First, you have to cut thin slices of potato and cook them in a pan of hot olive oil and salt on the stove top. In another bowl, you crack some eggs and beat them together with salt. Once the potatoes are a little soft, you drain them from the olive oil, mix them together with the eggs, then pour the mixture back into the hot pan.
After a few minutes of cooking, it's time to flip it. This is the hard part! You must cover the pan with a large plate and flip it over, leaving the tortilla de patatas cooked-side-up on the plate. Megan told me that she struggled with this because it was heavy and hard to balance! Then, you have to put the tortilla de patatas back in the pan to let the other side cook. After a few more minutes, you'll have a Spanish omelet!
Though Spain is not known for being a large producer of potatoes, it is well known for being a producer of olives and olive oil. I remember driving through parts of Western and Southern Spain while studying abroad, and passing by acres and acres of olive groves.
Though this isn't a connection to the local environment, this food is connected to local (and national) politics. I recently came home with a store-bought tortilla de patatas, and my Spanish roommate, Ainoa, looked at me (jokingly) in disapproval. I had bought a tortilla de patatas sin cebolla (without onion), while she likes hers con cebolla (with onion). She told me about the debate nacional (national debate): tortilla de patatas sin o con cebolla?
