The three greatest potato dishes of all time

[ermintrude]

1. The first Baby Jersey Royals of the season, boiled with unsalted butter and a sprinkle of Maldon sea salt. Perhaps this is where my foodie background comes from as I remember my grandmother, a pensioner with no income but her state pension would rather buy a 1lb of these than fillet steak (Only around for a few weeks and now the restaurants tend to get them all - the public get the bigger ones later)

2. Chips (For those not from the UK these are French fries but cut thick, not the silly thin ones, great big fat sticks of potatoes, crisp shell and fluffy on the inside with none of that 'coating' rubish) and eaten when your hungry, outside, on a cold, damp and windy evening with salt and malt vinegar (oh for the days when you could get them in newspaper). In a perfect world they would be fried in goose or beef fat.

3. Potato Dauphinois and who cares about the heart attack.

[Zeemanb]

Nothing new to add except a very specific type of french fry.....

I know of a couple of BBQ places here in KC that do a standard crinkle cut double-fried french fry (second fry happens when you place your order), and the order is placed in a waxed paper bag with the top twisted closed at the corners. There is a very brief window in which to eat the fries....you want to let them steam in the bag for just a moment, but they definitely won't survive a car ride home. I honestly can't think of a better example of a french fry. Double fat-double fried-double-crisp perfection, with the perfect accompaniment being a spicy vinegar based BBQ sauce.

[kpzachary]

Reibekuchen- Fried potato pancakes in Germany's Christmas markets served with applesauce. The Germans call it "Himmel und Erde" - Heaven and Earth

Pomme Frites- They have to be fried in duck fat or beef fat and served with Bechamel or Mayo.

Loaded Baked Idaho Russet- Rubbed with duck fat and coarse sea salt before baking. Filled with butter, cheddar or blue cheese, sour cream, bacon and chives.

I think I might have a heart attack just for typing this.

[CtznCane]

1. Red Potatoes - Raw. Sitting in front of the TV on a fall afternoon watching football. Peel the potato, have the salt shaker handy to salt it and a cold beer handy along side (Domestic only for this ritual.) It doesn't get any simpler or any better than that.

2. Mashed Potatoes. - Any kind will do as long as you have enough butter. Really enough butter. Tons of butter. Okay, I think that part is clear.

3. Good Potato pancakes.

So many more but only limiting it to 3.

[opqdan]

1) Potato pancakes (latkes), made by anybody, as long as they are crispy on the ouside rather than mushy. Served with sour cream or applesauce and optional smoked salmon.

2) A good, hot german potato salad. King Ludwig's in Leavenworth, WA makes a delicious one.

3) I suppose any sort of fries. I love it when they are crispy on the outside and fluffy in the middle, while my wife likes them limp, so a good 50/50 split between the two.

[Norman Walsh]

1. The first of the Jersey royals with lashings of butter.

2. French fries a la Heston Blumenthal.

3. Maris Piper roasted in goose fat around the forerib of beef.

I have a funny feeling that I will be peeling some spuds shortly.

Norman

[Karen Anderson]

My three:

Swedish scalloped potatoes (no cheese, please!) made with peeled, thin-sliced potatoes; layered with chunks of good butter, some flour, salt, and pepper; baked in half-and-half.

Potato latkes (made with coarse-grated potatoes)

My ex-husband's spicy German potato salad with bacon (unfortunately, he didn't leave me the recipe)

[Tjaart]

1. Oooh, crispy outside, creamy, creamy rich, yet light, inside - potato with the delicate flavour of fresh eggs and butter - pommes dauphines! the best ever form of potatoes (although German potato croquettes rolled in crisp buttery chopped almonds could almost make it too)

2. German Salzkartoffeln, golden earthy flavour, oozing butter and sparkling with parsley!

3. potatoes like my mother used to make for special family occasions - perfectly boiled and smothered in a creamy cheddar-flavoured sauce Mornay, with a touch of hot English mustard in the sauce and a light sprinkling of nutmeg.

not far behind these come a plateful of gnocchi, one half robed in pesto, one half robed in a light, fresh tomato sauce with a dollop of cream stirred into it.

[sundownyellowmoon]

For staff lunch one day when cooking in Paris I had what I thought were the best fried potatoes I'd ever had. When I found out who'd made lunch I asked the commis why the potatoes were so good. He wasn't sure. I asked him what he'd done to make them. "I just fried them in veal kidney fat."

A few weeks later I told a friend of mine, who was the chef/owner of a small relais in Normandy about this. He said that the best fried potatoes he'd ever had were ones cooked in veal kidney fat that had been rendered from a whole veal kidney that had been cooked on a spit over an open fire.

He then made this for me and....no surprise--I agreed.

[Tri2Cook]

I really like ye olde fondant potatoes. The unadorned version... just water, butter, salt and pepper and a little patience. I make 'em with stock instead of water sometimes but I actually prefer the water and butter version most of the time. Gives a nice pure potato flavor with a little sweetness from the butter.

Modified tartiflette... so I guess technically it's not tartiflette. I like to make it with stilton instead of reblochon. Not that I mind the original version of course, good stuff.

Big, thick-cut fries with malt vinegar.

It's not particularly one of my favorites but I sometimes cut potatoes, dip them in sea salt, seal them in a ziplock and take them with me as a snack when I'm doing long bike rides (anything over 100 km) on hot days.

Edited July 3, 2007 by Tri2Cook (log)

[David Ross]

1. Baked Potato made with an Idaho Russet Potato.

2. Mashed Potatoes made with Idaho Russet Potatoes.

3. French Fried Potatoes made with Idaho Russet Potatoes.

No further explanation needed, create the images in your mind.