Bon appetit and good BBQ!Potatoes. Some people are in love with them and others just like french fries. Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of fries either. There were three major events that changed my view of potatoes.
The first was a dinner at a restaurant on the South Shore of Montreal that offered mashed potatoes with cheese curds. I told you, I'm not a fan of potatoes, but I was even less of a fan of the other sides offered. So I opted for a version of Poutine without brown sauce.
What a surprise! The cheese curds added at the very end add a texture and a salty side that is really not unpleasant in the mouth. The piece of plastic that I found in the mashed potatoes a few bites later also allowed me to receive a free dinner. If you looked at my photo, you will understand that I like free food a lot!
My second experience was at a friend's house, a former chef who was making mashed potatoes for dinner. He was cooking his bacon in pieces and when his girlfriend's back was turned, he poured the bacon fat into a cup. As he mashed the potatoes, he added a generous swig of this delicious nectar before he began mashing the potatoes. Then he added a pound of butter to his potatoes. He looked me in the eye. It was almost erotic. Then he said something I will never forget: "If you have to put milk in your mashed potatoes, you didn't put enough butter!"My third experience with potatoes involves teenage heartbreak and vodka. No need to add anything. I still have heartburn from it.
The first two experiences finally inspired me to create a recipe that was very successful with my family and at certain events at BBQ Québec. The Once a Year potatoes are not just named for poetry. They are decadent potatoes that need to be eaten in moderation or with 10-12 marathons planned during the year.That being said, put this easy recipe on your “Bucket List” because life hasn’t been fully lived until you’ve tasted this deliciousness.
Servings: 8
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
-8 potatoes (ideally the same size)
-3-4 branches of green onion (commonly called shallots but to avoid confusing anyone, take the long green shallots not the shallots which look like a mini red onion)
-125 to 200 g of salted butter
-300 g of bacon
-1/4 cup Caribbean dry marinade BBQ Quebec
-500 g of fresh cheese curds
-4 tablespoons of canola or avocado or any other high melting point oil.
Preparation:
1-In a mixing bowl, sprinkle your potatoes with oil and add the Caribbean dry marinade. Mix well until the potatoes are covered with spices.
2-On a BBQ Québec vegetable rack, plant the potatoes on the tips and set aside.3-Roughly chop the bacon into pieces and place it in an aluminum drip pan or an accessory that allows you to cook on the BBQ while keeping the bacon fat.
4-Cook the bacon until cooked to your liking. Personally I like it slightly crispy. Remove from heat and chop more finely.
5-Reserve the bacon fat in a container.
6-Place the potatoes in indirect cooking at about 400 degrees F. The potatoes are ready when they start to soften. I often prick them with my thermometer to feel if they are very tender.7-When you remove your potatoes from the vegetable rack, they already have a nice slit. I am the opening to cut the potato in half.
**Be careful, it's hot. Obviously, you can guess, the potatoes come out of the BBQ which was very hot but it is still written on the dryers that you should not use them while taking a bath.
8-Using a spoon or fork, remove the flesh from the potato and place it in a bowl. Be careful to keep the skin of the potato intact. Reserve the potato skins for later.9-With the potato flesh still warm in the mixing bowl, you can add 2 to 3 tablespoons of bacon fat, the butter, the finely chopped shallots and the bacon which has been cut into small pieces.
10-With a potato masher or a fork, mash the potatoes while mixing in the other ingredients. You can stop stirring when all the butter has melted and is incorporated into the potatoes. The best result is when the potatoes are very smooth and silky in the mouth. If it is too dry and the potatoes are not homogeneous, add butter.
11-Now it's time to mix the cheese curds into the mashed potato mixture,
12-Using a spoon, fill the potato peels with a generous portion of this mixture.
13-You can turn the potatoes over for a minute or two to crisp the skin slightly and warm the mashed potatoes slightly.
14-Serve with chopped shallots on top.
Bon appetit and remember, as Monon'c Serge says so well: Potatoes are good!
Potatoes Once a Year!
