What Size Frying Pan Should I Use For The Spanish Tortilla?

Asked by diarist. Answered on 31st December 2022

Full question

Small frying pan, you say - but not how small. Measurement would be useful if this were to be an omelette and not a frittata.

Image of Nigella's Spanish Omelette — Photo by Lis Parsons

Semi-Spanish Omelette

By Nigella

Our answer

Nigella's Spanish Omelette (from NIGELLA EXPRESS) is similar to a Spanish tortilla, which is a deep omelette filled with potatoes, sweet peppers, onions and cheese. It is not dissimilar to an Italian frittata. Nigella's version finishes cooking under the grill (broiler), rather than having to flip the omelette onto a plate and then slide it back into the frying pan to finish.

For a small frying pan we would suggest using a 20-23cm (8-9-inch) frying pan. It needs to have deep sides and also to have a handle that can potentially take the heat from the grill. A skillet would also be a good option. Anything larger than 23 cm could be used but the omelette will be on the skinny side.