The market · Roots and tubers · The Americas, Northern and Central Europe
Potatoes
From the Andes, and now almost everywhere.
earthy
What to do with it
MinangkabauSoto PadangA clear, spiced beef broth poured over crisp-fried beef, rice vermicelli and potato fritters, with crackers and rice alongside.No one here has made it yetJavaneseGado-gadoBlanched vegetables, potato, tofu, tempeh, egg and lontong under a thick peanut sauce, with prawn crackers on top.No one here has made it yetSundaneseSiomay BandungSteamed fish dumplings with cabbage, potato, bitter gourd, tofu and egg, all steamed together and drowned in peanut sauce.No one here has made it yetSundaneseSoto mie BogorYellow noodles, beef and cabbage in a clear spiced beef broth, with tomato, potato and slices of fried spring roll.No one here has made it yetThaiMassaman curryA rich, mild coconut curry fragrant with cardamom, cinnamon and clove, with beef or chicken, potatoes and peanuts, sweet and sour with palm sugar and tamarind.No one here has made it yetMalaysianAyam pongtehA Nyonya braise of chicken and potato with fermented soybean paste, shallots, garlic and gula melaka — salty, sweet and dark.No one here has made it yetUyghur and XinjiangBig-plate chickenChicken and potatoes braised with chilli, Sichuan pepper and green peppers, served on one huge platter, with wide flat noodles tossed through the sauce at the end.No one here has made it yet
PunjabiAloo parathaWholewheat flatbread stuffed with spiced potato, rolled thin and cooked on a tawa with ghee, eaten with white butter, yoghurt and pickle.No one here has made it yetPunjabiAmritsari kulchaA leavened flatbread stuffed with spiced potato, pressed with coriander seed, slapped onto the wall of a tandoor and served dripping with butter beside chole.No one here has made it yetBengaliMacher jholFreshwater fish, fried in mustard oil, then simmered in a thin, gingery broth with potato and turmeric — Bengal's everyday fish curry, eaten over rice.No one here has made it yetBengaliKosha mangshoGoat meat fried slowly with onion, ginger, garlic and yoghurt until the masala turns dark and clings — Bengal's Sunday mutton, eaten with luchi or rice.No one here has made it yetBengaliAloo postoPotatoes cooked in a thick paste of ground white poppy seed and green chilli, finished with raw mustard oil — nutty, creamy and plain in the best way.No one here has made it yetGujaratiUndhiyuA winter medley of flat beans, purple yam, sweet potato, baby aubergine and plantain, slow-cooked with fenugreek dumplings and a green masala of coconut and coriander.No one here has made it yetGujaratiDabeliA soft bread roll split and stuffed with a sweet, hot potato filling, tamarind-date chutney, masala peanuts, pomegranate and sev, then toasted in butter.No one here has made it yetRajasthaniMirchi badaBig, mild green chillies stuffed with spiced potato, dipped in gram-flour batter and deep-fried.No one here has made it yetSouth IndianMasala dosaA thin, crisp pancake of fermented rice and lentil batter, folded around spiced potato and served with sambar and coconut chutney.No one here has made it yetSouth IndianAppam and stewBowl-shaped rice pancakes, lacy at the edge and soft in the middle, with a mild stew of coconut milk, whole spices and potato.No one here has made it yetTurkishMercimek çorbasıRed lentils cooked with onion, carrot and a little potato, blended smooth, with red pepper butter and a wedge of lemon.No one here has made it yetMoroccanFish tagine with charmoulaFish marinated in charmoula, laid over potatoes, tomatoes and peppers with preserved lemon and olives, and cooked slowly in the tagine.No one here has made it yetCape MalayTomato bredieLamb or mutton braised slowly with tomatoes, onions and potato, warm with cinnamon, cardamom and a little chilli.No one here has made it yetCape MalayKoesistersSoft, spiced, doughnut-like dumplings, fried, dipped in syrup and rolled in coconut — for Sunday morning.No one here has made it yetCape MalayCape Malay chicken curryA mild, fragrant curry of chicken and potatoes with tomato and whole spices — sweeter and gentler than Durban's.No one here has made it yetCape MalaySmoorsnoekFlaked salted or smoked snoek braised with onion, potato, tomato and chilli, eaten with rice and apricot jam.No one here has made it yetCatalanSuquet de peixA fishermen's stew of white fish and potatoes in a saffron-tinted broth, thickened at the end with a picada of garlic, almonds and fried bread.No one here has made it yetValencianAll i pebreEels from the Albufera lagoon stewed with potatoes in a sauce of garlic, pimentón and chilli — the name means garlic and pepper.No one here has made it yetValencianArròs al fornRice baked in a wide earthenware dish with chickpeas, pork, blood sausage, potato and tomato, with a whole head of garlic in the middle.No one here has made it yetGalicianPulpo a la gallegaBoiled octopus cut into rounds with scissors, dressed with olive oil, pimentón and coarse salt, on a wooden plate.No one here has made it yetGalicianCaldo gallegoA plain, restoring broth of turnip tops or cabbage, potatoes and white beans, flavoured with a little cured pork.No one here has made it yetGalicianLacón con grelosCured pork shoulder boiled with turnip tops, chorizo and potatoes, and served on one great platter with olive oil and pimentón.No one here has made it yetCastilian and MadridCocido madrileñoChickpeas, meats, sausages and vegetables simmered for hours in one pot, then served in turns: the broth with noodles, then everything else.No one here has made it yetCastilian and MadridPatatas bravasChunks of fried potato with a hot, pimentón-red sauce — the bar tapa found all over Spain.No one here has made it yetCastilian and MadridTortilla de patatasA thick omelette of potatoes and, usually, onion, slowly poached in olive oil, then set with eggs and turned in the pan.No one here has made it yetAsturianCachopoTwo large, thin veal fillets sandwiched around ham and cheese, breadcrumbed and fried, and served big enough to share, with chips and peppers.No one here has made it yet
