Spanish ¨Divorced¨ Patatas Bravas | Spanish Brave Potatoes Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the sauce on patatas bravas made of? ›

Bravas sauce (salsa brava) is easy to make with a few simple pantry ingredients like extra virgin olive oil, smoked paprika, and tomato paste! Perfect for drizzling atop hot fried potatoes to make delicious patatas bravas.

Patatas bravas (Spanish: [paˈtatas ˈβɾaβas], also called patatas a la brava or papas bravas, all meaning "spicy potatoes") is a dish native to Spain.

Patatas bravas, usually translated as spicy potatoes, are a staple of tapas menus, yet all too often end up as the carby afterthought, a plate of soggy starch seemingly designed solely to soak up the sherry after the croquetas and jamón have been scoffed.

Origins of Patatas Bravas

Patatas bravas are a classic Spanish dish that was created sometime after 1542 when the Spanish conquered the Inca empire and tubers became a more common food in Europe. The dish originates from Madrid where it became widely known as fried potatoes in a served with a spicy tomato sauce.

Bravo/brava is an adjective with various meanings in Spanish. We use it when we want to say someone is brave or courageous. In some Spanish-speaking countries, however, bravo/brava is also used as a synonym for angry, mad or upset. This adjective can also help us describe the world around us by meaning rough or fierce.

What is patatas bravas? Patatas bravas is the most popular Spanish tapa, made of crispy fried potatoes that are tossed with salsa brava or bravas sauce. It's really the sauce that gives these potatoes the delicious slightly spicy and smoky flavor and distinguishes them from any other fried potatoes you'll try.

The “Patatas Bravas” are potatoes accompanied by hot sauce. In fact, its name comes from the spicy cayenne, which is essential in the sauce. Potatoes can be prepared fried, cooked in water, cooked in oil and even in some cases baked. It is a typical dish of Spanish cuisine, although its origin is really from Madrid.

Patatas bravas, or spicy potato as it is translated, originates from Madrid and is a traditional Spanish cuisine typcially served to share. Patatas means “potato” in Spanish, and bravas is the sauce and lends to the term “spicy”. They make for a perfect start to a delicious meal with friends or loved ones.

Serving idea: Enjoy patatas bravas as a side dish served with grilled fish or chicken and a green salad.

The dish dates back to 1542 after Spain concurred with the Inca Empire to bring back their agricultural produce, such as tomatoes. The people of Madrid, Spain, started preparing bite-sized fried potatoes dressed with served with spicy tomato sauce. Apart from Spain, this is also a familiar dish in other regions.

What do we call patatas in English? ›

Potatoes are vegetables with brown or red skins and white insides.

So, as you may know, potatoes are called “patatas” in Spain and a few other places (and “papas” nearly everywhere else).

"The potatoes probably come from Aragon or Galicia, the allioli from Catalonia and the spicy salsa from the Basque country. Bravas mix the many different cultures of Spain on one plate." And as the local saying goes: "They're so cheap, even the king can afford them."

Tapas has two meanings in Spanish. As a verb, tapas means “to cover”, revealing its origins as a way for guests to cover their drinks with pieces of food. As a noun, it references small plates of food.

Spain

Patatas bravas / Origin

However, the famous Spanish sauce is made entirely from scratch and the aroma and taste are simply irresistible. The combination of roasted peppers, tomatoes, onions, and garlic, with toasted almonds and smoked Spanish paprika, results in a sauce that you'll demand an IV for.

Translated as the 'Spanish' sauce, Espagnole is a rich-bodied brown sauce. The sauce is the base of many other sauces, but perhaps most popularly, the demi-glace. Demi-glace is a time-consuming super-concentrated sauce popular in restaurant dishes.

In the authentic brava sauce there is no tomato, no garlic and certainly no aioli. In Madrid this is how they do patatas bravas. The secret to making brava sauce is to use sweet smoked paprika and hot smoked paprika. This is what gives the sauce it´s color plus it´s flavor.

Romesco. Perhaps one of the most famous sauce in Spain, Romesco is a specialty in Catalonia, in the country's northeast. The base of the sauce is tomatoes, red peppers and garlic, often roasted in wood-fired ovens.