Patatas Bravas
Long ago, when your hostess was a baby cook with a very skinny boyfriend, she tore this patatas bravas recipe from a magazine.
I made patatas bravas a few times, and we enjoyed them, but the instructions call for a food processor. Lacking one, I instead used a mini-chopper, which added to the washing up. Never once did it occur to me to that a decent knife would suffice.
Years passed. I acquired a food processor. Also the Moro Cookbook, below, which contains a recipe for Patatas Bravas.
Patatas Bravas are both vegan and gluten-free in the best possible way, meaning those of us who don’t habitually follow such regimens don’t feel we are missing out when eating this dish, because we aren’t.
Patatas Bravas should be brightly spicy, even rather puckery with lemon, but those preferring a blander dish can use sweet paprika, lay off the cilantro, and go easy on the lemon juice. Non-vegan types might add a dollop of sour cream or a bowl of garlic mayonnaise. All this said, patatas bravas are truly excellent all by themselves.
I’d like to credit that torn out recipe, but it lacks identifiers. I’d assumed it came from Gourmet; on further examination, I see this isn’t so: wrong paper, wrong font. I’m at a loss. Read closely, and you see it’s an older recipe, the title anglicized, an explanation of coarse salt in the headnote. Also telling: no mention of internet ingredient sources.
Patatas Bravas
Adapted from an advertisement [I think] torn from an unknown magazine and Moro: The Cookbook, by Sam and Sam Clark; if anyone knows the origin of the unknown recipe, I’d appreciate the chance to identify the copyright holder.
Serves 2 as a light meal; easily scaled upward
4 large Russet potatoes, approximately 2 pounds/1kg, peeled and cubed
olive oil, for frying
3 large garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup/4 ounces/100ml dry white wine or Vermouth
15-16 ounces/474ml tomato sauce [see notes]
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4-1 teaspoon Pimenton de la Vera (see notes)
Sugar, salt, and pepper to taste
To serve: Tabasco sauce, cilantro, and lemon slices
Instructions
You will need a large, heavy frying pan to make this dish. Cast iron is ideal, but any pan that isn’t nonstick will work. A large, deep saucepan is needed to boil the potatoes and make the sauce. A splatterscreen is nice but not essential.
As always, * denotes a point where you can stop cooking to change your laundry, post a critical update on social media, do some work, or, if you’re like me, sit down and catch your breath.
Fill your large saucepan with lots of water and place over lowish heat.
Peel and cube your potatoes. If you need a break: *, dump the potatoes into the water and lower the heat under the pan to the lowest setting. Sit down for five minutes.
*
Okay, break or not, crank heat up and allow the water come to a goodly boil. When the potatoes are almost cooked through, after about ten minutes, drain them. You don’t need to wash out the pot. Set it aside.
*
Yes, the above is unorthodox. And I am currently on steroids for nerve pain. Dinner will not walk to the table.
Moving right along.
*
Make the sauce. Pour enough olive oil into your dirty saucepan to coat the bottom generously. In my pan, this was three tablespoons. Turn the heat to medium low.
Add the chopped garlic. Sauté briefly.
Add the wine. Stir.
Tip in the tomato sauce. Add the bay leaf, thyme, oregano, and Pimenton de La Vera. Simmer gently. Taste for salt, pepper, and sugar.
Place your frying pan on another burner. If it’s cast iron and can tolerate being heated empty, do so over medium high heat. Add a generous pour of olive oil. Carefully add the potatoes. Depending on the size of your pan, you may need to fry your potatoes in relays. I did.
As you fry, you’re aiming for browning the potatoes on each side. Don’t move the potatoes or fuss too much; once you’ve found the ideal heat, give them about four minutes a side. Once browned, transfer potatoes directly to the sauce.
You may need to add a bit more olive oil as you go; it’s now that a splatter screen comes in handy. You might also want to open a window or run your exhaust fan.
Stir potatoes into sauce, and either serve immediately or eat at room temperature. This recipe is immensely forgiving, and will sit happily atop a low burner for hours and still taste wonderful.
Serve with lemon slices, Tabasco sauce, cilantro, garlic mayonnaise, or all by it
I’m leftovers are great, but I never have any. No matter how many potatoes I fry, John inhales them all.
Freezing is not recommended.
Notes:
Both recipes call for sugar to taste; I prefer to leave it out.
I use home canned, crushed Roma tomatoes in this recipe. They’re canned in 16 ounce/474g jars. The recipe calls for one ounce less; either way is fine. The better your canned tomatoes, the better the dish.
Patatas bravas should be spicy. I’ve read recipes calling for cumin, hot paprika–Pimenton de la Vera, and hot pepper flakes. If you prefer a blander dish, substitute sweet paprika or simply use a lighter hand.
I used Vermouth instead of white wine.
Lacking my usual “empty dish” shot, I offer a totally unrelated picture of parsley root. If you’ve never tasted it, think essence of parsley.
