Patatas bravas is a dish native to the cuisine of Spain, often served as a tapa

Tapas

Tapas are a wide variety of appetizers, or snacks, in Spanish cuisine. They may be cold or warm ....

 in bars. It typically consists of white potatoes that have been cut into about 2 centimeter irregular shapes and then fried

Fry

-Food and cooking:* Frying, the act of cooking food in oil or fat** Pan frying, frying food in a flat pan** Stir frying, frying food in a wok and stirring it while it cooks* Full breakfast, a traditional cooked meal, also called a fry-up or Ulster fry...

 in oil

Oil

An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....

 and served warm with a spicy tomato sauce

Tomato sauce

A tomato sauce is any of a very large number of sauces made primarily from tomatoes, usually to be served as part of a dish...

. This dish is commonly served in restaurant

Restaurant

A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...

s and bar

Bar (establishment)

A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...

s throughout Spain, where it is traditionally accompanied by a shot of orujo

Orujo

Orujo is the name in north-west Spain for pomace brandy . It is a transparent spirit with an alcohol content over 50%...

 or a glass of wine

Wine

Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...

.

Preparation

The potatoes are boil

Boil

A boil, also called a furuncle, is a deep folliculitis, infection of the hair follicle. It is always caused by infection by the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, resulting in a painful swollen area on the skin caused by an accumulation of pus and dead tissue...

ed in brine

Brine

Brine is water, saturated or nearly saturated with salt .Brine is used to preserve vegetables, fruit, fish, and meat, in a process known as brining . Brine is also commonly used to age Halloumi and Feta cheeses, or for pickling foodstuffs, as a means of preserving them...

 for several minutes to tenderize them. They are then rubbed dry and deep fried

Deep frying

Deep frying is a cooking method in which food is submerged in hot oil or fat. This is normally performed with a deep fryer or chip pan; industrially, a pressure fryer or vacuum fryer may be used....

.

Preparation of the accompanying sauce varies by city. In Burgos

Burgos

Burgos is a city of northern Spain, historic capital of Castile. It is situated at the edge of the central plateau, with about 178,966 inhabitants in the city proper and another 20,000 in its suburbs. It is the capital of the province of Burgos, in the autonomous community of Castile and León...

, the sauce is tomato

Tomato

The word "tomato" may refer to the plant or the edible, typically red, fruit which it bears. Originating in South America, the tomato was spread around the world following the Spanish colonization of the Americas, and its many varieties are now widely grown, often in greenhouses in cooler...

-based, and also includes vinegar

Vinegar

Vinegar is a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanol by acetic acid bacteria. Commercial vinegar is produced either by fast or slow fermentation processes. Slow methods generally are used with traditional...

, red pepper

Capsicum

Capsicum is a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. Its species are native to the Americas where they have been cultivated for thousands of years, but they are now also cultivated worldwide, used as spices, vegetables, and medicines - and have become are a key element in...

, and a variety of spices which give it bite. This sauce also accompanies patatas alioli, a form of fried potato prepared with mayonnaise

Mayonnaise

Mayonnaise, , often abbreviated as mayo, is a sauce. It is a stable emulsion of oil, egg yolk and either vinegar or lemon juice, with many options for embellishment with other herbs and spices. Lecithin in the egg yolk is the emulsifier. Mayonnaise varies in color but is often white, cream, or pale...

 and garlic

Garlic

Allium sativum, commonly known as garlic, is a species in the onion genus, Allium. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, and rakkyo. Dating back over 6,000 years, garlic is native to central Asia, and has long been a staple in the Mediterranean region, as well as a frequent...

.

In Valencia

Valencia (province)

Valencia or València is a province of Spain, in the central part of the Valencian Community.It is bordered by the provinces of Alicante, Albacete, Cuenca, Teruel, Castellón, and the Mediterranean Sea...

 and Catalonia

Catalonia

Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...

, the potatoes are covered in a sauce made of olive oil

Olive oil

Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...

, red pepper, paprika

Paprika

Paprika is a spice made from the grinding of dried fruits of Capsicum annuum . In many European languages, the word paprika refers to bell peppers themselves. The seasoning is used in many cuisines to add color and flavor to dishes. Paprika can range from mild to hot...

, chili, and vinegar. In these areas, the dish is traditionally served alongside alioli.

Consumption

Patatas bravas are served in bar

Bar (establishment)

A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...

s in servings that contain approximately a quarter kilo

Kilogram

The kilogram or kilogramme , also known as the kilo, is the base unit of mass in the International System of Units and is defined as being equal to the mass of the International Prototype Kilogram , which is almost exactly equal to the mass of one liter of water...

 of potato. It is frequently consumed as part of tapas

Tapas

Tapas are a wide variety of appetizers, or snacks, in Spanish cuisine. They may be cold or warm ....

.

The dish can frequently be ordered with a number of extra topping

Topping

Topping may refer to:* Hill-topping, a mate-acquisition strategy amongst insects* Topping, slang term for capital punishment, especially hanging or beheading* Topping , the name of several people...

s, the most popular of which include chorizo

Chorizo

Chorizo is a term encompassing several types of pork sausages originating from the Iberian Peninsula.In English, it is usually pronounced , , or , but sometimes ....

, chistorra

Chistorra

Chistorra is a type of fast-cure sausage from the Basque country and Navarre, Spain. It is made of minced pork, or a mixture of minced pork and beef, is encased in either lamb tripe or plastic, and has a fat content that varies between 70 and 80%. The sausage is flavored with garlic, salt, and...

, baked chicken

Chicken

The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...

, and fried fish

Fried fish

Fried fish refers to any fish that has been prepared by frying. Often, the fish is covered in batter, or flour, or herbs and spices before being fried.-Overview:Fish is fried in many parts of the world, and fried fish is an important food in many cuisines...

. Another popular variation is the tortilla brava: a Spanish omelet

Tortilla de patatas

The Spanish omelette or Spanish tortilla, also called simply tortilla in English when there is no confusion with the Mexican maize tortilla, is a typically Spanish dish consisting of a thick egg omelette made with potatoes and fried in olive oil....

 topped with the spicy sauce.

The same sauce is sometimes served over mussel

Mussel

The common name mussel is used for members of several families of clams or bivalvia mollusca, from saltwater and freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other edible clams, which are often more or less rounded or oval.The...

s. This dish is known as mejillones en salsa brava.