In the summer months I try to cook some meals that incorporate more vegetables and less meat, preferably meals made with the local market produce. I had eggs from a nearby farm, chorizo from a newly-opened Portuguese market, and a whole lot of Yukon Gold potatoes. A recipe in the recent Cook’s Illustrated promised a perfect tortilla española that required considerably less olive oil than other versions I’d prepared, so it was time to give it a try.
I started with a link of chorizo, about a pound and a half of potatoes, four scallions, one small onion, olive oil, and eight eggs (look at their lovely blue-gray color).
I cut the chorizo into medium dice, finely sliced the scallions and onions, and quartered the potatoes before reducing them to a pile of 1/8 inch thick slices on a mandoline. I mixed the onions, potatoes, and half a teaspoon of salt and tossed them with four tablespoons of olive oil.
I cooked the chorizo in a tablespoon of oil until it was browned.
I added the potato/onion/oil mixture and cooked it covered over medium-low heat, stirring every five minutes until the potatoes were tender, about 25 minutes.
While the potatoes cooked, I beat together the eggs and added the scallions and another half teaspoon of salt.
I turned the cooked potatoes into the egg mixture and folded everything together until combined.
I increased the heat to medium-high, added one more teaspoon of olive oil, then returned the egg mixture to the pan, folding for about half a minute while the egg began to solidify. I reduced the heat to medium, covered the pan, and continued to cook, shaking the pan every half minute to keep everything from sticking.
To finish cooking the top I inverted a plate over the pan, and, holding on for dear life, inverted the pan/plate assembly, depositing the tortilla onto the plate cooked side up. I managed to do this without depositing the contents of the pan all over the stovetop, unlike previous flipping disasters.
After two more minutes, the tortilla was done.
I let it cool for fifteen minutes, then served it with a cherry tomato salad and some ciabatta.
It was dense, creamy, eggy — but not oily or heavy — a perfect summer meal. I saved the remaining half to serve at room temperature on a hot day — if we ever have one again.
Sources:
Eggs from Stillman’s Farm
Scallions from Drumlin Farm
Chorizo from Sylva’s Market
Potatoes from Whole Foods
Tortorture. I’ll just sit here eating my scrambled eggs and try to forget this blog.
You could always invite yourself to dinner. Now that it’s warmer (theoretically), I can open the kitchen windows – no more smoke-outs.