Place the potatoes in a large pot and fill it with water to cover the potatoes with 3 cm water. Bring to a boil and cook until they are easily pierced with a toothpick, about 25 minutes. Drain in a colander and shake of as much water as possible. Pat dry with a tea towel. Spread the potatoes on a dry tea towel and leave to air-dry and cool enough so that they are easy to handle. Crush the potatoes by pressing down on them with a spice bottle (or anything with a flat bottom like a glass). Pour 4cm of vegetable oil into a saucepan set over medium-high heat and wait for the oil to heat up. Fry the potatoes in batches to avoid over crowding in the saucepan. They are ready after 2-3 minutes and when they are crispy and beautifully golden. Drain on paper towel before placing on a serving platter. Sprinkle with salt and serve immediately.
1,5kg potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm chunks 2 onions, chopped 2 cloves of garlic, minced 300g chorizo sausage, diced 200g cheddar cheese, grated 300ml cream 200ml milk
Preheat your oven to 200℃. Place the potato chunks in a large saucepan, pour in enough water to cover and bring to a boil. Cook the potato for 10-15 minutes, until a knife can easily be inserted, but not mushy. Drain the chunks and put it back into the same saucepan. Add the onion, garlic and chorizo to a large frying pan set over medium-high heat and stir-fry for about 10 minutes. Spoon the mixture into the saucepan with the potato chunks and mix through. Add the cheddar cheese and give it another mix. Spoon everything into a 28cm x 22cm ovenproof dish. Combine the cream and milk in a jug and season with salt and pepper. Pour the mixture over the potato. Place in the oven and bake for 40 minutes – check the casserole after 20 minutes or so and loosely cover with aluminium foil if it has browned enough. Serve warm with a fresh green salad.
The word croquette is derived from the French word croquer which means “to crunch” and that is exactly what these potato bites are: a soft, cloudy potato with a heavenly crunch on the outside. Makes about 50 balls and is an excellent way of using leftover mashed potato.
Scoop the mashed potato into a mixing bowl. Add the chopped sausage to a dry pan and cook until done and slightly crisp on the edges. Add the sausage, cheese, chives and garlic powder to the mashed potato and mix through. Scoop about 15ml of the mixture into your hand and shape into a firm ball. Place the balls on a baking tray. Keep going until there are no mix left. Refrigerate the potato balls for at least one hour, it will be easier to work with. Add the eggs to a shallow bowl and whisk to break it up. Add the breadcrumbs to another shallow bowl. Now dredge the balls through the egg and then the breadcrumbs to cover evenly and completely. Warm the oil and fry the balls in small batches until beautifully golden and crisp. Serve the croquettes with a good mayonnaise or mustard.
Boerenkool Stamppot is probably the oldest and most authentic of Dutch dishes and could be considered the Netherland’s national dish. Comfort food for those cold evenings when you do not want to spend too much time in the kitchen but need something to feed your soul.
1,5kg potatoes, peeled and diced 2 onions, peeled and chopped 1 bay leaf 500g kale, trimmed and roughly chopped 500g rookworst (or any other smoked sausage) 125ml milk 45ml butter salt and plenty of black pepper, to taste
Add the potatoes, onion, bay leaf, kale and a teaspoon salt to a large saucepan and pour in enough water to cover the ingredients. Cover with a lid and simmer for 25 minutes. Slice the sausage into thick slices and fry it off in a hot pan. You want the edges to caramelise and become crispy. Set aside. Remove the bay leaf from the veggies in the saucepan and drain off the water. Add the milk and butter to the saucepan and stir through. Lightly mash the potato-kale mixture but be sure to keep some texture. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the fried sausage. Serve the stamp pot with a traditional Dutch beer or a glass of wine.
