Cuban Tortilla Recipe (Tortilla Cubana de Huevo)
One of my favorite meals is my grandma’s Cuban tortilla. In Cuba, tortilla means an egg omelette, not the flour kind. Hers was thick and packed with potatoes and onions, the Cuban take on Spain’s tortilla española.
We eat it at any meal but growing up it was usually served at dinner, along with white rice, black beans, and salad. The tortilla alone makes a great brunch dish too!
It’s such an easy and versatile recipe, and you can use any vegetables or meat you want. The traditional way to make it is with onions, chorizo, and potatoes, but we’ve done it with sweet potatoes and added cheese too.
My grandma always made it the same though – eggs, onions, garlic, white potatoes, Italian seasoning, and whatever shredded cheese she had on hand. Simple but delicious!
Cuban tortilla Ingredients
As I mentioned before, a traditional Spanish tortilla uses onions, chorizo, and potatoes. You can make it with any mix of the following, but I recommend not adding too much:
- potatoes – white, red, sweet, any!
- onions – sweet onions are best
- fresh garlic – required for all Cuban dishes
- spinach or kale
- tomatoes
- bulk sausage or chorizo
- bacon
- cheese to sprinkle on top
How to Make Cuban Tortilla
Start with the onions. Heat the oil in a cast iron pan, add the sliced onions with a pinch of salt, and let them cook low for about 10-15 minutes until they caramelize.
Add the thinly sliced potatoes to the same pan and season them with salt. Cook until they’re soft and starting to brown, so they pick up all that onion flavor. If you’re adding meat or other veggies, add them now and heat them through.
Beat the eggs with salt, pepper, garlic, and Italian seasoning, and pour them over everything. Let it cook on the stove for about 10 minutes, until the eggs start to set.
Sprinkle the cheese on top and slide the pan under the broiler for about 5 minutes, until the top turns golden. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn.
Tips for making Cuban tortilla
What makes this dish so flavorful are the ingredients. Keep things simple and choose onions, potatoes, and a meat if desired as your base.
Beat the eggs lightly.
Don’t overbeat the eggs. Just lightly beat them until they’re mixed well.
Take your time browning the onions.
The onions are where the bulk of the flavor comes from. You want to make sure they’re caramelized so cook on low while you prep the other ingredients.
Slice the potatoes thin so they cook quickly.
After cooking the onions, you want to add the potatoes so they can soften up and absorb some of the flavor from the onion.
Use a cast iron pan.
Making it in a cast iron pan makes it easy to start on the stove and finish in the oven. It also brings out the flavor of the onions and potatoes more than when using other pans.
How to Make Pan con Tortilla
Pan con tortilla is a Cuban tortilla sandwich, and it’s the best way to use up leftovers. You’ll find it at Cuban cafeterias all over Miami, usually with a cafecito on the side.
To make it, slice a piece of Cuban bread lengthwise and butter the inside. Add a thick wedge of tortilla, close it up, and press it in a sandwich press or a hot pan until the bread gets crisp.
Cold tortilla works great here, so a slice straight from the fridge is fine. If you can’t find Cuban bread, a French baguette is the closest swap.
Cuban Tortilla FAQs
Do Cubans eat tortillas?
Yes, but in Cuba a tortilla means an egg omelette, not a flour or corn tortilla. You’ll see it at breakfast, and growing up we usually had it for dinner with white rice and black beans.
What’s the difference between a Cuban tortilla and a frittata?
They’re close. A Spanish tortilla is mostly potatoes and eggs, cooked on the stove and flipped. A frittata is Italian and gets finished in the oven. My grandma’s way starts on the stove and finishes under the broiler, so it lands somewhere in between.
How long does Cuban tortilla keep?
Leftovers keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days in an airtight container. You can eat it cold or warm it up, and a leftover slice makes great pan con tortilla the next morning.
Do I need a cast iron pan?
No. Any oven-safe skillet works as long as it can go under the broiler, so check the handle and coating first. Cast iron is just the easiest since it goes straight from the stove to the oven.
Cuban Tortilla Recipe (Tortilla Cubana de Huevo)
A Cuban potato and onion omelette, started on the stove and finished under the broiler. Tortilla cubana de huevo the way my grandma made it.
Ingredients
- 12 eggs
- 1 yellow onion sliced
- 2 medium potatoes sliced thinly
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/4 cup of shredded cheese
- 5 tbsp oil
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat 3 tbsp oil in a cast iron pan on medium heat.
- Add the sliced onions and a sprinkle of salt.
- Cook for about 15 minutes until soft and starting to caramelize.
- Add 2 tbsp oil and the thinly sliced potatoes. Season with salt and cook until the potatoes are soft and turning brown.
- If you're adding meat or other vegetables, add them to the pan now and heat through.
- Beat the 12 eggs and season with salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and garlic.
- Pour the eggs over the vegetables and shake the pan. Set oven to broil.
- Cook for about 10 minutes, until the eggs start to set, then turn off the heat.
- Sprinkle cheese on top.
- Put the pan in the oven on broil. Keep an eye on it to prevent burning.
- Remove after about 5 minutes, once the top starts to brown.
Notes
Sometimes it helps to cover the potatoes and onions when they are cooking to prevent them from burning.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 246Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 283mgSodium: 136mgCarbohydrates: 11gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 12g
Let me know in the comments if you give this recipe a try! I hope you enjoy it.
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