Cooking From Every Angle

Squashed Potatoes

February 19, 2010

Yes, I know I just recently wrote about Tad's Roasted Potatoes, and his technique of using old white potatoes and roasting them in a cast iron pan to maximize the caramelization. I do love them, I really do. But then I remembered another great crisping technique, one I learned from Susan Spungen's underappreciated book, Recipes. In her version, which she calls Potato Tostones, she has you steam small white potatoes, lightly crush them in your palms and then crisp them in oil. I've made her recipe many times and recommend that you do too!

But this week, I wanted to take the potatoes one step further and really flatten them before crisping them in the pan, so there would be a thinner creamy potato center and a thicker, more perceptible crust. Susan also keeps her potatoes pure and minimal, seasoned with only coarse sea salt. I wanted to add some other flavors.

I began by forgetting to steam the potatoes, a mix of baby white and fingerlings, and instead plowing forth out of habit and boiling them. Then -- and I know this will surprise regular readers -- I used my handy meat pounder (see it in the photo above -- isn't it adorable?) to flatten the potatoes to 1/4-inch thick.

With the first batch, I decided to spread them with a thin mustard and thyme paste during their last turn in the pan. And this was a total failure. The mustard burned. The potatoes skins were bitter. Which, had I thought about it, makes a lot of sense: when trying to get a crust on potatoes, you don't want to put anything other than oil between the hot pan and the potato.

Chin up, I next cooked them without the mustard and kept the heat low so they browned in their own sweet time. This produced browned potatoes but no crust -- turns out potato skins prefer to bubble and singe when sauteed. I also figured out the difference between the potato types. Fingerlings cook better with this boil-then-brown method, because they hold together when squashed. The baby whites, although sweeter and more moist inside, fall apart a bit and can look like exploded amoebas. I'll leave it to you to choose your potato variety.

In the last batch, everything came together, and I discovered two crucial details. If you peel the potatoes before browning them, they get much crisper -- much like a hash brown without all of the hassle and heft. And if you want to add other seasonings, you need to chop or grind those herbs and spices fine enough to sprinkle over the crisped potatoes so the heat draws out their fragrance on the way to the table.

Originally, I thought I'd work the classic garlic and rosemary duo, but then I tried a simple seasoning of coarsely ground coriander, freshly grated black pepper and coarse salt. The coriander lends a citrusy scent and the coarse flakes from the spices add to the sense of crispness in the potatoes.

What I like best about these potatoes is that you can boil them in advance, keep them chilled in your fridge, then peel and squash a few whenever you have a mouth to feed. Or a desire to use your meat pounder.

Squashed Potatoes

Serves 4

1 pound fingerling (preferably) or baby white potatoes
Salt
4 plump garlic cloves
Olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Coarse sea salt
Either 2 teaspoons roughly ground coriander seeds or 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary

1. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with 2 inches of cold water. Generously salt the water. Place the pan over high heat, bring to a boil and cook at an active simmer until the potatoes are tender. Drain and let cool enough to handle.

2. Peel the potatoes (you can skip this step if you find it too tedious). Using a meat pounder or the base of a small heavy saute pan, press down on the potatoes to flatten them, one at a time, until 1/4-inch thick. (You may need a spatula to lift them in one piece from your work surface; lay them on a baking sheet.) Flatten the garlic cloves also, leaving the skins on.

3. Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Coat the base of the pan with a thick layer of olive oil. Add just enough squashed potatoes to fill the base of the pan. Tuck the garlic cloves in between the potatoes. Adjust the heat between medium and medium-low so the potatoes brown slowly. Let them sizzle away until nut brown, 5 to 8 minutes, then flip and brown the other side. (The garlic may cook more quickly, so keep an eye on it. Brown it on both sides, then transfer it to a serving platter.) When the potatoes are browned, transfer to the serving platter, and season with freshly ground black pepper, a little sea salt, and either the roughly ground coriander or rosemary. Repeat with the remaining potatoes.