ProvençalBouillabaisseMarseille's fish stew: bony rockfish boiled hard with olive oil, tomato, fennel and saffron, served with rouille and bread.No one here has made it yet
ProvençalSoupe au pistouA summer soup of beans, green beans, courgette and pasta, with basil, garlic and olive oil pounded and stirred in at the end.No one here has made it yetLyonnaisGratin dauphinoisThinly sliced potatoes baked slowly in milk and cream with garlic, until soft underneath and golden on top.No one here has made it yetAlsatianChoucroute garnieSauerkraut braised in white wine with juniper, then heaped with smoked and salted pork, sausages and boiled potatoes.No one here has made it yetAlsatianBaeckeoffePork, lamb and beef marinated overnight in white wine, layered with potatoes and onions in an earthenware dish sealed with dough, and baked for hours.No one here has made it yetGascon and the South-WestGarbureA thick farmhouse soup of cabbage, beans and root vegetables, cooked with ham and confit until a spoon nearly stands in it.No one here has made it yetGascon and the South-WestMagret de canardThe thick breast of a duck raised for foie gras, scored, cooked skin-down until the fat renders, and served pink like a steak.No one here has made it yetBretonCotriadeThe Breton fishermen's stew: several kinds of fish simmered with potatoes and onions, the broth poured over bread and the fish eaten after with vinaigrette.No one here has made it yetGreekMoussakaLayers of fried aubergine and minced lamb or beef in a cinnamon-scented tomato sauce, under a thick crust of béchamel, baked.No one here has made it yetGreekGemistaTomatoes and peppers hollowed out, filled with rice, herbs and their own pulp, and baked in olive oil with potatoes.No one here has made it yet
PolishPierogi ruskieBoiled dumplings filled with potato, twaróg cheese and fried onion, finished with more onion in butter.1 version herePolishŻurekA sour soup built on fermented rye flour, with white sausage, smoked meat, garlic, marjoram and a halved hard-boiled egg.No one here has made it yetPolishPlacki ziemniaczaneGrated raw potato and onion bound with egg and a little flour, fried in thin cakes until lacy and crisp.No one here has made it yetPolishKwaśnicaThe highlanders' sauerkraut soup, sour and smoky, cooked on pork ribs with potatoes, allspice and bay.No one here has made it yetPolishKluski śląskieSoft, springy dumplings of mashed potato and potato starch, each pressed with a thumb to leave a dimple for the gravy.No one here has made it yetNordic and Baltic ryeLohikeittoA creamy Finnish soup of salmon, potatoes and leek in a light stock, with plenty of dill and whole allspice.No one here has made it yetJamaicanCurry goatGoat on the bone, seasoned overnight and stewed slowly with Jamaican curry powder, allspice, thyme and scotch bonnet.No one here has made it yet
PeruvianLomo saltadoStrips of beef stir-fried in a wok with onion, tomato, soy and vinegar, served with chips and rice.No one here has made it yetPeruvianRocoto rellenoRocoto chillies, blanched to tame them, stuffed with spiced beef, peanuts and raisins, topped with cheese and baked.No one here has made it yetKinds
- Floury
- Maris Piper, King Edward, russet — for mash and pierogi filling.
- Waxy
- Charlotte, Jersey Royal — hold their shape.
Goes with
Cooked with, here
How much, here
Knowing it
- Where to buy
- Anywhere.
- Worth knowing
- Rice or mash floury potatoes while hot — once cool they turn gluey.
Kitchens that keep it in
Galicia — Spain's green, rainy north-west corner, on the Atlantic above PortugalGalicianSpain's great seafood coast — octopus, mussels, scallops and barnacles — with a green, rainy inland of pork, turnip tops, soft cows' milk cheeses and pies baked to share.6 classicsAlsace — north-eastern France, between the Vosges and the RhineAlsatianFrench and German at once: sauerkraut and pork, yeasted cakes and bread, fresh cheese and cream, cooked with the dry white wines of the Vosges foothills.9 classicsBrittany — the peninsula of north-western France, between the Channel and the Bay of BiscayBretonBuckwheat and salted butter, the catch of a long, rocky coast, and pancakes cooked thin on a hot iron plate.7 classicsPolandPolishCold-climate cooking of grains, potatoes, dairy and ferments — sour things, soured things, and dumplings for every occasion.10 classics · 1 cooked herePeru — the Pacific coast, the Andes and the AmazonPeruvianAndean potatoes, maize and chillies, met by Spanish, African, Chinese and Japanese cooks — and a coast that eats its fish raw in lime.10 classics
