Pedraza Tavern Omelette
It is possible that they are. Or that they are not, or that they are among the best but there are some more that are up there, because if something abounds in Spain, fortunately, **they are excellent tortillas**, so the difficult thing is to set a limit.
In fact, this list was going to have only 10 references . and we stop at 25 because the thing was starting to look like the old phone book.
So much difficulty in narrowing down the list has an explanation. Because even if we think otherwise, the authentic spanish culinary icon It is not the ham, nor the gazpacho, it is not the paella nor the sangria.
As a foreigner told me once, whom I can only agree with, our main sign of gastronomic identity is the tortilla.
The O Pote omelette, from another PLANET
Here on every corner there is a bar that serves one, usually decent, while the world ahead they subject her to all kinds of aberrations : curdle it in the oven, add chilli and thyme, use boiled or baked potatoes, add cream, milk, bouillon powder, paprika (which apparently sounds very Spanish and you have to put it on everything), cumin, fine herbs or pepper black, cheese, leeks...
so we invite you to vindicate with us this gastronomic icon as simple and common as it is tasty , this culinary marvel that shows that sometimes less is more in the kitchen, and tour the peninsula from end to end looking for some of the best tortillas that can be found.
THE HUB OF THE SPANISH TORTILLA: A CORUÑA - BETANZOS
There are many theories about the origin of omelette : that if he was born in Flanders, that if in a town in Badajoz or in another in Navarra... None supports a rigorous historical analysis and, in fact, the oldest recipe we know has its origin in Valencia.
But beyond doubtful origins and urban legends, we can establish one of its current epicenters in the north of Galicia, around Betanzos . Here they work generous omelettes in egg, curdled on the outside and very juicy (not raw) inside, with the right amount of potato and usually without onion.
Preparing the O Pote tortilla
Achieving that accuracy by cooking dozens of pieces a day is something that is within the reach of very few. And to name just a few of the mythical ones, we are going to propose those of Casa Miranda or Mesón O Pote, in Betanzos. both are excellent , so it is best to try both, taking advantage of the fact that they are one step away from the other, and decide for yourself which one is our favorite.
**In A Coruña **, which is a few kilometers from Betanzos , there is also authentic veneration for this dish.
We could propose a few more, but since we are not trying to exaggerate, here are two that we return to frequently, the one served in ** A Pulpeira de Melide **, creamier, and the one in Cunqueiro Tavern , which tends more to the juicy and that at the time was highlighted by the newspaper TheGuardian.
Don't let the appearance fool you. Those Betanzos-style tortillas, those that spill their insides on the plate when you cut them, they are not raw if they are well prepared . The thing has a scientific explanation that also justifies the difficulty of giving it the right point without going over or falling short: the egg begins to curdle from 61º of temperature.
A couple of degrees above the white will still be raw (although already white) and the yolk will have acquired the texture of an unctuous gel. At 64 the yolk sets but the white lasts a little longer, above 65 everything will have set.
The point where the tortilla is juicy, creamy inside but cooked, is the one where the mixture stays between 61 and 64 degrees . Not one more, not one less. Below that temperature it will not be cooked, above it will have become a more or less rigid solid.
Pedraza Tavern Omelette
THE COMPOSTELAN CONNECTION
Santiago de Compostela is not so far from the A Coruña - Betanzos axis. So less than an hour's drive south you can find juicy tortillas , although more curdled than in the north, within what we can call the Tortilla North School.
Perhaps the best example today can be found in the Moha – Rua Nova , in front of the church of Santa María Salomé, where in addition to being able to order it by the portion or whole, you can enjoy it as a courtesy tapa with each drink.
TORTILLAS FROM THE NORTH
We continue in the world of those tortillas with a creamy interior contained by a film of curdled egg in which 30 more seconds of frying can ruin everything.
An excellent classic example would be that of the omelette at the ** Cafeteria Europa (Gijón) **, winner last year of the award for the best tortilla in Asturias . And along the same lines, the Tahiti, in Logroño , one of the great classics of any pinchos route through the Laurel street area.
Something more forceful, although it certainly deserves a stop, is potato omelette and black pudding that they prepare in the Café Bar Boulevard, in the Plaza Mayor of Belorado, a town in Burgos on the Camino de Santiago. It is a bit away from the classic version, it is true. But it is worth making an exception.
This is the best potato omelette in Asturias in 2017
BASQUE COUNTRY AND NAVARRA
Here the cod and hake omelettes they would also give us to select a few addresses, but that is for another day because there is enough material for a text for them alone.
Sticking to the canonical potato omelette, we can make a brief tour of the three provincial capitals. In Vitoria the Sagartoki , one of the most famous in Spain.
In Bilbao, although there are many classics, we are going to decide on those from the ** Bar Baster **, individual and cooked at the moment. In San Sebastián it is impossible to keep only one: **Néstor or Zabaleta** have to be there. And surely some more places, although they will remain for when it is time to propose a route through the city.
And in Navarre? Well, the one from Lesaka Casino , to mention just one of the many possible ones.
WORLD MADRID
Going out for a beer in Madrid and not trying one of its many mythical tortillas is like not having gone out. Each one has their own at the head: next to work, next to the apartment where they lived as a student, the one you take coming home at dawn.
Among mine -call me classic- are those of The Ardosa of Colón Street , that of Sylkar , which cannot be missing from any ranking, and that of Pedraza Tavern .
THE INTERIOR: FROM CASTILLA TO ARAGÓN
We are in a territory of transition, as far as tortillas are concerned. They are no longer as juicy as in the north, but they are also not as dense as they are usually served in the south. So we can find a bit of everything, according to the preferences of each local.
In Zamora, for example, the Squeaky Bar It serves a fairly compact omelette with a paprika sauce that is a real vice. In the circus bar , a classic from Zaragoza, opt for an omelette a point curdlier than in the north but still creamy, one of those that cry out for a little bread to accompany it. And in the heart of Toledo, in the Plaza de Santiago de Caballeros , the Yogui's omelette raises passions with its slightly more curdled point.
THE KINGDOM OF TORTILLAS IS THE SOUTH
In the south tortillas tend to curdle more, to load more of potatoes and to become taller. This allows them to be given a whole series of uses and to add a whole series of condiments that others, less cooked, would not stand.
And we are not going to talk here to begin with or about the country tortillas, neither those with beans or those with brains and we are going to limit ourselves to the omelette , that of all life, although served with the whiskey sauce for the classic Sevillian fillet steak , as offered in house costs , in Triana . It sounds curious, but the extra oil and garlic works wonders.
More canonical, and also a little juicier, is the one offered by the ** Bar Juan José de Huelva **, a staple in all the tortilla rankings in recent years.
Start giving what to talk about, pay attention!
MEDITERRANEAN AXIS
We just toured the Mediterranean facade. And we cannot go through the area without mentioning the famous Valencian tortillas Alhambra Bar, pieces of house 4 kg each and a more than considerable thickness that they prepare in the basic version, but also with black pudding or, sometimes, with sobrassada.
Barcelona Just like Madrid, it would deserve a tortilla guide for itself, so we know that we left many out, but we do not want to fail to mention at least three: the classic among the classics that serve the flash flash , a place that dedicates more than 50 variants to this elaboration; that of Les Truites , another place that dedicates a good part of its offer to tortillas, or the basic one that can be found on the menu at the fattening , a place that is about to turn 50 and that is still worth a visit.
A classic