Crisp-on-the-outside, fluffy-on-the-inside potatoes, drenched in a smoky, tangy, gently fiery sauce and kissed with cool garlic aioli. That contrast is why people fall in love with patatas bravas. They are the heartbeat of Spanish tapas culture, perfect for sharing, easy to crave, and impossible to stop picking at. Serve them hot, pass the toothpicks, and let the table chatter rise like steam. 🔥✨
Servings and Time ⏱️
- Number of dishes: 4 tapas plates
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 25 minutes
- Total time: 40 minutes
Potatoes 🥔
- 800 g waxy potatoes, peeled and cut into 2.5 cm cubes
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp fine salt
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- Freshly ground black pepper
Brava Sauce 🌶️
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1.5 tsp smoked paprika
- 0.5 tsp hot paprika or cayenne, to taste
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 300 g crushed tomatoes
- 1 tsp sugar or honey
- 1.5 tbsp sherry vinegar
- 0.5 tsp salt, more to taste
Garlic Aioli 🧄
- 100 g mayonnaise
- 1 small garlic clove, grated
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- Pinch of salt
Preparation 👩🍳
- Heat the oven to 220°C. Toss potatoes with olive oil, salt, smoked paprika, and pepper. Spread on a lined tray and roast 20 to 25 minutes, turning once, until deeply golden and crisp.
- Make the brava sauce: warm olive oil in a pan, sauté onion 5 minutes until soft. Add garlic, smoked and hot paprika, and cumin for 30 seconds until fragrant. Stir in tomato paste, then crushed tomatoes, sugar, and salt. Simmer 8 to 10 minutes until thick and glossy. Finish with sherry vinegar. Adjust heat and salt.
- Stir together aioli ingredients until smooth.
- Toss hot potatoes with enough brava sauce to coat, then drizzle with aioli. Sprinkle extra smoked paprika and chopped parsley if you like. Serve immediately.
Serve It Best 🍷
Patatas bravas shine straight from the oven while the edges are still crackling. Pair with chilled vermouth, a crisp lager, or a citrusy white wine. Add olives, marinated peppers, and jamón to round out a tapas spread. For extra crunch, air-fry the potatoes at 200°C for 18 to 22 minutes, shaking once.
From Madrid Bars to Your Table 🇪🇸✨
In Spain, patatas bravas are more than a plate of potatoes. They are a ritual, a prelude to conversation, and a celebration of simple ingredients elevated by skill and heat. Most roads lead back to Madrid, where mid‑century taverns popularized bravas as a budget-friendly bite that delivered outsized pleasure. Potatoes were plentiful, bars were bustling, and cooks learned to coax drama from pantry staples: smoky pimentón, a lick of cayenne, a splash of sherry vinegar, and tomato slowly reduced until velvety. The sauce had to be bold enough to live up to its name, bravas, meaning brave or fierce, yet balanced so you kept reaching for another forkful. As bravas traveled, they picked up charming dialects. In Catalonia you may find a smoother, garlicky allioli alongside the spicy red, while in some corners the sauce skips tomato entirely for a paprika-thickened emulsion. What never changes is the social heartbeat. Bravas invite sharing, the clink of small glasses, the dance of tapeo as you hop from bar to bar collecting flavors and stories. The aroma of fried or roasted potatoes mingles with warm paprika and garlic, and for a moment the countertop becomes a stage where texture and heat take a bow. Bring that spirit home: serve them hot, with napkins and laughter, and let the plate empty itself.
Photo by Nano Erdozain.
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