Stella, May I know how to make potatoes super?

9:30 AM Unknown 0 Comments

Of course you may. For today's Tutorial Tuesday, I would like to share my experiences with making an accordion potato. (or a hasselback potato). Me and Mister were feeling particularly fancy one night and opted to make some steak and potatoes. Well they turned out pretty tasty, but we had way too much potato compared to the steak. I added some other accouterments with the mushrooms and carrots, but we just needed more steak for the dish. Accordion potatoes are supposed to be the best of mashed potatoes and baked potatoes. It combines the crispy skin of the baked potato with the creaminess of mashed potatoes. 
 Starting with two russet potatoes and a baking dish to fit them in. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, but since I decided to use gigantic potatoes I have here our 9x9 inch baking dish.
 After the potatoes have been scrubbed clean, starting making thin slices along the potato. Try to keep the slices at equal distances from each other. That way they will cook evenly.
 If you aren't as confident with your slicing skills, I would suggest placing the potato between two chopsticks or wooden spoons. I should have done that as I almost made it through the giant potato without slicing it all the way down.
 After you've finished your slicing, you'll notice that the slices kind of seal back together. In the recipes I researched, the directions just slathered on some butter/oil periodically throughout the baking process and it will coat the inside of the potato. That way the butter is able in enter into the slices and crisp them up.
 I had a different plan. In case you haven't noticed, me and Mister are big fans of garlic. So I thought, why not place garlic slices between the potato? That way the garlic acts like a spacer and flavors the potato.
 It will take about an hour for the potato to cook, and by that time, the garlic will also be roasted and sweet tasting!
 I used a mandolin to carefully slice the garlic and then I alternated putting the garlic into each slice of the potato. Next just oil/butter, salt and pepper the potato and stick it in the oven!
Look how nicely the potato fanned out! The orange you see is some carrot sticks I added in. The carrot also held up the end piece that I sliced through.
This is a long bake time, so it's nice to make ahead of time. There is also another method that I've read but I haven't tried. You parboil the potatoes first then bake them. (Basically you boil the potatoes for 10-15 minutes and then slice them, slather them and then bake them.) That way your bake time is cut by at least half. I didn't want to deal with another pot to wash and dealing with hot potatoes did not sound like fun. I think my first time making these potatoes turned out pretty successful! (it was also pretty tasty too!) I hope you enjoy this method and I am thinking about starting a how to make it fancy series. Let me know what you think!

Accordion Potato Recipe
You'll need:
russet potatoes, scrubbed clean
garlic, thinly sliced (mandolin)
salt and pepper
melted butter or oil
Directions (more of a method): Preheat oven to 450°F.  Thinly slice the potatoes almost all the way through. (Place the potato between chopsticks or wooden spoons to prevent you from slicing all the way down.) Stick garlic slices between the slices. Slather the potato with the butter or oil. (Make sure to get inbetween the slices.) Season liberally with salt and pepper. Put the potatoes in a baking dish and bake for 55-60 minutes, or until the edges are crisp and the center is crisp. (Remember to brush the butter that's drained into the baking pan periodically to ensure those crispy edges!)
*in the first picture I have cheese because I just can't resist a cheesy potato! Sprinkle on the cheese at the last 5 minutes of baking.

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