaniola, we–along with the rest of the food blogosphere–lost our ever-loving minds. Usually, you would have to peel, slice and fry potatoes for this open-faced omelet, which is a time-consuming, labor-intensive prospect and so not morning-friendly. Chef Adria—in a frankly genius hack—opted to utilize ready made potato chips instead. Given our current obsession with potato chips as a gluten free ingredient swap (Baked Onions with Crunchy Fennel Topping, Vegan Mushroom Cassoulet), this seemed like a logical continuation of that particular mania. If Chef Adria says it’s legitimate, who are we to argue?
After giving the technique a couple of test runs for, um, research purposes *cough*taste test*cough*, there was no going back to the traditional preparation. This method allows you to go from a tray of humble ingredients to a crisp, flavorful frittata in 10 MINUTES! That is not a typo, people. Ten. Freakin’. Minutes.
This recipe is adapted from Serious Eats (link below), and we followed maybe 85% of the original. Where they called for garlic aioli, our version offers a smoked paprika aioli, because “Hello!”, best flavor ever! We threw some roasted red peppers in with the sautéed onions because we had them on hand, and they added such great flavor and lovely pops of color to the finished dish.
Also, instead of the Salt & Vinegar chips, we used the Kettle brand Pepperoncini flavor chips because A) Kyle is addicted to them, B) they’re pepperoncini flavored, and C) did you not read reason “B”? Actually, we’re hard-pressed to think of a chip flavor that wouldn’t be amazing in this recipe. Let us know your favorites.
Another plus for this dish is that it can be served fresh out of the oven or at room temperature with equally great results. That makes this frittata a simple, excellent and super fast option for breakfast, brunch, or even a dinner party appetizer. As they would say in Barcelona, “Buon profit!”
Technique inspired by Ferran Adria.
Recipe adapted from Serious Eats.
- For the Aioli:
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons water
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- For the Tortilla:
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion, finely sliced (about ¾ cup)
- ¼ cup sliced roasted red peppers
- 5 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 3 cups (about 2½ ounces) Kettle-style potato chips
- Thinly sliced green onions, for garnish
- For the Aioli: Combine mayonnaise, smoked paprika, white wine vinegar, and water in a medium bowl. Whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in extra-virgin olive oil.
- For the Tortilla: Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and just starting to brown. Add red peppers and cook for another minute. Transfer onions, peppers, and oil to a large bowl. Add eggs and vinegar and whisk to combine. Season with ½ teaspoon salt and a few grinds black pepper. Fold in potato chips until they are well coated.
- Wipe out skillet and add remaining two tablespoons olive oil. Return to medium heat until shimmering. Add egg/potato chip mixture and cook, stirring with a rubber spatula, for 10 seconds. Shake pan to evenly distribute mixture, then even out top with the spatula. Cook, shaking pan occasionally, until tortilla is mostly set but still wet on the top, about 2 minutes.
- Place a large metal or glass pot lid over the tortilla. Using kitchen towels to grip the lid and the pan handle, carefully invert the entire tortilla so that it's resting on top of the pan lid. Slide tortilla back into skillet so that the cooked side is now facing up. Use the spatula to tuck down the edges and create an even disk shape. Continue to cook, shaking occasionally, until tortilla is golden brown on second side and barely cooked through, about 2 minutes longer. Slide tortilla out onto cutting board.
- Cut into squares or wedges, sprinkle with green onions and serve immediately with aioli, or allow to cool and serve at room temperature.
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