Spanish potato omelette, explained in an email
A recipe for Spanish potato omelette sent to a friend by email, onion argument included. An A2 reading built on object pronouns: lo, la, los, las, le, les.
La receta que le mandé a Paula
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An email to a friend carrying a family recipe for Spanish potato omelette: how the potatoes are cut, when the mixture sets and how it is flipped with a plate. It includes the Spanish argument about onion and the fact that in Mexico a tortilla is a flat bread, usually made of maize.
La lista de ingredientes es corta: patatas, huevos, aceite de oliva y sal. La cebolla es opcional, y ahí empieza el problema.
Primero compro cuatro patatas grandes y las corto en trozos finos. Pongo bastante aceite de oliva en una sartén y lo caliento a fuego suave. No frío las patatas deprisa: necesitan casi veinte minutos para quedar blandas.
Después bato seis huevos en un bol y les pongo un poco de sal. Saco las patatas del aceite y las mezclo con los huevos.
Quito casi todo el aceite de la sartén, echo la mezcla y la dejo a fuego suave. Cuando cuaja por abajo, llega la parte difícil: le damos la vuelta a la tortilla con un plato grande. En español, «dar la vuelta a la tortilla» es también una expresión, y significa cambiar del todo una situación.
En España mucha gente discute sobre la cebolla. En mi familia la hacemos siempre sin cebolla, pero mis primos la prefieren con cebolla y no cambian de opinión.
En México una tortilla es otra cosa: un pan plano y redondo, casi siempre de maíz. Fuera de España mucha gente llama a este plato «tortilla española».
La comemos caliente o fría, y también al día siguiente. En los bares la sirven en trozos pequeños, como tapa, o dentro de un bocadillo.
Paula me contestó una semana después. Hizo su primera tortilla el domingo, la cortó en ocho trozos y se los llevó a sus compañeros de clase. Nadie preguntó por la cebolla.
¿Tú la prefieres con cebolla o sin cebolla? ¿Quién te enseñó tu receta favorita? ¿Se la explicas a tus amigos o la guardas en secreto?
About this article
What you'll learn
Direct object pronouns (lo, la, los, las) and indirect ones (le, les) before the verb, the «se la» combination, and kitchen vocabulary: sartén, cuajar, trozos, a fuego suave.
An email to a friend carrying a family recipe for Spanish potato omelette: how the potatoes are cut, when the mixture sets and how it is flipped with a plate. It includes the Spanish argument about onion and the fact that in Mexico a tortilla is a flat bread, usually made of maize.
After reading
Article learning block
Phrases, words, grammar, and quick practice from this text.
Phrases for training
Add useful phrases to SRS or mark them as already known.
dar la vuelta a la tortilla
newto turn the situation around
Literally, to flip the omelette in the pan. Figuratively it means to reverse a situation completely when things were going badly.
You hear it in sports commentary and politics whenever someone comes from behind.
desde hace dos años
newfor two years (and still going)
The action is still happening, so Spanish uses the present: «estudia». English needs a perfect tense here, which is why learners get it wrong. Pattern: desde hace + a length of time.
It answers the question «how long have you been doing this».
paso a paso
newstep by step
The noun repeats with no article and «a» in between. The same shape gives «cara a cara» and «poco a poco».
It is the standard label on any set of instructions in Spanish.
a fuego suave
newon a low heat
«Fuego» here is the burner, not a fire. The opposite is «a fuego fuerte».
It appears in a great many written recipes.
al día siguiente
newthe next day
It means one day after the moment being described. «Tomorrow» counted from today is «mañana».
In a story about the past this phrase replaces «tomorrow».
Key words
Vocabulary that carries the school-day topic.
cuaja
cuaja
it sets, it thickens
«Cuajar» is what liquid does when it turns solid: eggs in a pan, jelly, cheese. About plans, «no cuajó» means it never came together.
One verb replaces a whole description of what the eggs are doing.
una sartén
una sartén
frying pan
In Spain the word is feminine: «la sartén». In much of Latin America people say «el sartén».
A rare case where the gender of a word depends on the country.
un bocadillo
un bocadillo
a filled bread roll
In Spain a «bocadillo» is a length of baguette split and filled. In Mexico the same thing is called a «torta».
It is one of the cheapest things you can order in a Spanish bar.
trozos
trozos
pieces, chunks
«Cortar en trozos» is to cut into pieces. It works for food and for broken things alike: «un trozo de pan», «un trozo de cristal».
It appears three times in this text, each time a different size.
discute
discute
argues, quarrels
A false friend: «discutir» usually means to argue, not to discuss calmly. For a calm exchange Spanish says «hablar de» or «comentar».
Getting this wrong makes you sound far more combative than you meant.
Grammar in context
Patterns from the text worth noticing after reading.
las corto
las corto
I cut them
«Las» stands for «las patatas»: feminine, plural. In a statement like this one the object pronoun goes before the verb, where English puts it after.
Without it you have to repeat «las patatas» in every sentence.
lo caliento
lo caliento
I heat it up
«Lo» stands for «el aceite»: masculine, singular. The same pronoun covers both things and male people.
It is the most frequent direct object pronoun of all.
les pongo
les pongo
I add some to them
The direct object here is the salt; «les» marks who receives it, namely the eggs. Indirect pronouns use «le» and «les» for both genders.
Indirect pronouns are used for things, not only for people.
le damos la vuelta
le damos la vuelta
we flip it over
«Le» and «a la tortilla» refer to the same thing and sit side by side. Spanish does this constantly: the pronoun first, the full phrase after.
Leaving the pronoun out is also correct, but with «le» the sentence sounds more natural.
Se la mandé
Se la mandé
I sent it to her
Two pronouns in a row: indirect first, direct second. Spanish never says «le la», so «le» turns into «se»: le + la = se la.
This switch to «se» is the main trap of the topic, and it comes up constantly.
la sirven
la sirven
they serve it
«La» is the tortilla, and a third person plural verb with no subject means «people serve it», with nobody in particular named.
This is how Spanish states a custom: «lo dicen», «la sirven», «los venden».
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