It is unusual for me to post two nights in a row, but I really had to move the pictures of sausage stew down the page a bit. A friend of mine told me that at first glance the thumbnail on Facebook looked like the inside of a Portaloo after a festival. She quickly followed this up by saying that when she looked closer she realised what it was and it sounded delicious. Note she said "sounded" not "looked".
The empty fridge problem endures, but I have a notepad full of recipes that I have cooked and photographed, but haven’t got round to writing up yet.
I would like to say that I chose the skin on chips because I just couldn’t wait to share them with you, but the real reason is that they are straightforward and require little in the way of a preamble. Still, for those of you who liked the look of the Bloody Mary ketchup I posted a few weeks ago, this is a nice way to use it up.
I have assumed here that the average person does not have a deep fryer at home. Obviously, if you have one use it, but otherwise you can get pretty decent quality chips with this oven roasting method.
Serves two as a side. You can double or triple as necessary.
Ingredients
500g frying/roasting potatoes, e.g. Desiree or Maris Piper
Vegetable oil (and lard) for frying
Celery salt, to taste
Bloody Mary ketchup (as much as you fancy!)
Method
Preheat the oven to 200C.
Parboil the potatoes whole for approximately 5 minutes; the potatoes should start in cold water, so the timing is from when the water has begun to boil. Drain and leave to cool.
Slice the potatoes into chunky chips and leave out to dry for several hours. You can speed up this process by putting them in a hot oven (with no oil) for 5-10 minutes.
Pour the oil (and lard, if using) into a large roasting tray and heat in the oven. It should be at least 1cm deep, preferably 2cm. When the oil is hot, add the chips and use tongs to ensure they are all coated. Put back in the oven for 10-15 minutes, turning occasionally to make sure all sides are golden.
Remove from the oil with tongs onto kitchen paper and pat off the excess oil. Season with celery salt and serve with Bloody Mary ketchup.