Pan-fried potatoes with gremolata
I’ve been wanting to make the parsley-rich dressing, gremolata, for a while now, and am really glad I finally did. The flavours are fresh and strong, but bring out the best in each other. This is going to be a regular feature in the Garden Deli kitchen from now on.
The combination with potatoes is inspired by Francis Mallmann’s recipe for smashed potatoes from his book Green Fire. The gremolata is a really easy way to add lots of herby, citrusy flavour to the fried potatoes. I used baby potatoes and allowed two per person. You can, of course, adjust the number of potatoes and the amounts of herbs, garlic and lemon in the dressing to suit your own family’s appetite and taste.
Pan-fried potatoes with gremolata
Ingredients
8 baby potatoes
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil for frying the potatoes
a pinch of sea salt flakes
a pinch of Aleppo chilli flakes (optional)
For the dressing
a good big handful of freshly picked parsley, leaves and stems, finely chopped
2 small cloves of garlic, mushed to a paste
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Boil the potatoes in a large pan until they are soft right through – use a knife to check. Remove from the heat, drain and leave in the pan with the lid off to cool a little.
While the potatoes cool, you can make the dressing. Stir the parsley leaves, garlic and lemon zest together in a bowl to mix evenly. Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and mix. Depending on the consistency you want, add more olive oil if needed. I add enough to get a spoonable dressing.
Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle comfortably, take one and place it on a board. Use the flat base of a glass or mug to gently squash the potato into a round about 1cm or so thick. Repeat this with the remaining potatoes. They should hold together fairly well.
Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan and when it is warm enough to gently sizzle, add the potatoes (you may need to cook them in two batches). Fry for about 5 minutes – until the bottom of the potato is nicely browned. Gently turn each potato over and continue to fry until both sides are golden brown.
Place the fried potatoes on a serving plate and sprinkle the tops with sea salt flakes. Spoon the gremolata dressing over the top. You can finish the dish with a generous pinch of chilli flakes and a little more lemon zest.