What are patatas bravas?

Patatas bravas (pronounced ‘pat-tat-tas brab-bas’) are Spanish fried potatoes in a spicy tomato sauce. It sounds simple, but good patatas bravas is not easy to forget. The potatoes are not just potatoes, but crispy, brown cubes and the orange sauce is smoky and deep in taste. Chilli peppers, cayenne peppers and/or hot paprika powder give the sauce its brightness; it is one of the few spicy dishes in the generally mild Spanish cuisine.

The word bravas has different meanings; the dish is therefore called ‘brave potatoes’, but also ‘angry potatoes’ or ‘spicy potatoes’. According to connoisseurs, all these different names apply to this popular tapa (snack). The dish is so popular that even Spaniards would rather not share it, and it is not surprising if you order a larger portion (racion) all to yourself.

The celebrated snack originally comes from Madrid where it was invented in the early 1950s. One of the restaurants in the running to be the original ‘source’ of the dish is restaurant chain Las Bravas in the centre of the city. Here they are so sure of their business that they have even registered their Las Bravas sauce on the official trademark register. If you eat patatas bravas here, you can eat them hot, while standing at a bar table or at the counter. If you prefer to sit down, you won’t have to look for long, because patatas bravas can be found on every tapas card, both in Madrid and (far) beyond.