The Guardian's Twenty best potato recipes

[karadekoolaid Profile]

Which piccy should I keep, version 1 on the white plate or version 2 on the purple plate?

Good question. You decide.
As I mentioned above, the cheese used in Ecuador is white. It´s similar to many cheeses found in South America: not usually matured for very long, firm, and definitely not a "melting" cheese. Perhaps a Caerphilly might work better; if not, try a hard Ricotta.
As for the spuds, I´d go for a waxy potato as it tends to hold up better when fried.
Another thing that might make the difference is that many "fritter" type foods here are cooked in very little oil and on a flat surface. a "Budare", a "Comal" or a "Plancha" are what you might find here - all flat discs of iron/aluminium which retain the heat but are not heated to very high temperatures.

[karadekoolaid Profile]

I´ve just gone into about a dozen Ecuadorian websites, obsessed with making a good llapingacho.
The thing they´re cooked on is called a "griddle"; so it´s fairly slow cooking at a fairly medium temperature. The advantage of the griddle is that you can flip the patty more easily without it breaking up. You also need less oil.
Claire´s recipe is pretty darn good. I´d probably use a little less onion ( or use spring onions), and since I have annato/achiote available, I´d use that rather than the Spanish paprika/pimentón.

[Pepper Pig Profile]

It does look worth a go but she does intimate that it might be a bit sloppy.

[Sakkarin Profile]

...and I can't believe that those ones in the picture were only 2 minutes a side...

I have some achiote, but as I just realised the enormous amount of clearing up that it generated which I have to do now (couldn't be bothered last night), I think I'll leave it till I have the energy...

[Renee Profile]

Sakkarin, both of those pictures looked good to me. It's a shame that you weren't happy with them, but it's what they taste like that's important.

[dennispc Profile]

I’m surprised no-one’s reacted to the first dish in the list Sakkarin gave us.

Shepherd’s pie? I know it has potatoes in it but I’d hardly rate it as a potato dish. Does that mean the hake and mash I’m doing for our tea, can be described as a potato dish?

But worse than that, apparently Sheperd’s Pie (or should that be Shepherds’ Pie?) can have 500g of beef in it.

Next time my cottage pie will have lamb and it’ll be a potato dish.

[Sakkarin Profile]

It's not my list Pet! Like you I wondered why Shepherd's Bush was on there...

It was The Guardian by way of Pepper Pig, I just posted a condensed set oif links to save jumping backwards and forwards.

I suppose I would consider Shepherds Pie being a star in a parallel list of 20 mince dishes.

[dennispc Profile]

Didn't think it was Sakkarin, it came with the Observer, we'd already raised an eyebrow about it.

And we’re not having any spuds with our hake, so now it’s a fish dish.

[Badger's Mate Profile]

I suppose that Shepherd's pie is as much a potato dish as fish pie, Lancashire hotpot or Spanish omelette.

[Sakkarin Profile]

Yep, Fish Pie made me wonder too. Throw in the recipes that really shouldn't be on a "Top 20", and we're down to 13. Maybe it should have been "Top 10". Or maybe they should have consulted us!

The Lancashire Hotpot does look gloriously potatoey though...

[karadekoolaid Profile]

I suppose that when you have to choose a mere 20 recipes from the hundreds and thousands of potato concoctions in the world, you have to be a little subjective.
I don´t think I´d have included Fish Pie or Shepherd´s pie. I might have added a couple of Spanish dishes - Patatas Bravas or Papas Arrugadas, perhaps.
I´d also have included Madhur Jaffreys Potato and Tomato with Coconut. Absolutely my favourite potato dish ever.
Then I´d also have wanted to include something from Perú - I mean, they have over 4,000 varieties of potato and the tuber probably came from there originally! Papas a la Huancaina, or Causa Limeña.
And as a final offering, I´d have put in my recipe for Heart Attack Potatoes. Layer of cream, layer of potatoes, diced, fried bacon, onions cooked in bacon fat/butter, generous layer of grated cheddar, repeat until the baking dish is full. Top with strips of bacon and bake until crispy. Only 10,000 calories per serving.

[scullion Profile]

i'd add bombay potatoes and tartiflette to the list, too.

[jeral Profile]

karadekoolaid, is Madhur Jaffrey's potato/tom/coconut dish this one?
https://keitopotato.wordpress.com/2012/ ... nut-curry/
It looks right up my street I'd appreciate hints on what to serve it with that's non-meat. I'm thinking apricots, cashews (so more tree nuts) and dark green leaves. Unless the dish is normally served alongside something? Ta.

[Sakkarin Profile]

From that Madhur recipe...
1.25 lbs diced tomatoes (fresh or canned)

Diced canned tomatoes, now there's an extremely messy thought!

[karadekoolaid Profile]

That´s it, Jeral. It is really so simple and sublime. I include it in every single one of my Indian Food Courses - never fails to please.
What would I serve it with? I think I´d go for 1)simple stir-fried greens 2) Broccoli with lemon juice and fresh green chiles 3) Brinjal Masala - aubergines in a sauce 4) Chole (Punjabi chickpeas) 6) Koosmali ( grated carrots with mustard seeds, yoghurt and coconut) 7) Chapatti. 8) Basmati rice with peas.
Not all at once, of course, unless you´re having a banquet!

[karadekoolaid Profile]

Sakks - I don´t do "tinned" unless I´ve got nothing left in the kitchen. I use fresh, very ripe tomatoes, cut into 8 pieces. Skin and all. The only thing you have to worry about is the salt.

[jeral Profile]

Many thanks karadekoolaid and good to see that the choices don't look complicated in that welcomed sense of less to go wrong.

Sakkarin - handy tip learned from a friend re chopping tinned toms. Open tin lid, insert big pointed chef's knife and cut through gently from centre to outside working around the tin. It's a thing that's obvious once you've seen it done. PS, it was in student days when pre-chopped toms were 10p a tin dearer.

[Renee Profile]

I can only see crushed roast potatoes, but food is the main thought in my head!

[Rainbow Profile]

From that Madhur recipe...
1.25 lbs diced tomatoes (fresh or canned)

Diced canned tomatoes, now there's an extremely messy thought!

I usually buy diced, tinned tomatoes - already chopped and not messy at all

[jeral Profile]

On reflection, I wonder if Sakkarin is querying the instruction to dice the can - I wouldn't put it past him lol - if so, definitely to be done in a field with protective goggles and plenty of innocent bystanders with cups ready to catch whatever might fall back to earth...