fennel, new potato and green bean tortilla

With foreign holidays still looking slightly unlikely for this year I thoughts I’d create a collection of recipes inspired by my favourite holiday destinations. Kicking off with Spain. I do love a tortilla and this fennel, new potato and green bean tortilla is very good. Tortilla are so easy to make but unlike an omelette they do take a little bit of time.  You need to have patience but to be honest that is how the Spanish do it.

food memories

We sometimes stay at a little hotel called the Son Sant Jordi in Pollensa in Mallorca and one of my lasting memories of the place is the breakfast spread.  There would be the usual array of meats, breads and cheeses but there would always be a cold tortilla that had been made the previous evening.  The reason we know it was made the day before is because of the incredible aroma of it cooking in the kitchen.  The slow-cooking of the potatoes is unmistakable and definitely worth the wait.

Just a word on the oil.  Yes, it may seem like a lot of oil but it needs it and you have to see this as. treat rather than a quick meal.  Go with it!

For more tortilla ideas have a look on my blog here.

• 300g new potatoes – un-peeled and thickly sliced
• 1 fennel bulb – thickly sliced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives – roughly 5 or 6 chive stalks (kept flowers for sprinkling)
• a handful of green beans (150g) – roughly chopped
• 150ml extra-virgin olive oil and a large nob of butter
• 100g strong cheddar or parmesan – grated
• a sprig of fresh thyme
• 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
• 6 large free-range eggs

Heat the oil and large nob of butter in a large frying pan. Turn down the heat to the very lowest and add the potatoes, chives and fennel and stew gently, partially covered, for roughly 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Stir in the green beans and leave for another 10 minutes stirring occasionally until the potatoes are softened and beginning to colour.

Carefully pour the potatoes and veg into a colander over a large bowl and pour the oil back into the pan. Once drained, place the veg into the large bowl.

Beat the eggs in a small bowl, stir in the grated cheese and then pour over the potatoes and veg with plenty of salt and pepper and stir it all together, then let it sit a while whilst you re-heat the pan.

Tip everything into the pan and cook on a gentle heat for about 5 minutes without doing anything.  Then use a spatula to shape the omelette into a cushion by softly pulling the edges in and slowly rotating the pan to flood the empty space

When it’s almost set with a little liquid still visible, take the pan off the heat and leave for 4 mins to cool a little. Place a large dinner plate on top and carefully flip the pan so that the tortilla is now on the plate. Slide it back into the pan and cook a few more minutes.

Invert twice more, cooking the omelette briefly each time and pressing the edges to keep the cushion shape… slide it back on to a plate and cool for 10 minutes before serving.