RECIPE: This came in my email today from Milk Street. REC: Smashed Potatoes With Chile-Lemon Vinaigrette

RECIPE:
M

michael-in-phoenix

Well-known member
I'm going to try this. It sounds like a good side for Christmas Eve Mexican dinner with the Fam:

Smashed Potatoes With Chile-Lemon Vinaigrette

To make these creamy-inside, crisp-outside potatoes, we first boil whole fingerlings or small Yukon Golds, then flatten and roast them in a ripping-hot oven. We took a cue from Mokonuts, a popular Parisian café, and dressed the smashed potatoes with a tangy-spicy vinaigrette that nicely accents the potatoes’ starchy, mildly sweet flavor. When boiling the potatoes, begin timing as soon as they’re added to the water. To make ahead, the potatoes can be boiled, smashed, cooled and refrigerated a day in advance; to finish, brush with oil and roast as directed. The vinaigrette can be made in advance except for the chilies, then covered and refrigerated until ready to use; bring to room temperature and add the chilies.

2½ pounds fingerling potatoes or small (1- to 1½-inch) Yukon Gold potatoes

4 medium garlic cloves, peeled

3 rosemary sprigs

Kosher salt

¼ cup lemon juice

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 small jalapeño or Fresno chile, stemmed and sliced into thin rings

¼ cup lightly packed fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

DIRECTIONS

01

Heat the oven to 500°F with a rack in the middle position. In a large pot over high, bring 2 quarts water to boil. Add the potatoes, garlic, rosemary and 1 cup salt, then cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until a skewer inserted into the largest potato meets no resistance, 18 to 22 minutes.

02

Using a slotted spoon transfer the potatoes to a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet; place the garlic in a small bowl; remove and discard the rosemary. Let the potatoes cool for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, using a fork, mash the garlic to a paste, then stir in the lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of oil, followed by the chilies; set aside.

03

After the potatoes have cooled slightly carefully remove the rack from the baking sheet. Wipe away any moisture on the baking sheet and place the potatoes in an even layer directly on the sheet. Using the bottom of a dry measuring cup or ramekin, press down on each potato so it is slightly flattened and splits open but remains intact. Brush the tops of the potatoes with the remaining 4 tablespoons oil.

04

Roast the potatoes without moving them until browned and crisp, 35 to 40 minutes. Using a wide metal spatula, transfer to a serving platter, then sprinkle with the parsley and drizzle with the vinaigrette.

Tip: Don’t let the potatoes cool completely before smashing. They are easier to flatten and they hold their shape better when warm.

ENJOY!

 
A coincidence that I tried this again last night. Does anyone have a good trick for

Keeping the potatoes together after smashing? I used small Yukon Golds and the bottom of a mug. No way they stayed together but I pushed them in a pile and continued. Tasted fine anyway.

 
Don't let the potatoes cool too much

and don't push down as hard on them.
If you use a glass or clear custard cup to "smash" them you can see when they have flattened a bit and the skins have split around the edges.

 
Janet, in addition to judy's suggestion, here's info from ATK's Side Dish Bible re smashed potatoes

Book title:
The Side Dish Bible. 1001 Perfect Recipes for every vegetable, rice, grain, and bean dish you'll ever need.
by America's Test Kitchen:

"Success starts by choosing the right potato; only small red potatoes, with their moist texture and thin skin, fit the bill. Before we smashed them, we par-cooked them on a baking sheet covered with foil to soften them. Unlike boiling, which can wash out flavor, this steaming approach kept the potatoes earthy and sweet. After a short rest, we drizzled them with olive oil and smashed them all at once by placing a second baking sheet on top and pushing down evenly and firmly. After adding chopped fresh thyme, more olive oil and another stint in the oven, we ended up with browned, crisped potatoes that were super-creamy inside. Use small red potatoes measuring 1-2 inches in diameter. Remove the potatoes from the baking sheet as soon as they are done browning--they will toughen if left too long."

Marilyn's Note: I was simply looking for an internal temperature to know when to smash the potatoes, but decided that all of this (info and recipe) provided helpful ideas. Janet, you may want to test the recipes (Milk Street or this one) with a small batch of potatoes (maybe Yukon versus Red Bliss? Oh...I love science) well before Christmas dinner to see if their methods work. Good luck.

