Patatas Bravas
Welcome back to my new series called Flavors of Spain !
Where I create plant-based versions of famous Spanish foods inspired by my trip last year.
Let’s talk about one of my favorite’s - Patatas Brava’s !!! Which translates to brave potatoes and I thought that was kind of cute. Something that I loved about Spanish food is that most of it is served Tapa’s style, meaning its meant for sharing ! That dos not mean that you can’t enjoy these all to yourself - no judgement here friends ;)
What you will need
Sharp Chef Knife
2 Large Sauté Pan
Cutting Board
Blender
Squeeze Bottle ( For Garlic Aioli )
Patatas Bravas
*serves approx. 2 -4 ** prep + cook time approx. 45 min *Spiced Red Sauce
2 tbsp - olive oil ( for sauteing )
1 cup - finely chopped yellow onion
3 tbsp - minced garlic
2 oz - sherry vinegar
400g - canned or fresh chopped tomatoes
1 1/2 cup - warm vegetable stock
2 oz - sherry vinegar
2 - bay leaves
1 tsp - paprika
1 tsp - sugar
1/4 tsp - cumin
1/4 tsp - dried oregano
1/4 tsp - red chili flake
* salt + pepper to taste *
Sauteed Potatoes
1/4 cup - grapeseed oil for pan frying
1000g - diced potatoes
2 tbsp - minced garlic
1/2 tbsp - dried or fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp - paprika
* salt + pepper to taste *
1/2 tbsp - chopped parsley ( to garnish )
Garlic Aioli
1 cup - vegan mayo
1 tbsp - lemon juice
1 tsp - minced fresh garlic
Garnish
Chopped Parsley
Malden Flakey Salt
Instructions
Step 1 - Prep the potatoes
There is nothing worse than going to make something and realizing you don’t have the stuff ! Take this moment to gather everything and wash the potatoes. Once the potatoes have been cleaned, peel them and then dice them into a medium / large cube then set to the side in a bucket or large bowl of water and let these guys soak for maybe 30 min or so while the sauce is getting started. Soaking the potatoes is going to help release some of that extra starch.
Step 2 - Make the sauce
In a large sauce pan get it warm with some olive oil and begin sauteing the onions until they reach a golden color and then pop in that minced garlic. Let that mingle together for a bit on medium to low heat and once that has combined and colored nicely together, deglaze the pan a bit with some of that sherry vinegar.
Once that has reduced a bit go ahead and pour in the tomatoes then give it all a good stir while slowly stirring in the warm vegetable stock. Let this simmer on medium to low heat and add in the last bit of sherry vinegar followed by all the seasonings such as the bay leaves, chili flakes, paprika, sugar, cumin, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Cover the sauce pan with a lid and bring the heat down to low and let it simmer for about 30 minutes before turning off the heat and moving the pan over. Simply leave this ready on the side lines till plating time later.
Step 3 - Pan fry the potatoes
Warm up another large sauté pan with a bit of grapeseed oil. You really could choose to cook with what ever oil you have handy, I just like using grapeseed oil for high heat cooking like pan frying. Make sure the potatoes are nice and dry before adding them in. I do this by straining them well, giving them a good shake in the colander and patting them dry with paper towel on a sheet tray. Once the potatoes are ready, pop them in the pan.
You may have to cook these in smaller batches depending on the size of your pan. Ideally you want just enough potatoes to cover the bottom of the pan to allow them all to get evenly golden. Once all the potatoes look nice, golden and crispy add in the minced garlic, rosemary, paprika and salt and toss really well. Let the potatoes cook in the garlic, herbs and spices on low heat to absorb that flavor and get really coated in it after that repeat this step as needed until all the potatoes have been cooked.
Step 4 - Make the Garlic Aioli
If you don’t feel up to making your own mayo base or happen to have some store bought at home - you can totally use that and follow with everything else. If you would like to make your own using some aquafaba or chickpea water that you got hanging around then you can find my plant-based mayo recipe here. Once you have that base situated the rest is real easy. Simply mix in some fresh garlic, honestly dried works too along with a splash of lemon juice to brighten it all up. You can save the aioli in a mason jar or a squeeze bottle. Give it a good mix and set to the side for plating time. If you haven’t already this is a good moment to chop the parsley too and have it ready.
Step 5 - Plating !
Patatas Bravas is considered a tapa dish or an appetizer to share within a group. You could serve this as a side dish so just keep this in mind when you are thinking of how you would like to serve it. If you saw my video…you probably noticed I ate the whole thing as it was just that good !
Grab your favorite plate or plate bowl and spoon in some red sauce. I used a large serving spoon to plop the potatoes on top of the red sauce followed by garnishing it with little puffs or dollops of garlic aioli using a squeeze bottle. Lastly sprinkle the chopped parsley and Malden salt over it all and enjoy !
To save any left overs, I would recommend using separate containers for the potatoes and the red sauce. Keep it in the fridge and enjoy for up to 7 days.