Comments (24)Add yours

sustenancespace 5 months ago: yum! i did this with sunchokes last weekend and they were so unbelievably tasty that i burned my mouth. but soo worth it!
amanda 5 months ago: Never would have thought to use sunchokes -- thanks for a great tip!
monkeymom 5 months ago: This turned out really fantastic and were really easy. Best of all the kids loved them! Thank you!
amanda 5 months ago: So glad -- love receiving reports from the field!
InMarrakech 5 months ago: In Berkeley there's a great tapas place called Cesars. Perfect in every way. My favorite item by far (aside from their vodka martini) is french-fried shoestring potatoes tossed with fried herbs and served in a precariously-piled mound. The most compelling detail is the flash-fried herbs -- sage and rosemary crisped and salted to perfection -- a combo that sends the earthy potato-taste heavenward. I have approximated the fried herbs at home (I’m sure Cesars must use a deep-fat fryer). Heat oil (all I've tried so far is olive oil), toss in the rinsed and dried herbs in batches that do not overwhelm, wait not so very long and watch closely, remove herbs with a slotted spoon, toss with a bit of salt -- then add to whatever potato you have going. I've dressed diced and fried potatoes this way and mashed potatoes too. The trick (as I'm sure anyone would guess) is not to overdo the herb-in-oil time. Also, sopping up the fragrant oil with fresh bread is delicious.
amanda 5 months ago: Thanks for this -- have always wanted to go to Cesars.
Furey and the Feast 5 months ago: Man, that mustard/thyme combo would have been killer. I wonder if dried mustard would have worked? Like if you cooked the smashed potatoes until they were almost done, then sprinkle a little on each side.
amanda 5 months ago: Like this idea -- will try it next time.
Linda Hayes 5 months ago: A favorite recipe for 'smashed potatoes' calls for smashing boiled potatoes flat, brushing tops with oil, sprinkling with salt and pepper and baking in a very hot oven until crisp. Great with fresh herbs or other seasonings added. Wish I had some now.
amanda 5 months ago: Baking is great, too, because the tops crisp at the same time (and it makes less of a mess of your stove). What temp is your oven?
mrslarkin 5 months ago: I use the meat pounder trick a lot. I like to employ excess laziness and just squash the taters in the pan. These'll go great with next week's roast chicken!
amanda 5 months ago: That's a good idea -- hadn't thought of doing that.
Berna 5 months ago: I love potatoes, and these sound great. I sometimes use Heston Blumenthal's recipe for roast potatoes and they come out great as well. Basically, you peel, quarter and boil the potatoes until just tender, drain the water, add some olive oil, salt and pepper, cover the pot, then shake the heck out of the potatoes! Then place them on a roasting sheet and bake them until crunchy on the outside but creamy on the inside.
amanda 5 months ago: Love this British technique -- crisp, shaggy taters!
Abra Bennett 5 months ago: These look perfect, except...try them with duck fat! Duck fat roasted potatoes are a gift from the kitchen goddess.
coffeefoodwritergirl 5 months ago: Mmmmm...fried in duck fat would be delicious. I'll have to give that a try. What a wonderful technique for making potatoes! I am going to make these tonight! Thanks Amanda!
timWuNotWoo 5 months ago: Whenever I make hamburgers, bacon, or steaks, I like to reserve the excess grease and keep it in the fridge. I then use it when I'm sautee-ing things like spinach or, in this case, frying potatoes. It add all the bacon-meaty goodness with none of the hassle. WIN.
timWuNotWoo 5 months ago: adds* (there should be an edit comment option... o_0)
amanda 5 months ago: Yes, editing and also linking -- on our features to-do list!
mariaraynal 5 months ago: Totally off topic, but a spell-check feature on the recipe builder would also be great!
amysarah 5 months ago: I love all forms of roast potatoes - sometimes I do the boil/smash method too, but usually finish them in the oven. With any roasting method, I sometimes throw in - along with the garlic cloves - a lemon cut in chunks (after squeezing the juice over the spuds along with the olive oil.) The rind caramelizes with the potatoes and gives them a terrific fresh flavor - I got the idea from some I ate years ago in Greece. Another favorite crispy potato trick is from Patricia Wells - cut them in chunks, saute in olive oil until very crisp with just S&P, then when they're done - and still very hot - toss them with very finely chopped garlic and chives. The heat of the potatoes 'cooks' the garlic just enough to remove its rawness...but it's still a gutsy version - for true garlic lovers only. Of course you can limit the amount depending on who's eating them...and now I'm craving potatoes. Must do something about that.
amanda 5 months ago: Love the lemon trick. Your comment reminded me just how many great potato recipes Patricia Wells has published. She should collect them in a book. Or here(!), just for us, because we all seem to like potatoes so much.
Rivka 5 months ago: I make smashed potatoes like these quite often, with two main differences: first, I roast them on very high heat instead of sauteing them. Second, I use a the tines of a fork to smash them, which gives them a rippled surface that really maximizes their crisping potential.
amanda 5 months ago: Cool technique -- thanks.

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Cooking From Every Angle

Squashed Potatoes

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