Pats Preposterous Potato Perfection
Summer Potato Vibes. Zingy Twist.
This week’s recipe comes courtesy of my brother Pat who, when he’s not dressed as Superman in about 1984, or (more recently) helping me walk a slack-line on a Kentish beach, is a fabulous cook. He is the inspiration for many of my dishes, and for a huge number of the exotic ingredients in my store cupboard.
For this recipe you start with a bag of new potatoes. Boil them (skin on) and then smuussh them - I use the bottom of a mug for this, it is a most pleasing, squishy process. Pop them onto a lined baking tray with a decent slug or two of olive oil.
Roast them in a hot oven until golden and crispy, something like this…
Put them aside while you make the dressing. It’s this that really makes this dish sing. Umami. Zing. Earthiness. Heat. This dressing, which Pat invented, absolutely has it all.
In a large bowl combine plain yoghurt, mayo (half as much mayo as yoghurt), two tablespoons of tahini, glug of soy sauce, splash of rice wine vinegar, two teaspoons of chili crisp or a teaspoon of gochujang paste or similar (I used Toban Djan - chili bean sauce), teaspoon of grated ginger, teaspoon of crushed garlic, plenty of fresh lime juice, and a good squeeze of honey.
As ever, taste as you go and adjust the quantities as you need - bit more of this, bit less of that. To serve, drizzle the dressing over the crispy potatoes and add some finely chopped spring onions. Eat immediately.
Glorious as a side dish for a BBQ - particularly good with chicken. Equally, so lovely you could just eat plates of the dressed potatoes by themselves. The dressing is so mouth-wateringly delicious that another option is to bin off the potatoes entirely, simply dunk hunks of fresh crusty bread into your bowl of dressing, and make that your meal.
As there is a bit of heat to it, I’d be minded to sip a nice glass of rose with this one. Or a super-cold lager. Perfect.
Enjoy, and have a fabulous weekend when it comes!