Crispy potato cakes
Apologies to Nigel Slater.
I took a lovely dish of his, entitled ‘Little cakes of leeks and potatoes’, which he described as “too spartan a recipe to be true”; and added cheese and parsley. Jolly good, even if the extra ingredients – to misquote Shakespeare – gild the lily. Sorry for being pedantic too.
- 3 baking potatoes, peeled
- 2 large leeks, cleaned well, cut lengthwise and then into small dice
- 50g butter
- 50-100ml milk – depending on how much you need for the mash
- 75g cheddar, grated
- A few sprigs of parsley, chopped roughly
- A decent glug of sunflower oil – or something else with little flavour, not your best olive oil…
Cut the potatoes in chunks and boil in salted water in a large saucepan till done. Drain and leave the lid off for a minute or two to let the excess moisture evaporate, then mash them with a potato masher. Add enough milk to make a firm mash and season with plenty of black pepper and some salt. You can always add more salt later, but the butter and cheese may be salty too.
In the meantime, cook the leeks gently in a small saucepan with the butter. I do mean gently – over low heat for at least as long as it takes the potatoes to cook – so you’re left with sweet, soft, barely golden leeks in melted butter. I know it seems a lot of butter, but it will flavour the mash.
Stir the leeks and the grated cheese into the mash in the pan and when cool, add the parsley too. Check the seasoning. Then form a dozen or so small balls from the mixture with your hands, and flatten them to about 1cm thick. You can freeze surplus ones at this point on some parchment paper and then transfer to a freezer bag. Heat a frying pan and shallow fry the cakes over moderate heat – they colour quicker than you expect, as my ones demonstrate.
- Tender Volume I – NIGEL SLATER
Shakespeare – King John, Act 4, Scene 2