Spanish Vegetable Tortilla with Manchego

La storia di questo piatto

Spain turns up in this tortilla with its quietest ingredients: potato, onion and olive oil, here joined by courgette and red pepper for a garden-lit, home-kitchen twist on the beloved classic. Manchego, the sheep's-milk cheese of La Mancha, tucks small salty gold into every slice.

Ingredienti

• 500 g Potatoes
• 300 g Zucchini
• 150 g Red bell pepper
• 120 g Medium onion
• 6 pieces Eggs
• 80 g Semi-cured Manchego cheese, cut into small cubes
• 100 ml Extra virgin olive oil
• 6 g Salt
• 1 g Freshly ground black pepper

Preparazione

1. Peel the potatoes and slice them thin as a coin, together with the finely chopped onion (120 g). Heat 100 ml of oil in a 24-26 cm non-stick pan over medium-low heat, add the potatoes and onion and let them cook gently: if they sizzle vigorously, lower the flame, because here you are not frying, you are cooking them slowly. Stir occasionally and cook for about 15 minutes, until the potatoes are nearly tender but still intact and the onion is translucent. Meanwhile, cut the zucchini into thin rounds and the pepper into small strips.
2. Add the zucchini and pepper to the same pan with 2 g of salt and cook over medium heat, stirring from time to time, for about 8 minutes. In the last 2-3 minutes raise the heat slightly to evaporate the water from the zucchini. The vegetables are ready when the potatoes are tender and just lightly colored, not crisp, the zucchini soft but still intact, and the pepper softened without losing its vivid color.
3. Drain the vegetables in a colander set over a bowl, pressing lightly to remove excess oil, and let them cool slightly for 5 minutes. From the collected oil, set aside 2 tablespoons (about 20 ml) for cooking the tortilla; filter the rest and keep it for other uses, for example as a base for a soffritto. In a large bowl beat the eggs with 4 g of salt and the pepper (1 g), add the small cubes of Manchego and mix well. Pour the warm vegetables into the eggs and fold gently, so that every slice of potato is coated with egg and cheese.
4. Heat the 2 tablespoons (about 20 ml) of reserved oil in the clean pan over medium heat: it should be hot but not smoking, ready when a drop of egg sizzles lightly. Pour in the mixture, level the surface with a spatula and lower the heat to medium-low. Cook for 8-10 minutes, covering with a lid during the last 2-3 minutes, until the edges set and pull away from the pan and the center is still soft and slightly wobbly.
5. Place a wider flat plate over the pan, flip the tortilla over with a decisive motion, then slide it back into the pan with the uncooked side down. Cook over medium-low heat for 3-4 minutes. It is ready when the surface loses its shine and, when a knife tip is inserted in the center, it comes out moist but without liquid egg: the heart should remain soft, just set and creamy, not dry.
6. Slide the tortilla onto a plate and let it rest away from the heat for 5-10 minutes: it settles and the flavors blend. Taste a small corner to check the seasoning, then cut into wedges and serve warm, not hot, so the Manchego cubes stay soft and flavorful.