Potatoes!

"...when I worked for Joel Robuchon he was famed for his pomme puree (French for potato puree), and it was only 30% potato." - Chef Gordon Ramsay

In one of the recipes found online of Robuchon's famous mash has a butter to potato ratio of 1:4....wow. No wonder they taste so nice...

In March-April 2008 issue of Flavours, there was a feature on mashed potatoes...and I'm loving it to bits. Among great tips that they offer is how to make silky smooth mashed potatoes: by passing your mash thru a fine wire mesh. I honestly never thought of that.

Also, always warm up milk or cream before adding to mashed potatoes. And for lighter texture, whip the cream untill stiff before folding gently into the mashed potatoes just before serving. Whipping cream adds richness to the mash.

Here are a few recipes I'd like to try out from this issue:


Basic mashed potatoes (6 servings)

1kg potatoes, unpeeled
100-250g cold butter, diced
150-250ml milk or UHT cream or combination, heated
salt and pepper to taste


Wash and place potatoes in saucepan with enough water to cover them. Add 1 tsp salt. Bring to boil and lower heat to simmer until tender. Drain and peel. Mash until desired texture is obtained (while hot).

Warm milk and cream but don't boilt them. Add butter and seasoning to the mlik. Add the hot liquid to the mash. Mash or whisk until smooth.

For silky texture, pass mash through fine sieve with help of pastry scraper while hot.


Croquette

flour for dusting
1 egg, beaten with 1 tsp oil
salt and pepper to taste
30g breadcrumbs
oil for deep frying

Dust worktop and coat hands with flour. Shape the potato duchesse into 5cm- length cylinders. Dip into beaten egg and then breadcrumbs. Deep fry until golden brown and crisp.



Potato duchesse (for croquettes)

1kg potatoes, washed
100g butter, softened
5-8 egg yolks
salt and pepper to taste


Place potatoes in saucepan and cover with water. Bring to simmer over medium heat and cook until tender.

Peel and mash potatoes while hot, adding butter and egg yolks and seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.