Can I use boiled potatoes in Spanish omelette?

Question

I have some leftover microwaved potatoes. Can I use these potatoes in Spanish omelette? Also, I read that tomatoes are not part of "authentic" Spanish omelette. Is that true?

I think Boiled and Microwaved potatoes will act very differently. Microwaved are closer to baked surely? Which do you have? — Toby Allen, Aug 14 '11 at 15:45
I "had" microwave-d potatoes, consider me stupid but are baked potatoes different from boiled ones? I never found any difference :( — Kumar, Aug 14 '11 at 16:03
They will act very differntly when added to an omellete or if you try to slice them. — Toby Allen, Aug 14 '11 at 16:05

score 6 · Answer 1 · edited Aug 13 '11 at 05:30

6

You shouldn't use boiled potatoes as you have to fry them.

This is a good recipe, and no, tomatoes are not part of "authentic" Spanish omelette. In Spain we call it "Potato omelette" an the only ingredients are eggs, potatoes, olive oil, salt and sometimes onion.

edited Aug 13 '11 at 05:30

apaderno

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answered Aug 12 '11 at 07:37

David G.

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sometimes onion means no onions at all? the answer is bit late, I used the boiled/microwaved potatoes, of course I fried potatoes, thanks. – Kumar Aug 12 '11 at 07:49
yes, i always do it without onion but many people add onion to the recipe. – David G. Aug 12 '11 at 12:00
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Why do you have to fry boiled potatoes? – Toby Allen Aug 14 '11 at 15:46
and sometimes green pepper. – J.A.I.L. Nov 02 '12 at 14:55
In Spain other common additions to tortilla are haba beans, garlic shoots (ajetes), and asparagus. – Dan Fox Aug 29 '13 at 10:18

score 2 · Answer 2 · edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:33

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Being grown in Spain I've eaten boiled potatoes Spanish omelette a few times: when my mother wasn't in aim for cleaning the splattered oil after cooking. She stopped making omelettes that way: it simply didn't have the taste it should have.

IMHO potatoes should be deep fried in olive oil as that will give them a crust/scratching outer part with an inside part with the consistency of boiled potatoes. To archieve this I heat oil up to 180C (350F) and when I put the potatoes in, immediatelly set the temperature at 120~140C (250~280F), having the potatoes an irregular cutting.

I've seen potatoes omelette having added: onion (wheels or slices), green pepper (sliced, never red, don't know why), cooking chorizo or even jamon serrano dies (between .5 and 1cm (.93in.) cubes). But never seen tomato being added to a potatoes omelette.

edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:33

Community

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answered Nov 02 '12 at 15:29

J.A.I.L.

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Why would use olive oil for that? You're suggesting heating it to the smoke point, and even if you stop short of that, it'll already have lost all the flavor. (See for example http://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/27415/is-this-video-showing-an-exception-of-the-common-wisdom-that-you-shouldnt-cook) – Cascabel Nov 02 '12 at 16:04
Frying in olive oil is not for giving taste, but for creating that "crust". I use that temperature (180C/350F) as above it the oil began to smoke. It's not EVOO the one used for frying, and according to (Wikipedia)[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_point] it hasn't reached the smoke oil yet. – J.A.I.L. Nov 02 '12 at 16:19
@Jefromi : there's more than one type of olive oil. Extra light olive oil is excellent for frying. Extra virgin is not : http://cooking.stackexchange.com/a/705/67 – Joe Nov 02 '12 at 16:19
@Joe Okay, sure; it's in my experience not what people usually mean when they say olive oil, but maybe I'm basing this on a time before EVOO was a buzzword. – Cascabel Nov 02 '12 at 22:00
I didn't deep fry but managed to create the "crust". For me it was creating a "Jeera Aloo" (or Cumin Potato) sans Jeera/Cumic recipe with eggs added at the end. I never add tomatoes in omelette, never made any sense to add tomatoes. And green pepper/chillies, not bell pepper, are must. I even sprinkle some oregano at times. – Kumar Nov 06 '12 at 05:52
@Jefromi: When a Spaniard speaks of cooking with olive oil, he usually means something light, as in the typical Spanish kitchen it would be unusual to cook with virgen oil, which is used for salads. – Dan Fox Aug 29 '13 at 10:16
@DanFox Thanks, we did establish that's what J.A.I.L. meant here - it's just that in the US, at least, "olive oil" usually refers to (extra) virgin olive oil, so it is actually necessary to clarify. If you tell a random American "fry it in olive oil" they will do the wrong thing. – Cascabel Aug 29 '13 at 13:11

score 1 · Answer 3 · answered Aug 13 '11 at 15:33

David G. has the 'correct' answer, but you can in fact use boiled potatoes. Mash the boiled potatoes with a generous helping of olive oil (to taste). Crude extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) has a different flavor than cooked. It really stands out. Then, go ahead with the rest of the recipe.

Can I use boiled potatoes in Spanish omelette?

3 Answers3