As mentioned in my previous article mash doesn't have to be boring. There is so much a person can do to make it really exciting. Here is another couple of recipes with a slight twist to the normal mash.
Once again local Chef Ina Paarman recipe taken out of her "What's Cooking?" recipe book.
Crushed Potatoes with Cream Cheese
6 Medium potatoes, cut into quarters;
10ml Seasoned Salt;
1 Bay leaf;
30ml Olive Oil;
150g Cream Cheese;
5ml Green Onion Seasoning (Ina Paarman)
10ml Potato Spice (Ina Paarman)
Fresh Chives
Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Add the seasoned salt and bay leaf. Cook the potatoes until the potatoes are tender and a fork can go in with no resistance. Reserve 125ml of the cooking liquid and drain the potatoes. Discard the bay leaf. Put the potatoes back ot the empty warm saucepan. Crush the potatoes with their skins on with a potato masher until roughly broken.
Add the olive oil, cream cheese and the reserved cooking liquid to bind everything nicely. Season with the green onion seasoning and potato spice. Serve with freshly snipped chives and to make it more interesting sprinkle with crispy bacon.
**For an alternative and deeper flavour roast the potatoes in the oven until soft but try to not make them to crispy.**
With the above recipe you can once again play around with different flavours. Instead of using plain cream cheese, try using flavoured ones like: Smoke Ham, Smoke Salmon (will really compliment if you are serving fish), Blue Cheese, Lemon and Black Pepper, the list goes on and on.
Now I am going to share something really special and different especially for you. It will really compliment fish or chicken. This idea came from Jamie Oliver's "Cook with Jamie" cookbook. I have to say that his recipes is so simple and has so much flavour, that is why he is one of my cooking inspirations.With the lemon mash he served it with roasted monkish and black olive sauce.
Lemon Mash
1 Kg of Floury Potatoes
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Extra virgin olive oil
Milk
Juice from 1 Lemon
Peel and half your potatoes. Put them in pot of salted cold water (you can add a bay leaf if you like) Cook them until they are tender. Drain and mash with about 90ml of extra virgin olive oil (really important to use good quality olive oil for better flavour) and add some milk for that perfect consistency. Just give it a good swig nothing more nothing less. Season according to taste (The secret of any dish is to always taste it) and add the lemon juice. If you want to get your mash silky smooth shiny and absolutely delish without using fancy gadgets. Put your mash through a sieve once or twice. Doesn't change the taste but makes it look like a picture out of a recipe book. Sprinkle with a little lemon zest for garnish.
Olive Oil Mash
400 g of potatoes
Sea Salt
White Pepper
Olive oil
Handful of grated parmesan cheese
Butter
(This recipe serves 2 so just the perfect amount of mash)
Wash, peel and cut your potatoes in half. Put in a large pot with cold salted water. Bring to a boil and cook until soft and tender. Drain with a colander and how the potatoes to steam for about 5min this allows all the moisture to steam away. Put the mash back in the pot and mash them up, stirring in a large glug of olive oil. Add the Parmesan and good knob of butter. If you want to you can use an electric hand mixer to smooth out your mash. Transfer into a bowl, cover with cling-wrap and place on top of a bowl of simmering water to keep warm until you are ready to serve.
If you have the time and want to "upgrade" your cooking skills you have got to try this method of making mash potatoes. This recipe is not only for making that amazing mash but if you are making a cottage/shepherds pie this is the recipe that will make your food look like famous chef Marco Pierre White has been in your kitchen and did all the cooking.
As you will see there is no ingredient quantities, use your judgement based on how many you are making for. What it looks like and taste it as you go along, especially before adding too much salt.
Michelin Styled Mash Potato
| Potatoes | ||
| Milk | ||
| Unsalted Butter | ||
| Salt & Pepper | ||
| Egg Yolks |
Bake the potatoes until done, should be about an hour to hour and a half, depending on the size of your potatoes. Heat up a little milk in a pan. Grate the potatoes and mash them in a bowl. Add about 30ml of butter for a side mash or 15ml if making a topping for a cottage pie. Add the warm milk and then mash it all together. If you are making a topping i.e. cottage pie add three egg yolks to help it brown.
These are just a few ideas. The possibilities are endless...
Enough said, now it is your turn to share!!
What is your favourite way of doing mash and what ingredients do you add to give them that pizzazz?
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