What Spanish egg-and-potato omelet is a staple tapas dish?

What Spanish egg-and-potato omelet is a staple tapas dish? The answer is tortilla española.

Also called tortilla de patatas or Spanish omelette, tortilla española is made primarily from eggs and potatoes, with onion included according to the cook or regional preference. The potatoes are usually gently fried in olive oil before being mixed with beaten eggs and cooked into a thick, round omelet.

It is one of Spain’s most familiar home and café dishes. It may be served warm, at room temperature, or cold, and appears as a tapa, a sandwich filling, or part of a larger meal. Its simple ingredients made it adaptable and economical, helping it spread throughout Spanish cooking.

The dish is often confused with a French omelet or Italian frittata. A tortilla española is generally thicker than a French omelet and is traditionally flipped so both sides are set while the center may remain soft. Unlike a frittata, the potatoes are not merely an optional filling: they define the dish. Recipes vary over the onion question, but onion does not change its identity as a Spanish tortilla.