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Hungry Healthy Happy » Recipes » Potatoes

Patatas Bravas

May 24, 2021 · Written by Dannii Martin · This post may contain affiliate links which earn us commissions if purchases are made · 127 Comments

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Diet: Gluten Free / Vegan
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Patatas Bravas is a traditional Spanish side dish or "tapas" that consists of crispy roasted potatoes topped with a smokey tomato sauce. Baked instead of fried, this is so simple to make, but totally delicious too. It's also really cheap to make.

Patatas Bravas in a bowl in front of some olives and a tea towel.

We love Spanish food for its simplicity, but intense flavours. And that is exactly what you get from this potato dish. Roasted cubes of potato in an incredible smoky, and slightly spicy tomato sauce that it made from ingredients you probably already have in your cupboard.

Jump to:
  • What is Patatas Bravas?
  • Why should you try it?
  • Ingredients needed
  • How to make patatas bravas - Step by step
  • Baked or fried potatoes?
  • Brava sauce
  • What to serve these with
  • FAQs
  • Extra tips
  • More potato recipes
  • Recipe
  • Feedback

What is Patatas Bravas?

Patatas bravas, sometimes known as patatas a la brava or papas bravas, is a traditional Spanish dish, usually served as a tapa in bars. It typically consists of potatoes that have been cut into cubes of about two centimetres, then fried in oil or baked and then served warm with a tomato based sauce.

Why should you try it?

  • A must at any tapas dinner party
  • A really tasty side dish
  • Easy to adapt sauce
  • A new way to cook potatoes

Ingredients needed

  • Potatoes - Floury potatoes like Maris Piper, King Edward or Desiree work best for this recipe, but you can use any potatoes.
  • Oil - Try to use a really good quality olive oil.
  • Onion - We used a brown onion, however you could swap it for shallots to give it a sweeter flavour.
  • Garlic - Fresh garlic is always best, however you could use chopped garlic in a jar to save some time.
  • Chopped tomatoes - We used a can of chopped tomatoes and the key to this recipe being the best it possibly can, is using the best quality tomatoes you can. You really will taste the difference, as cheap tinned tomatoes tend to be really watery and that gives a watery sauce.
  • Tomato puree (paste) - This helps to thicken up the sauce and give it a more intense tomato flavour.
  • Chilli powder - This gives the potatoes a kick of spice. You can leave it out if you would prefer.
  • Paprika - This gives the potatoes the smokiness that they are known for.

A full ingredients list with measurements is in the recipe card below.

How to make patatas bravas - Step by step

One: Put the potatoes in a saucepan of boiling water and simmer for 7 minutes and drain.

A saucepan containing cubes of potato.

Two: Add the drained potatoes to a large baking tray with the olive oil, paprika and some salt and pepper and mix well. Roast in the oven at 190°C/350°F/Gas 5 for 35-40 minutes until the potatoes are cooked and crispy.

A baking dish containing cubes of potato covered in oil and seasoning.

Three: Heat a little oil in a pan and add the onion and garlic and gently cook for 4 minutes. 

A frying pan with chopped onions cooking in it.

Four: Add the rest of the ingredients to the pan and stir and simmer for 10 minutes.

Chopped onions, chopped tomatoes, tomato paste and spices in a frying pan.

Five: Put the potatoes into a bowl.

A bowl full of cooked cubes of potato.

Six: Top with the tomato mixture and garnish with parsley.

Cubes of cooked potato covered in a tomato sauce and chopped herbs.

Baked or fried potatoes?

You could save yourself some time and fry these potatoes in a pan. However, whenever we can make the swap for baked instead of fried, we do. You will find in Spain that they usually fry the potatoes, however you can still get them just as crispy in the oven, and use less oil.

Brava sauce

Whilst the crispy potatoes are the base of this dish, it really is all about the sauce. It's amazing, but that doesn't mean it is complicated.

Patatas Bravas sauce is actually really simple and made of store cupboard staples. Sautéed onions and garlic is mixed with a can of tomatoes, some tomato puree and then a generous amount of smoked paprika - that's the "secret" ingredient that gives it all the flavour.

You can make the sauce a little bit richer by adding a glug of red wine.

chopped herbs on top of a tomato sauce on top of potatoes.

What to serve these with

Patatas Bravas are a must at a tapas themed meal, so we always serve them with our Spanish Rice, Tortilla, Gambas Pil Pil or Chicken Skewers. They also go well with a simple grilled chicken or salmon dish.

Whilst many tapas bars will give you the option of topping this with some chorizo, fried fish or chicken, we kept it simple and just let the tomato sauce be the star of the show. But, for those meat eaters out there I would say a little bit of chorizo goes a long way in this.

You can also finish it off with a drizzle of alioli.

papas bravas in a round bowl.

FAQs

What potatoes to use for Patatas Bravas.

You want to use a floury potato for this recipe, as they crisp up nicely in the oven. Something like a Maris Piper, King Edward or Desiree.

