Full disclosure: I’ve never been to Spain–but you already know I like to use food to compensate for the lack of plane tickets. Luckily, Dani had the chance to study abroad there, so I can live vicariously through her experiences, work backwards, and try to come up with something interesting.

While I was alternating between vlaamse frites and beer, she was washing down patatas bravas with wine. Now, both dishes are essentially the same– but once you throw purple potatoes in, it’s time to get weird.

The real Peruvian purple potatoes are supposed to be a superfood– and probably have a really unique flavor. These tasted pretty normal… but at least they looked dramatic. The sauce definitely took center stage, though. I’ve been playing around with this tarragon-pepper sauce for a while, first here, then more recently. In both cases, I wanted the sauce to be thin to complement fish. Here though, I added tomatoes to make the sauce thicker to mimic the mayo-based sauce that you’d get in Spain. You’ll probably want to make extra…

Let’s cook.

You’ll need

4 Cups Baby Potatoes, quartered

2 Cups Tomatoes, crushed

1 Bell Pepper, minced

1 Serrano Chili, minced

2 Cups Mushrooms, sliced thinly

1 Shallot, minced

3 Cloves of Garlic, minced

4 Green Onions, minced

1 Tbs Tarragon

1 Tbs Parsley

2 Tbs White Wine Vinegar

1 Tsp Paprika

1 Tsp Coriander

Salt & Pepper to taste

1. Salt the potatoes in a large bowl, then let them dehydrate for thirty minutes. Fry the potatoes in oil, then drain on paper towels, and keep warm.
2. Saute garlic, shallots, mushrooms, and peppers until soft, then season with salt, pepper, coriander, and paprika. Add crushed tomatoes, and simmer until the tomatoes no longer taste sour. Add wine vinegar, and herbs.
3. Plate, and serve the sauce with the potatoes.

Done.