If you needed another excuse for a trip over to Tabarca, here it is. The island is now home to the officially crowned best traditional Spanish tortilla in the Valencian Community.
La Muralla restaurant and chef Pedro Juan Sánchez took first prize at the inaugural Valencian Community Spanish Tortilla Championship.
The victory also earns La Muralla a place at the Spanish championship next month, when the country’s top tortilla makers will compete during Alicante Gastronómica.
Tabarca takes the top prize
Restaurants from Alicante, Elche, Alboraya, Valencia, Monóvar, Tabarca, Castellón, Burjassot and Altea competed in the first regional championship.
Judges divided the competition into two categories. The first concentrated on the classic Tortilla de Patatas Tradicional (Traditional Spanish Tortilla), where La Muralla claimed the title.
Carmen Canals from La Latería in Elche took second place. Third place went jointly to Dana Rotaru from Nou Pinet in Alicante and Antón Prieto from Paquita’s in Elche.
For La Muralla, however, the competition is not over. Pedro Juan Sánchez will
now represent the Valencian Community in the traditional category at the Campeonato de España de Tortilla de Patatas (Spanish Tortilla Championship).
The national competition forms part of Alicante Gastronómica, which runs from 2 to 5 October.
Alicante also wins the creative category
The second part of Monday’s competition gave chefs a little more freedom.
Tortilla de Patatas con… (Spanish Tortilla with…) allows cooks to add other ingredients and put their own spin on the familiar potato and egg dish.
Nou Pinet in Alicante won this category with a tortilla featuring smoked bacon and spring onion.
Nando Cerón from La Melosa in Valencia took second place, while La Muralla added another prize to its day by finishing third.
All three winners in the creative category have secured places in the equivalent competition at the Spanish championship.
From Tabarca to the national championship
The new regional contest brought together restaurants from all three provinces of the Valencian Community, with Alicante province taking several of the leading places.
Competition director Rafael García Santos said the judges faced a difficult decision because of the standard of the tortillas entered.
For Costa Blanca food lovers, there is now an added local interest when the national championship arrives in Alicante in October. Tabarca’s La Muralla will be carrying the Valencian Community flag after winning the region’s first traditional tortilla title.
And yes, that means a little island just off the Costa Blanca can now claim some serious tortilla bragging rights.
Bridging the Gap’s recap
- La Muralla in Tabarca has won the first Valencian Community Spanish Omelette Championship.
- Chef Pedro Juan Sánchez took first place in the traditional tortilla category.
- The competition took place at the CdT in Alicante on Monday 14 September.
- La Latería in Elche finished second in the traditional category.
- Nou Pinet in Alicante and Paquita’s in Elche shared third place.
- Nou Pinet won the creative category with smoked bacon and spring onion.
- La Muralla will now compete in the Spanish championship.
- The national competition takes place during Alicante Gastronómica from 2 to 5 October.
Check out our other Spanish recipes and food inspired articles.