1kg potatoes 15ml wine vinegar 125ml sour cream 62ml mayonnaise 15ml wholegrain mustard half an onion, very finely chopped 2 dill cucumber pickles, finely chopped 2 hard boiled eggs, peeled and chopped 62ml parsley, chopped
Cook and peel the potatoes. Chop the potato into bite sized chunks and add it to a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle over the wine vinegar and season with salt. Mix the sour cream, mayonnaise and wholegrain mustard together and pour over the potato. Add the onion, pickles, eggs and parsley and mix through. Taste and season the salad.
This potato dish is a quick weekday dinner for vegetarians or a substantial side dish to any meat. If you don’t have ricotta cheese on hand, get the recipe from this site and make your own. Yields 6 – 8 portions.
6 large potatoes 350g ricotta cheese 4 eggs, lightly beaten 1 onion, finely chopped a handful of chives, chopped 2 cloves of garlic, minced 40g parmesan/pecorino cheese, grated
Preheat your oven to 180℃ and grease a 20cm X 28cm baking dish.
Peel the potatoes and boil them until just cooked. Slice them into 1,5cm cubes and put aside. Add the eggs to a mixing bowl and whisk together. Add the chopped onion, chives, minced garlic and parmesan to the egg mixture and whisk together. Now add the cubed potato and mix through. Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking dish and bake for 25 minutes until golden. Serve with a green salad.
For the potato crust: Preheat your oven to 180℃ and grease a loose-bottomed cake tin. Spread a clean tea towel onto a work surface and grate the potato directly onto it, with the skin on. Fold the towel over the potato, gathering all ends together and twist and squeeze the potato over your kitchen sink until all the excess moisture has been removed. Put the potato into a mixing bowl. Sprinkle the garlic salt and flour over the grated potato and mix through with your hands in order to distribute all ingredients as evenly as possible. Now add the egg and mix in the same way. Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin and press it tightly into the base and sides of the tin with the back of a spoon. Place the cake tin on a flat baking sheet and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
For the filling: Put a frying pan on to medium heat and add some oil to it. Slice the onions and fry them until soft and translucent. Spoon the onion into a large mixing bowl. Turn the heat up to high, slice the mushrooms and add them to the hot pan. Cook until caramelised. Spoon into the bowl with the onion. Grate the zucchini and cheese directly into the mixing bowl with the onion and mushroom. Mix together. Spoon the vegetable-cheese mixture in to the potato crust. Set aside. Add the eggs, cream, salt and mustard to a mixing bowl and whisk together. Gently pour over the vegetable mixture. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes, until golden and set. Remove from the oven and stand in the baking tin for 30 minutes. Slice and serve warm.
This is a triple-cheese take on the classic Potato Gratin!
6 – 8 large potatoes 3 cloves of garlic, minced 15ml rosemary, finely chopped 250ml ricotta cheese 250ml mozzarella cheese, grated 250ml feta cheese, crumbed 250ml heavy cream salt
Preheat your oven to 190℃. Peel the potato and cut each into slices not thicker than 5mm. Keep aside. Mince the garlic and keep in a small bowl. Chop the rosemary and keep in another small bowl. Add the ricotta, mozzarella and feta cheese to a bowl and mix it through with your hands. Now, select a medium sized, ovenproof dish and start layering. Lay a third of the potato slices onto the bottom of the dish, slightly overlapping. Season with salt and then sprinkle with a third of the chopped rosemary and a third of the garlic. Now spread a third of the cheese on top. Repeat the layers until all the potato and cheese have been layered, ending with the last of the cheese. Gently pour the cream onto the cheese layer and tightly cover the baking dish with aluminium foil. Place the gratin into the oven and bake for 60 minutes. Check whether the potato is cooked by inserting a sharp knife. If not, or if the cream isn’t absorbed, cover the dish once more and let it bake until fully cooked. Remove the foil once the gratin is cooked and place it back into the oven for another 30 – 40 minutes, until golden brown. Serve as a side dish or as a vegetarian dish with salad.
My Whisk and I 