One of the best ways I know how to learn about a culture is to cook the food. I learned a little more about Spain ths past weekend by slow cooking estofado catalan, as well as a whole table full of tapas-like dishes to go with sangria. One of the things I made was patatas bravas, or potatoes served with a tomato sauce. It's kind of like French fries and ketchup, but a million times better.

Sarah J. Gim's Interpretation of Patatas Bravas

Make the sauce first:

Heat about 2 Tbsp olive oil in a sauce pan and cook 1 large onion that has been chopped until translucent. Add 2 cloves of garlic that have been smashed and cook until the garlic is fragrant. Add 1 Tbsp crushed red pepper (more if you're really brava), a few Tbsp of chopped parsley, 1 Tbsp sugar, 1 tsp of soy sauce, black pepper to taste,  and 1 cup of wine. I used red because that is what I already had open, drinking. You can use a dry white wine or even sherry. Let simmer for about 10 minutes, then add 1 15 oz can of plum tomatoes, crushed by hand. Let simmer another 10-15 minutes, then remove from heat and cool. You can serve this as is which is "rustic," but I pureed mine in a food processor to make it a little smoother. You can leave the sauce at room temperature.

Make the potatoes:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Peel and cut about  5 pounds of potatoes into 3/4" dice. Toss them with about 1/2 cup olive oil, season with salt and pepper, spread on to a baking sheet and roast for about 45 minutes, shaking the pan and stirring them every 10-15 minutes. When the pototaoes are crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, put onto a plate with high sides or a shallow bowl and top with the tomato sauce. Garnish with chopped parsely to make it pretty.

(You can also deep fry the potatoes in oil on the stove top, but oven "frying" requires less attention and is easier when you have fifty-seven other things to cook for your dinner party.)