Recipe: Salt and vinegar give plain potatoes some personality
If you're a roasted potato fan -- and who isn't? -- this is one version you have to try Kathy Morrison
Who needs another reason to cook potatoes? It's still wintry, still cold enough to turn on the oven without a second thought. And, oh yes, it's St. Patrick's Day on Monday.
And sorry, fans of mashed potatoes, the best way to cook potatoes is to cut them up and roast them until the centers are fluffy and edges are crispy. The potatoes themselves get to star, not be buried under quantities of milk, butter and gravy.
This simple recipe is my new favorite for roasting. It's reminiscent of salt-and-vinegar potato chips, which in turn are inspired by the traditional "chips" in "fish and chips." An order doused in salt and malt vinegar makes a memorable meal, whether it's consumed at a Dublin pub, on a London street corner, or in your neighborhood brewery.
Yes, British-style malt vinegar is recommended here, but I've also made these potatoes with apple cider vinegar and been just as happy with them. Flake or kosher salt is needed, too. The potatoes can be any variety on hand. Russets take a bit longer to roast; Yukon golds or red new potatoes tend to be creamier when roasted.
An optional variation includes sliced leeks or shallots along with the potatoes.
Serve the roasted potatoes alongside grilled or roasted meat for dinner, or at brunch to accompany a few of those precious eggs.
Salt-and-vinegar roasted potatoes
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (use one with a high smoke point, such as grapeseed oil)
2 tablespoons malt vinegar or apple cider vinegar, plus more for serving
1/2 to 1 teaspoon kosher or flake salt, plus more for serving
1/2 teaspoon or more freshly ground black pepper
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon sweet or smoked paprika
2 pounds scrubbed potatoes (russets peeled if desired), cut into 1-inch chunks
2 leeks, white and light green part only, or 2 shallots, sliced (optional)
Chopped chives, for serving
Instructions:
Heat oven to 425 degrees F. In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and 1/4 teaspoon paprika. Add the potato chunks, and the leek or shallot slices if using. Stir to thoroughly coat the vegetables with the mixture.
Spread the vegetables in a large sheet pan, including all the liquid, and sprinkle with a little more salt, pepper and paprika if desired.
Roast for 35 to 40 minutes total, checking on and turning the chunks with a spatula after 20 minutes and again at 30 minutes. Potatoes are ready when they are easily pierced with a fork.
Spoon the potatoes into a serving bowl, scraping up any crispy bits on the pan. Taste one chunk and adjust the seasoning, sprinkling on more vinegar or salt as desired. Serve immediately.
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Flowers in My Back Yard Series
May 12: Know your coreopsis from your bidens
May 5: Mums the word on Mother's Day weekend
April 28: Majestic Matilija poppy is worth a look
April 21: Celebrate roses, America's favorite flower
April 14: Small flowers with outsized impact
April 7: Calendulas do double duty
April 3: Make Easter lilies last for years to come
March 31: In praise of a pollinator magnet (small-leaf salvias)
March 24: Azaleas brighten shady spots
March 17: The perfect flower for beginners? Try zonal geraniums
March 10: Keep camellias happy for years to come
March 3: Fruit tree blossoms are a fleeting joy
Feb. 27: Are your roses looking rusty?
Feb. 24: Treasure spring daffodils now and for years to come
Feb. 17: How and why to grow wildflowers
Feb. 10: Let's talk Valentine's Day roses
Feb. 3: Why grow flowers?
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Garden checklist for week of May 10
Take it easy during that high heat – then get to work! Your garden is calling.
* Remember to irrigate your tender transplants. Seedlings need consistent moisture. Deep watering will help build strong roots and healthy plants. Water early in the morning for best results.
* Plant, plant, plant! It’s prime planting season in the Sacramento area. Time to set out those tomato transplants along with peppers and eggplants. Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.
* Direct-seed melons, cucumbers, summer squash, corn, radishes, pumpkins and annual herbs such as basil.
* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.
* In the flower garden, direct-seed sunflowers, cosmos, salvia, zinnias, marigolds, celosia and asters. (You also can transplant seedlings for many of the same flowers.)
* Plant dahlia tubers. Other perennials to set out include verbena, coreopsis, coneflower and astilbe.
* Transplant petunias, marigolds and perennial flowers such as astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia and verbena.
* Keep an eye out for slugs, snails, earwigs and aphids that want to dine on tender new growth.
* Feed summer bloomers with a balanced fertilizer.
* For continued bloom, cut off spent flowers on roses as well as other flowering plants.
* Put your veggie garden on a regular diet. Set up a monthly feeding program, and keep track on your calendar. Make sure to water your garden before applying any fertilizer to prevent “burning” your plants.
* As spring-flowering shrubs finish blooming, give them a little pruning to shape them, removing old and dead wood. Lightly trim azaleas, fuchsias and marguerites for bushier plants.
* Don’t forget to weed! Those invaders are growing fast.
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Food in My Back Yard (FIMBY) Series
Lessons learned during a year of edible gardening
WINTER
Is edible gardening possible indoors?
Hints for choosing tomato seeds
Why winter is the perfect time to plant fruit trees
When to plant? Consider staggering your transplants
How to squeeze more food into less space
Plant a fruit tree now -- for later
Win the weed war by tackling them in winter
Tips for planting bare-root trees, shrubs and vegetables
Time to give vegetable seedlings some more space
Ways to win the fight against weeds
FALL
Dec. 16: Add asparagus to your edible garden
Dec. 9: Soggy soil and what to do about it
Dec. 2: Plant artichokes now; enjoy for years to come
Nov. 25: It's late November, and your peach tree needs spraying
Nov. 18: What to do with all those fallen leaves?
Nov. 11: Prepare now for colder weather in the edible garden
Nov. 4: Plant a pea patch for you and your garden
Oct. 27: As citrus season begins, advice for backyard growers
Oct. 20: Change is in the autumn air
Oct. 13: We don't talk (enough) about beets
Oct. 6: Fava beans do double duty
Sept. 30: Seeds or transplants for cool-season veggies?
Sept. 23: How to prolong the fall tomato harvest
SUMMER
Sept. 16: Time to shut it down?
Sept. 9: How to get the most out of your pumpkin patch
Sept. 2: Summer-to-fall transition time for evaluation, planning
Aug. 26: To pick or not to pick those tomatoes?
Aug. 19: Put worms to work for you
Aug. 12: Grow food while saving water
Aug. 5: Enhance your food with edible flowers
July 29: Why won't my tomatoes turn red?
July 22: A squash plant has mosaic virus, and it's not pretty
July 15: Does this plant need water?
July 8: Tear out that sad plant or baby it? Midsummer decisions
July 1: How to grow summer salad greens
June 24: Weird stuff that's perfectly normal
SPRING
June 17: Help pollinators help your garden
June 10: Battling early-season tomato pests
June 3: Make your own compost
May 27: Where are the bees when you need them?
May 20: How to help tomatoes thrive on hot days
May 13: Your plants can tell you more than any calendar can
May 6: Maintain soil moisture with mulch for garden success
April 29: What's (already) wrong with my tomato plants?
April 22: Should you stock up on fertilizer? (Yes!)
April 15: Grow culinary herbs in containers
April 8: When to plant summer vegetables
April 1: Don't be fooled by these garden myths
March 25: Fertilizer tips: How to 'feed' your vegetables for healthy growth
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