It’s hard to believe that this post will finish up five seasons of Good Eats – only nine more seasons to go! So, what did Alton choose to finish up his fifth season with? Potatoes were the choice for this season finale, and if you recall, they were also the subject of the second episode of Good Eats. It’s only fair for the mighty potato to star in two episodes since there are so many things you can do with it, such as…
Leftover Baked Potato Soup
First up was Alton’s potato soup. This soup comes together pretty quickly, so you can easily make it on a weeknight. Begin by melting 3 T butter in a pot.
3 T butter
Add 1 1/2 C diced leeks, 1 1/2 T minced garlic, and some Kosher salt. Sweat the leeks until they are translucent and add 6 C chicken stock to the pot, increasing the heat to a simmer.
While the liquid simmers, press four baked russet potatoes through a ricer into a bowl. Though the online recipe says you should peel the potatoes, Alton did not peel his potatoes in the episode.
Pour 1 1/2 C buttermilk into the riced potatoes, whisking. The starch from the potatoes will prevent the buttermilk from curdling when it is added to the hot stock. Also whisk 1/2 C sour cream and 1/2 C grated Parmesan into the potato mixture.
By the time you are done prepping the potatoes, the stock should be simmering nicely on the stove. Add the potato mixture to the hot stock, and bring the soup back to a simmer.
Just before serving, stir 2 T sherry vinegar into the soup.
Sherry vinegar, to be stirred in right before serving.
Garnish the soup with Kosher salt, pepper, and chopped chives.
A bowl of Alton’s potato soup with Kosher salt, pepper, and chives.
I fixed this soup for us two nights ago after baking my potatoes earlier in the day. The soup itself really takes no time at all to make. We liked this soup, though I prefer potato soup that is a bit thicker and that has chunks of potato. I did like the tang this soup had from the vinegar, buttermilk, and sour cream, and leeks always pair well with potatoes. Overall, I’d say this was good but not spectacular. I give it an ‘A’ for flavor, but only a ‘C’ for texture/consistency.
Cold-Fashioned Potato Salad
Just as with potato soup, you couldn’t very well have a potato episode without including a recipe for potato salad. This was one of those recipes where I got hungry watching Alton make it. Begin by placing 2 1/2 lb small red potatoes in a pot, covering them with cold water.
2 1/2 lb red potatoes covered with cold water.
Bring the water to a boil, and then drop the heat to a simmer. Check the potatoes after 5 minutes, and every 3 minutes thereafter for doneness; you should be able to stick a skewer through a potato with no resistance. If you cook your potatoes too quickly or for too long, their skin will crack. I thought my potatoes were done after about 20 minutes of cooking. Drain the water from your potatoes and immediately place them in ice water for 2-3 minutes to halt their cooking.
Again, drain the potatoes. According to Alton, you should be able to easily remove the skins of your potatoes by simply rubbing them in a tea towel, but this was not the case for me, and I ended up using a peeler. Either way, once your potatoes are peeled, thinly slice them; if you have an egg slicer, that will work well for this. Place your still-warm potato slices in a large Ziploc bag, add 3 T cider vinegar, seal the bag tightly and place it in your refrigerator overnight.
The following day, combine in a bowl: 3/4 C mayonnaise, 1/2 t dry mustard, 2 t minced garlic, 1 T minced tarragon, and 1/4 C chopped parsley.
Mayonnaise, dry mustard, garlic, tarragon, and parsley.
Once combined, add 1/4 C chopped cornichons, 1/2 C minced red onion, and 1/2 C thinly sliced celery.
Give everything a good stir and fold in the potato slices, along with their vinegar. Season to taste with Kosher salt and pepper.
Remember how my potato skins did not come off very easily? Yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s because I didn’t cook them quite long enough. I loved the combination of flavors in this potato salad, but my potatoes were a little too toothsome. It seems to me that most people generally prefer either creamy potato salads or German-style potato salad. I felt that this recipe would really please both camps, as it is both creamy and acidic. The dry mustard and red onion give the salad a nice bite, while the celery and cornichons lend a good crunch. I also really liked the anise-like flavor from the tarragon. This is a winning potato salad – just be sure to cook your potatoes long enough. Doh!
Potato Roesti
I really did not know what a roesti (“roshe-ti”) was until I watched this episode. Basically, it is like a hashbrown that contains onions and is tender on the inside. I made this for breakfast for us last weekend, as it seemed like a perfect breakfast before a 14-mile run. You will start by grating 3 Yukon Gold potatoes and 1 onion. Spin the potatoes and onion in a salad spinner, getting rid of as much moisture as possible.
This recipe makes four servings, and Alton recommended seasoning/cooking each serving separately, as the salt will pull moisture out of the potatoes. Since I knew we had a long run ahead of us, I divided the mixture into only two portions. While you melt 1/2 T butter in a nonstick skillet, season 1/4 of the potato mixture with Kosher salt and pepper. Add the seasoned potato mix to the melted butter, using a spatula to form a thin, round cake. You should hear a light sizzle when you press the cake with a spatula.
Cook the roesti for 7 minutes or until golden; now it is time to flip. Cut 1/2 T butter into chunks and disperse it on top of the roesti. Slide the cake onto a pan lid, using the lid to flip the cake back into the pan, butter down.
Cook the roesti for ~5 more minutes, or until golden brown. If you want to serve your cakes all at once, you can keep them warm in a low oven for ~20 minutes while you cook the other cakes. Serve the roesti with sour cream.
Roesti with sour cream.
We thought this was tasty. At first, we thought it was possibly undercooked inside, but then I read that a roesti is supposed to be tender inside. I liked the additional flavor the onion added to potatoes, and the crispy exterior. I like sour cream, but wasn’t sure how I would like this combo; it turns out that sour cream really did pair nicely with this. The one thing I will say is that we had some GI issues as the day progressed, and I have to wonder if they could have been from the roesti. This did make for a tasty breakfast, so I think I will have to give it another go and hope for the best. With that… onto the 6th season!
Allison Cooks Alton's Good Eats 