How to store Patatas Bravas.

You can store the sauce and potatoes separately or together in air tight containers. They will keep in the fridge for up to three days and in the freezer for up to 3 months. To reheat, defrost fully in the fridge and then reheat in the microwave until piping hot throughout.

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Extra tips

• Add a little chopped chorizo to the sauce for some extra smokiness.
• Use a floury potato so the edges get nice and crispy.
• You don't have to par-boil them, just add extra cook time for them in the oven.
• You can add a glug of red wine to give a richer, more indulgent sauce.
• Finish this dish off with a drizzle of alioli.
• You could fry the potatoes to make this recipe quicker.

More potato recipes

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If you’ve tried this patatas bravas recipe, let us know how you got on in the comments below.
Tag us in your creations on Instagram @hungryhealthyhappy - Use the hashtag #hungryhealthyhappy too.

Recipe

A bowl of patatas bravas in front of a bowl of olives

Patatas Bravas

By: Dannii Martin
There is so much that you can do with potatoes as a side dish and Patatas Bravas is a traditional Spanish side dish that is perfect for tapas night.
A circular logo saying GF.
Gluten Free
An illustration of a v-shaped plant in a pot.
Vegan
5 from 3 votes
Pin Print Save recipe Saved!
Course: Side Dish, Tapas
Cuisine: Mediterranean, Spanish
Prep: 5 minutes mins
Cook: 45 minutes mins
Total: 50 minutes mins
Servings: 2 servings
Calories: 176kcal
Allergens:
No Common Allergens

Ingredients

  • 500 g (1.1 lb) Potato - cut into chunks
  • 2 tablespoon Olive oil - for the potatoes
  • 0.5 tablespoon Olive oil - for the sauce
  • 1 Onion - small; diced
  • 2 Garlic clove - crushed
  • 400 g (14 oz) Chopped tomatoes - canned
  • 2 tablespoon Tomato puree
  • 0.5 teaspoon Chilli powder
  • 1 teaspoon Smoked paprika
  • 1 pinch Sea salt and ground black pepper
  • Fresh parsley - to garnish

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 190°C/170°C(fan)/350°F/Gas 5.
  • Put 500 g Potato into a saucepan of boiling water and simmer for 7 minutes and drain.
  • Add the drained potatoes to a large baking tray with 2 tablespoon Olive oil, 1 teaspoon Smoked paprika and 1 pinch Sea salt and ground black pepper and mix well. Roast in the oven for 35-40 minutes until the potatoes are cooked and crispy.
  • Heat 0.5 tablespoon Olive oil in a pan and add 1 Onion and 2 Garlic clove and gently cook for 4 minutes. 
  • Add 400 g Chopped tomatoes, 2 tablespoon Tomato puree and 0.5 teaspoon Chilli powder to the pan and stir and simmer for 10 minutes.
  • Put the potatoes into a bowl.
  • Top with the tomato mixture and garnish with Fresh parsley.

Recipe Tips

  • Add a little chopped chorizo to the sauce for some extra smokiness
  • Use a floury potato so the edges get nice and crispy.
  • You don't have to par-boil them, just add extra cook time for them in the oven.
  • You can add a glug of red wine to give a richer, more indulgent sauce.
  • Finish this dish off with a drizzle of alioli.
  • You could fry the potatoes to make this recipe quicker.

Nutritional Information

Serving: 1portion | Calories: 176kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 322mg | Potassium: 549mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 956IU | Vitamin C: 25mg | Calcium: 80mg | Iron: 3mg

The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.

As all appliances vary, cooking times are a guide. Please note that by changing the serving size, the cooking time may also need to be altered.

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Comments

  1. Alison says

    March 30, 2016 at 10:09 am

    This is one of my favourite dishes, love your twist on it.

    Reply
    • Dannii says

      March 31, 2016 at 9:22 am

      Thank you :)

      Reply
  2. Charlie @ The Kitchen Shed says

    March 29, 2016 at 12:42 pm

    This looks delicious. Those potatoes look perfect!

    Reply
    • Dannii says

      March 30, 2016 at 9:11 am

      They just have to be crispy!

      Reply
  3. Julie @ HappinessSavouredHot says

    March 28, 2016 at 12:37 am

    Mmmm... potatoes and I are best friends, but I have never made this. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
    • Dannii says

      March 29, 2016 at 7:57 am

      You are going to love some of the posts that I have coming up then. I am a bit potato fan.

      Reply
  4. Angie@Angie's Recipes says

    March 27, 2016 at 8:23 am

    I wonder if this would work with sweet potatoes...it surely looks very satisfying and delicious, Dannii.

    Reply
    • Dannii says

      March 29, 2016 at 7:58 am

      It definitely would, but they wouldn't get as crispy without frying them.

      Reply
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My name is Dannii. Here you will find easy family recipes with a healthy twist.

Established in 2011, Hungry Healthy Happy has become one of the UK's most popular food blogs, with two successful recipe books published.

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