Yes, I KNOW I said I was on a Middle Eastern thang, but seriously,sometimes all someone has to do is wave something bright and shiny in front of me and KAPOW.... my tangential brain skewers off in a random and new direction.
Middle East Mindy cooking which WAS on the hob for dinner last night, got put on the..err... back burner because the very delicious Jules from Stone Soup and the equally moorish Kathryn from Limes & Lycopene tempted me via a random tweet.
I intercepted a tweet about salt and vinegar potatoes. Not chips, potatoes.
Now my love for all things crunchy and salty and starchy is well known. But add vinegar into the mix and you had me at white/malt/apple/cider.
I was one of those weird kids who drank vinegar out of the bottle. One of my favorite smells is a slow boiling pot of balsamic vinegar, with maybe a star anise and a cinnamon quill.
So, as much as I was planning practicing my Mandi smoking technique, I had no option but to be culinarily kidnapped by these two enablers and just HAD to try the recipe.
Please note, my camera in in transit, on its way to Dubai, as we speak, so this is an old stock photo. But last night's end result was almost identical to the header pic for this post. But the smell, oh god.. the glorious, GLORIOUS SMELL! Go out and buy a packet of Kettle Chip Slow Cooked Sea Salt and Balsamic Vinegar Chips. Sit in front of this post, open on your computer. Close your eyes. Put the bag of chips close to your face. Open the packet, stick your schnozz in the bag, inhale deeply and open your eyes.
THAT"S what they tasted like.
Cut 8 waxy potatoes into slices. I used tiny Dutch Creams, almost chat size, and cut them not into slices, but into chucks.
Place them in a medium saucepan and cover fully with vinegar. I used a small bottle of white wine vinegar and some mirin to add a touch of sweetness.
Bring to the boil and cook for 5 mins, until JUST fork-tender.
Allow to cool in the vinegar.
Remove from liquid and dry on a clean tea towel.
Place in a single layer in a baking dish, liberally dotted with duck fat.
Place in a hot over (200c) and cook for 5 mins until the duck fat has melted. Toss potatoes until covered in duck fat.. you want them nice and glossy. Sprinkle liberally with flaky salt and fresh pepper. Return to oven and cook for a further 20 mins, shaking the pan frequently.
Potatoes should be nicely browned all over, with luscious crunchy bottoms.
Serve with a roasted free range chook with a handful of thyme and an orange up its bum.
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6 comments:
Oh my GODDESS that sounds good! And so easy, too! Though it sounds like you needa lot of vinegar. You're boiling them in just vinegar, you say? Not a vinegar solution?
newp. STRAIGHT vinegar. I used a no-so-deep but wide pan, maybe 2 layers of potatoes. A normal sized bottle of white wine vinegar and a little bit (1/3 cup) mirin did the trick.
Note tho.. if you take the lid off the pan to check, you will pretty much blast the top of your head off with vinegar fumes.
Eeep! I must make this! I, too, was one of those strange kids who drank vinegar straight, so I *know* I'll love these. Might have to do without the duck fat, though... that's not something I tend to have lying around, unfortunately!
Hannah, these days any supermarket or even a good quality butcher will stock it, but you can sub with a goodly glurp of olive oil.
You drank vinegar from the bottle?!! Couldn't you at least have used a glass and had it on the rocks?
The thought of a barracuda with ADHD reminded me of one word...and the word was YIKES!
Maybe you were a magpie in a past life, they like shiny things too.
So I tried this recipe - though I was still a bit wussy, and went for a 50:50 vinegar/water solution. And I added some chopped rosemary when bunging them in the oven.
Compliments were garnered from all at the table. Thank you so much for sharing such an awesome idea!
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