Patatas Bravas

Breakfast: A blueberry and flax seed smoothie

Lunch: Wheat grain salad and rice and cranberry salad

Dinner: Patatas Bravas with corn on the cob and an almond and black bean salad

I first came across this dish in a tapas bar on Deansgate in Manchester. I was blown away by the flavours and the depth of taste, despite such simple ingredients. I was also blown away by the fact that it was 4 quid, but that tells you more about tapas bars in the UK than the dish itself.

Anyway, all this happened before my Cooking Renaissance, and by the time I did decide to start cooking actual meals rather than living on crap salads, rose wine and Angel Delight I'd perfected this dish enough to impress the whole family at Christmas - when I'm sure they were asking themselves why the hell I was cooking them a Spanish dish on Christmas Eve.

You'll need
(Feeds 3-4 as a tapas or side)

3-4 large white potatoes, skin on, washed and cut into 1 inch cubes
1 large onion
3 cloves garlic
400g chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato puree
oregano
paprika
black pepper
tabasco sauce or other hot sauce
oil

Method:

Fry the potatoes in a little oil, turning over regularly, for 20-30 minutes
Meanwhile, fry the onion and garlic in a little oil til browned
Add in the tomatoes, tomato puree and stir
Bring down to a simmer and add in as much oregano, paprika, black pepper and tabasco sauce as you see fit. I put 1 tbsp oregano, 1 tbsp paprika, a shake of black pepper and a few shakes of tabasco
Allow the sauce to reduce until the potatoes are crispy and cooked through
Add the potatoes into the sauce and stir to cover
Serve!

This is quite a heavy little dish and eating nothing but this can result in the dreaded post-potato-massive-belly problem, so I really enjoy this with a salad or with some lighter Spanish accompaniments. A great one for winter time... with red wine.

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