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I'm a Spanish person, living abroad and with a penchant for cooking, and I was too very gratefully surprised by Kenji's Spanish tortilla video. Also by his othe

I'm a Spanish person, living abroad and with a penchant for cooking, and I was too very gratefully surprised by Kenji's Spanish tortilla video. Also by his other Spanish recipes such as Gazpacho[1] or Paella[2]. It's not that they are very orthodox recipes, cut and paste from a traditional recipe cookbook, but instead very good adaptations of them, taking into account ingredients availability and different contexts. I can't really tell about other cousines, but judging how he cooks Spanish food I'd say he knows what he's talking about. Add to that that he seems like a very decent and empathetic person and I'd say he's someone you want to listen to if you are looking for cooking advice. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lD3WyeqCDHw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lD3WyeqCDHw [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASP74I0B7zo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASP74I0B7zo

AdmiralAsshat 5y ago
His wife is Columbian, IIRC.
- jghn 5y ago
  Yes she is
- notagoodidea 5y ago
  Not sure to understand the point made between European Spanish cuisine and the Colombian one ?
  - zeroimpl 5y ago
    Presumably there’s some similar food culture between Spain and Spanish-speaking countries?
    - david-gpu 5y ago
      Not really, not at all as far as I can tell as a Spaniard. Cuisine in Spain is remarkably similar to that of France, though.
    - flobosg 5y ago
      While there is obviously Spanish influence in Latin American cuisine, I wouldn’t say the food cultures are similar. Furthermore, the culture can vary a lot between different (or even neighboring) Latin American countries.
- systemvoltage 5y ago
  Why does it matter if someone is Spanish to be able to cook Spanish food (or Columbian)? It is neither a sufficient, nor a necessary requirement.
  - AdmiralAsshat 5y ago
    Where did I say it was?
tptacek 5y ago
I can't believe I didn't know about Spanish tortilla before. Easily the best egg dish and also maybe the best way I currently know to prepare potatoes at home now. And they get better when they're cold! I've wasted my life! I've made dozens since last summer, and Kenji's technique in the video has been pretty much bulletproof for me. His extra-creamy scrambled egg is also a mainstay now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX-Y513ohbc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX-Y513ohbc --- I love how little patience he has with macho restaurant culture, and that he won't even link to Gordon Ramsay, who popularized the dish.
- vitaliyf 5y ago
  I am very surprised it's not a more popular dish in the US - it seems like it would fit well the Denny's, IHOPs or even some fast-breakfast drive-throughs, and work as breakfast or appetizer or dinner. It's on every menu in Barcelona - yes, served cold. A Spaniard taught me that mixing in some potato chips gives it some variety. He said he even sometimes makes it completely out of packaged chips.
  - tptacek 5y ago
    The potato chip Spanish tortilla is supposedly a Ferran Adria thing.
    - chockablock 5y ago
      It’s in his cookbook “The Family Meal”. It is a curious and useful book: the recipes are for the unfussy Spanish homestyle meals they served to the staff at el Bulli each night before opening. Each recipe is one that can scale way up, and the quantities are given to make each dish For 2, 6, 20, or 75 (!) people. It’s a good source of inspiration if you need to cook a dish for a crowd. There are also detailed photo illustrations of the ingredients and of each step in the recipe.
      - tptacek 5y ago
        Huh, it's weird, I have The Family Meal, and even remember reading the potato chip omelette thing, but never connected that to a Spanish tortilla.
catillac 5y ago
I’ve been following Kenji for a very long time. One thing I like is on the subject of adaptations. I have made his beef stew a few times, it’s quite involved. But I love how the recipe on the site adapts over time to take into account how people in the comments find different ingredients and tooling. For example, his original recipe works great on his super nice restaurant quality oven, but not as much on your regular persons oven. He adapted the recipe for the audience to take this into account, which I absolutely loved.

AdmiralAsshat 5y ago

His wife is Columbian, IIRC.

jghn 5y ago
Yes she is
notagoodidea 5y ago
Not sure to understand the point made between European Spanish cuisine and the Colombian one ?
- zeroimpl 5y ago
  Presumably there’s some similar food culture between Spain and Spanish-speaking countries?
  - david-gpu 5y ago
    Not really, not at all as far as I can tell as a Spaniard. Cuisine in Spain is remarkably similar to that of France, though.
  - flobosg 5y ago
    While there is obviously Spanish influence in Latin American cuisine, I wouldn’t say the food cultures are similar. Furthermore, the culture can vary a lot between different (or even neighboring) Latin American countries.
systemvoltage 5y ago
Why does it matter if someone is Spanish to be able to cook Spanish food (or Columbian)? It is neither a sufficient, nor a necessary requirement.
- AdmiralAsshat 5y ago
  Where did I say it was?

tptacek 5y ago

I can't believe I didn't know about Spanish tortilla before. Easily the best egg dish and also maybe the best way I currently know to prepare potatoes at home now. And they get better when they're cold! I've wasted my life! I've made dozens since last summer, and Kenji's technique in the video has been pretty much bulletproof for me. His extra-creamy scrambled egg is also a mainstay now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX-Y513ohbc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX-Y513ohbc --- I love how little patience he has with macho restaurant culture, and that he won't even link to Gordon Ramsay, who popularized the dish.

vitaliyf 5y ago
I am very surprised it's not a more popular dish in the US - it seems like it would fit well the Denny's, IHOPs or even some fast-breakfast drive-throughs, and work as breakfast or appetizer or dinner. It's on every menu in Barcelona - yes, served cold. A Spaniard taught me that mixing in some potato chips gives it some variety. He said he even sometimes makes it completely out of packaged chips.
- tptacek 5y ago
  The potato chip Spanish tortilla is supposedly a Ferran Adria thing.
  - chockablock 5y ago
    It’s in his cookbook “The Family Meal”. It is a curious and useful book: the recipes are for the unfussy Spanish homestyle meals they served to the staff at el Bulli each night before opening. Each recipe is one that can scale way up, and the quantities are given to make each dish For 2, 6, 20, or 75 (!) people. It’s a good source of inspiration if you need to cook a dish for a crowd. There are also detailed photo illustrations of the ingredients and of each step in the recipe.
    - tptacek 5y ago
      Huh, it's weird, I have The Family Meal, and even remember reading the potato chip omelette thing, but never connected that to a Spanish tortilla.

catillac 5y ago

I’ve been following Kenji for a very long time. One thing I like is on the subject of adaptations. I have made his beef stew a few times, it’s quite involved. But I love how the recipe on the site adapts over time to take into account how people in the comments find different ingredients and tooling. For example, his original recipe works great on his super nice restaurant quality oven, but not as much on your regular persons oven. He adapted the recipe for the audience to take this into account, which I absolutely loved.