The Food Lab
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[Photographs: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt]

About the author: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt is the Chief Creative Officer of Serious Eats where he likes to explore the science of home cooking in his weekly column The Food Lab. You can follow him at @thefoodlab on Twitter, or at The Food Lab on Facebook.

Every recipe we publish is tested, tasted, and Serious Eats-approved by our staff. Never miss a recipe again by following @SeriousRecipes on Twitter!

About This Recipe

Yield: makes one 10-inch tortilla, serving 6 to 8 as an appetizer or 4 as a light meal
Active time: 15 mintues
Total time: 15 minutes
Special equipment: 10-inch non-stick or cast iron skillet

Ingredients

  • For the Cheaty Allioli:
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 medium garlic cloves, finely minced or grated on a microplane grater (about 2 teaspoons)
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons water
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  •  
  • For the Tortilla:
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 small onion, finely sliced (about 3/4 cup)
  • 5 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon sherry or white wine vinegar
  • 3 cups (about 2 1/2 ounces) Kettle-style salt and vinegar chips

Procedures

  1. For the Cheaty Allioli: Combine mayonnaise and garlic in a medium bowl. Whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in extra-virgin olive oil. Whisk in water. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.

  2. For the Tortilla: Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a 10-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and just starting to brown. Transfer onions and oil to a large bowl. Add eggs and vinegar and whisk to combine. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds black pepper. Fold in potato chips until they are well coated.

  3. Wipe out skillet and add remaining two tablespoons olive oil. Return to medium heat until shimmering. Add egg/potato chip mixture and cook, stirring with a rubber spatula, for 10 seconds. Shake pan to evenly distribute mixture, then even out top with the spatula. Cook, shaking pan occasionally, until tortilla is mostly set but still wet on the top, about 2 minutes.

  4. Place a large metal or glass pot lid over the tortilla. Using kitchen towels to grip the lid and the pan handle, carefully invert the entire tortilla so that it's resting on top of the pan lid. Slide tortilla back into skillet so that the cooked side is now facing up. Use the spatula to tuck down the edges and create an even disk shape. Continue to cook, shaking occasionally, until tortilla is golden brown on second side and barely cooked through, about 2 minutes longer. Slide tortilla out onto cutting board.

  5. Cut into squares or wedges and serve immediately with allioli, or allow to cool and serve at room temperature.