How clever it is to infuse potatoes with flavor while they’re cooking! This is another wonderful find in David Tannis’ One Good Dish Cookbook. As I was making the pork loin I decided that even if David’s advice was to go the authentic route and pair my Vietnamese “not-ribs” with rice, I had a big ol’ bowl full of potatoes that needed to be used, so I went the typical “meat & potatoes” route instead. And whether or not the two flavors truly went together, I don’t have that discerning of a palette to understand the faux pas, and therefore deemed it a-ok to do for a weekday meal.
I have to say, though, with the amount of herbs this book requires in each dish, I think I have to double the size of my herb garden this year! C’mon, Spring!
Steamed New Potatoes with Aromatics
From One Good Dish, by David Tannis
Ingredients
- 2 pounds new potatoes, 1 1/2 to 2 inches
- 1 small bunch of thyme
- a few rosemary sprigs
- 4 bay leaves
- 1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 head garlic, separated into cloves but not peeled
- salt
Directions
- Scrub the potatoes but do not peel.
- Put the thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, peppercorns, and garlic cloves in a wide heavy pot.
- Add the potatoes in one layer and enough water to barely cover.
- Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of salt.
- Put on lid and bring to a hard boil.
- Reduce the heat slightly to maintain a rapid simmer and cook, covered, for about 15 minutes.
- Check the potatoes to with a skewer to make sure they have cooked through.
- Turn off the heat and leave the potatoes for at least 10 minutes, or up to 30 minutes. (Because my potatoes were bigger (2-3 inches in size), I left my potatoes in for 20 minutes & they turned out great)
- To serve, drain the potatoes and put them in a serving bowl, with the aromatics still clinging to them.
//You can also pull the aromatics out of the pot, shape them into little nests on individual plates and place the potatoes on top. Serve with a dollop of butter alongside the potatoes on a cooled bay leaf and you’ve created a lovely rustic presentation!
Trials and Assumptions in the Kitchen 