Patatas Bravas, also known as patatas a la brava or papas bravas, is a delicious dish native to Spain, often served in tapas bars.
While Graeme and I were in Spain, we had the best Patatas Bravas of our lives – It was from a small restaurant on a corner of Calle Aragó, the same road our hotel was on. We ordered the Patatas Bravas as it was labeled as a potato dish with a spicy sauce – what’s not to like? We were in love. The rest is history. Ever since we’ve been on the look out for a similar experience.
It’s summer time, which means that new potatoes are in season. Little Digger potatoes are what I used for this recipe, and are the kind to use for recipes that need the potatoes to hold their own when it comes to flavour.
I thought I would give Patatas Bravas a try myself. While this isn’t as good as the real thing, it’s still really yum – and spicy!
Patatas Bravas Recipe
What you’ll need
- 750g Potatoes, cut into bite size pieces
- 3T Olive oil
- 1 Tin of crushed and sieved tomatoes or 170g Tomato paste
- 3 Garlic cloves
- 1t Garlic powder (plus a dusting for the potatoes)
- 1/2 t Cayenne Pepper
- 1/2 t Smoked Paprika
- 3-5 tsb Hot sauce
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Method
- Rinse and cut potato into bite size pieces and place on an oiled oven tray. Dust with garlic powder and salt to your liking. Add 1-2 tablesppons of olive oil and coat the potatoes evenly.
- Roast for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through, stir the potatos once or twice in that time.
- While the potatoes are roasting in the oven, let’s make the spicy sauce! Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a pan, add garlic cloves to heat through. Add garlic powder, paprika, cayenne and mix together.
- Add tomatoes (or paste) paste, hot sauce and 1 1/2 cups water and stir. Cook for 10-12 minutes or until simmering.
- Taste and add more salt / hot sauce or garlic powder until you’re happy with the flavour.
- Remove potatoes from the oven once cooked and serve immediately with the spicy sauce on top.
- Enjoy!
We served ours with broccoli and topped it off with some freshly cut spring onion and a few slices of chorizo.
Did you know? Potatoes are naturally gluten and fat free and hold a great dose of vitamin C. They contain more potassium than bananas.
Have you ever tried Patatas Bravas before? If you haven’t I highly recommend giving them a go, either at home or next time you spot them on a restaurant menu.
xx Laura