Tuesday 17 March 2009

You Say Potato...

IN HONOUR of St Patrick's Day I've decided to post my top ten ways to eat a spud.
There's not a drop of Irish blood in me and I maybe being awfully cliche, but it just seemed to a convenient subject for today's blog.
So here's how I like to eat my potatoes best, don't forget to tell me how you like yours...
  1. Roast potatoes. Roasted in olive oil or goose fat until really crispy then dredged in rock salt.
  2. Baked potatoes. Preferably in the oven until the skin goes crunchy, although microwaved JPs make an acceptable substitute if time is of the essence. Fill 'em any which way. I like herbed garlic cheese and chilli con carne, or simple baked beans and Cheddar cheese.
  3. Chips. Preferably from a good chippy with plenty of salt and vinegar and lashings of Heinz tomato ketchup. Skinny 'shoestring' fries and crinkle cut chips also get the thumbs up, but oven-chips are a sacrilege.
  4. Dauphinoise potatoes. Rich, creamy and a sin worse than adultery in any dieter's bible. Best ones I've had were at Chez Jules in Ethel Street, Birmingham.
  5. Mash. The boy's mum makes delicious cheesy mash, which is so good it needs no accompaniments.
  6. Boiled new potatoes. Preferably Jersey Royals, with their skin on. Jersey Royal season is just around the corner, whoopie do!
  7. Potato rosti. Crispy, crunchy, sublime.
  8. Patatas Bravas. Always important to get your carbs in during a protein-rich tapas binge.
  9. Hash browns. Simply the only reason to ever order a McDonald's breakfast. Along with a double sausage McMuffin.
  10. Spicy potato spirals. They're only served in a student union bars. They're greasy. They cure hangovers.
So, how do you eat yours? Let me know...

4 comments:

Mrs Woffington said...

Hi Emily, I've nominated you for an award - have a look at http://mrswoffington.blogspot.com/2009/03/proximade-friendliness-award.html Don't feel obliged to nominate 8 others, but you might like it for your sidebar anyway :)

Emily said...

Thank you Mrs W. I will have a look right away. You have really cheered me up with this nomination! I really appreciate your support!
Kindest regards
Emily

Paolo Panini said...

On the subject of potatoes, Emily, you failed to mention that you need to select the right type of potato in order to get the best results. Tina Panini swears by the 'Maris Piper' variety as the best all round spud, and it certainly makes a brilliant tasting roastie. But so does the 'King Edward'. For boiling, try 'Estima' or 'Harmony'. The 'Charlotte' is a good spud with salads. An excellent mashing potato is 'Wilja', and for homemade chips use 'KE' or 'Sante'. Finally, for one good all rounder use 'Desiree'.

'You Say Potato'...but dont forget which variety for which menu!

Emily said...

Of course Paolo, you are absolutely right. The choice of potato is paramount. Considering potatoes are native to the UK, I do sometimes find it hard to find supermarkets which stock a wide variety of spuds, unless you head for somewhere like Waitrose. I remember having to go to House of Fraser for a couple of Desiree potatoes once because I couldn't find them anywhere else, and now they have stopped stocking fruit and vegetables all together. Quite often most supermarkets label their spuds as 'baking' or 'new' but it would be good to see the variety stated more clearly too. Thanks to you and Tina for all your tips.