Today, the Ovation Spain DMC Team is sharing 3 essential Spanish recipes to cook at home. We hope this brings a taste of Spain to your kitchen!
The beauty of traditional Spanish recipes is their simplicity. The best quality local ingredients meet their perfect cooking technique with minimal intervention– THAT is Spanish cooking.
The recipes that you are going to find below, are the Spanish classics that you will find at any bar and restaurant in Spain, and you’ll be able to make time and time again at your home, and once you’re comfortable with them, you can even start to adapt! Let’s do it 🙌
Tortilla de Patatas (Spanish Omelette)
A Spanish omelette is the definition of traditional Spanish cuisine: simple to make, clean flavours, and the best ingredients. Crispy, fried potatoes and eggs make up this popular Spanish Tortilla recipe, perfect for picnics, parties, bbq’s, or your traditional Tapas menu! Upgrade your omelette now!
Ingredients (4 people)
- 1 kilogram (about 2 pounds) of potatoes
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 6 large eggs
- 1 onion, preferably white
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil 150ml
Instructions:
- Scrape the potatoes. Cut them into thick slices. Chop 1 onion (Julienne style)
- Heat 150ml extra-virgin olive oil in a large frying pan, add the potatoes and onion and stew gently, partially covered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until the potatoes are softened. Strain the potatoes and onion through a colander into a large bowl.
- Beat the eggs in a large bowl and season with some salt and pepper.
- Add all the ingredients to the egg mixture.
- In the same pan where you fried the potatoes, remove all the oil and over medium-low heat add the egg mixture. (Cook the eggs for about 6-8 minutes per side)
- When you are sure that the bottom is cooked and you want to flip the tortilla, take a large plate and put it over the pan and flip quickly! Some egg will likely slip out– it’ll be messy– but that’s okay! 😊
- Slide on to a plate and cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Pan con Tomate (Bread with Tomato)
This is pretty easy! One of the many traditional foods of Catalan, Valencian, Aragonese, Balearic and Murcian cuisines in Spain. It is considered one of the typical examples that define the Mediterranean diet, extended like a traditional recipe throughout Catalonia. It is popularly consumed on its own as a snack or a tapa with any meal, from breakfast to dinner.
- 4 medium tomatoes
- ½ loaf of whole-wheat, rustic, or unleavened bread, sliced medium-thick
- 1 clove of garlic
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt to taste
- A few thin slices of Spanish Serrano or Iberian ham (optional, but highly recommended!)
Instructions:
- Toast sliced bread on a baking sheet at 250°F until evenly browned, flipping halfway through.
- Cut tomatoes in half, and grate them into a small bowl on a box grater, discarding the stem and skins.
- Add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of salt to the bowl.
- Cut the clove of garlic in half and rub the raw garlic on the toasted bread.
- Spoon the tomato mixture onto the slices of garlic toast, and top with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt.
- Optionally, top with a slice of jamón (Serrano or Iberian).
Ham Croquettes
There is a croquette for everyone, vegetarians included, and Spanish people love to experiment with different ingredients. Rather than being filled with potatoes, Spanish croquetas are filled with a creamy bechamel sauce.
Ingredients for 24 croquettes:
- 60 grams/4 T unsalted butter
- 60 grams/1/4 C olive oil
- A bit less than 1 C of flour (120 grams)
- One medium onion very finely diced
- 1 Litre (1/4 gallon) whole milk at room temperature
- A pinch of nutmeg
- 1 packet (250 grams) of jamón Serrano diced into small pieces
- Flour for breading
- 2 beaten eggs
- Bread crumbs (try Panko for non-traditional extra crispy croquettes!)
Instructions:
- Melt the butter and warm the oil in a medium-size pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the onion and sauté for a few minutes until it just starts to brown.
- Add a pinch of salt and the nutmeg (not too much because Serrano ham is already quite salty).
- Add the diced ham and sauté for 30 seconds more.
- Add the flour and stir continually, until the flour turns a light brown colour.
- You must not stop stirring or the flour will burn!
- When the flour changes colour, add the milk little by little, always stirring until you incorporate the entire amount. It should take about 20 minutes to add it all.
- Turn off the heat and let the dough cool a bit.
- Butter the sides of a large bowl or plastic wrap and wrap the croquette dough inside, covered directly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate a minimum of 4 hours but preferably overnight.
- To make the ham croquettes shape them into little logs (or use a pastry sleeve if you have one).
- Next, while heating a pan full of olive oil on the stove, pass the croquettes through the breading process. First, cover them in flour, then in egg, and, finally, in the breadcrumbs.
- Fry the ham croquettes in the hot oil and let them cool a few minutes before enjoying!
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