 
ATK's Roasted Smashed Potatoes (serves 4)

2 pounds small red potatoes, unpeeled
3/4 C water
6 TBL EVOO, divided
1 tsp fresh thyme

1. Adjust oven racks to top and lowest possible positions and heat oven to 500 degrees. Arrange potatoes on rimmed baking sheet, pour water into sheet and wrap tightly with aluminum foil. Cook on lowest rack until paring knife skips easily in and out of center of potatoes (poke through foil to test), 25-30 minutes. Remove foil and let cool for 10 minutes. If any water remains on sheet blot dry with paper towel.

2. Drizzle 3 TBL oil over potatoes and roll to coat. Space potatoes evenly on sheet and place second baking sheet on top. Press down firmly on second sheet, flattening potatoes until 1/3 to 1/2" thick. Sprinkle with thyme, season with salt and pepper and drizzle evenly with remaining 3 TBL of olive oil. Roast potatoes on upper rck for 15 minutes, then transfer to potatoes to bottom rack and roast until well browned, 20-30 minutes. Serve immediately.

 
thanks Marilyn. I was looking for something easy to serve with roast beef. This seems

Like a project. Perhaps I will fall back to scalloped potatoes that I can prepare ahead or maybe even mashed. I wanted a simple meal with Yorkshire pudding and a veg.

 
Potato casserole using shredded baked potato, butter, sour cream, onion and

cheese.
It's like the ubiquitous hash brown potato but without the soup can. In fact you can make it with the frozen hash browns but it is so good made with leftover baked potatoes. Good make ahead.
Or do twice baked potatoes. Use smallish bakers and serve halves.

 
I find if I just use a kitchen towel and give a quick crush by hand over the towel

while the potatoes are still warm it's enough to do the trick and doesn't break up the potatoes too much. Just a gentle crush will work.

The potatoes can be done ahead (cooked and gently crushed) a few hours then reheated gently at service time.

 
I know what you mean. While writing it up, I was wondering if a stop watch should have been

Included with kitchen equipment. But then, I also like the detail for food items I don't cook often. I made Pioneer Woman's smashed potatoes the first time just winging it and they were perfect. So I thought I had them nailed. Then I made them for my neighbors up here and they were hard as rocks. That's why I felt I needed more information to understand where I went wrong. I don't mind screwing up my own food, but hate when I screw up a dish that I'm feeding another.

 
Traditionally, I serve pork carnitas with all the 'street taco' additions on the side. I'm thinking

of switching it up and doing Pork and Poblano Stew this year, with Dawn's Creamy Chicken Enchiladas as a second main.

Michael

 
Michael what method do you use for the tortillas?

I'm looking for a way to serve 100+ tortillas I've been putting them in the oven in foil but if I add a little water a good percentage of them fall apart. If I don't add a little water they get hard and unappetizing.

 
Here's one way to do it. Start with several (2, 3, 4?) dry skillets on medium high heat.

Start placing the corn tortillas on the skillets and warming them until soft, flipping once in order to heat both sides. If you have large skillets (12") you can do 3 in each skillet at a time. So, if you have, say, 3 skillets with 3 tortillas heating in each, you are doing 9 at a time.

Once heated through, stack about a dozen in a *lightly* dampened towel. Not too wet, or your torts will get soggy. When you get about 12, wrap them in the towel, then in foil. Put the foil/towel/tortilla packets in a warm oven, large crockpot set on low, or in a turkey roaster set on warm. 11 or 12 packets later, you have around 100 warm tortillas that will stay that way through your meal. Take them out and open them as you need them, but don't leave them in the warmer too long, maybe an hour at most, or they, too, will dry out.

Michael

 
for street tacos

Family style we serve with cilantro, limes, tomatoes, onions, crumbly Mexican cheese and sour cream on the side and everyone adds what they like. For a big crowd any suggestions for how to put all this out where people can add their own?

 
I put two bowls of everything down the middle of our table, so that family and friends...

...can access from both sides and minimize log jams. Two bottles of each hot sauce, if you use them. We have our favorites, so it wouldn't be Mexican food without them.

One table for condiments and another for side dishes like beans, rice, etc.

What time do we eat? You're making me hungry!

Michael

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top