First, let's cover skins. 99% of the time, I keep skins on. Why? Nutrition. Iron and potassium, and loads of fibre. Fact: gram for gram, the skin provides five times the fibre as the same weight of potato flesh! So yes, keep the skins on. But please, scrub them really vigorously first.



Now varietals. I usually have to keep googling the different potatoes I need to cook different foods and now narrowed it down to this equation, which I keep in my notes...

Thick skinned = mealy/floury = high starch = baking / mashing = ideal for french fries
Thin / smooth skinned = waxy = low starch = hold their shape = boiling / steaming = ideal for salads

Hope this helps you novice cooks, like myself.


Next ... prep. It's faster and easier to chop the potatoes first, rinse them twice to get the extra starches out, then boil them.

Finally, flavouring. Some recipes use chopped onions or scallions, I don't really dig raw onions in salads, that's why we do celery and green onions. Herb-wise? I'm satisfied with parsley, but some recipes call for dill or tarragon, and you could do that too. Whatever you have in your fridge or pantry will work.


Oh, and yes, this is a vegan potato salad because I found a miracle vegan mayonnaise that I actually like ... Vegenaise. Yaaay! This opens up so many possibilities. First vegan butter, now vegan mayo. Nice! I'm tarting to convert most of my recipes into vegan. This makes my plant based daughters really really happy!

It is so easy nowadays to turn your favourite dishes vegan, or vegetarian (lacto-ovo, that is), meat can easily be substituted with tofu, potatoes, and cauliflower in curries and stir-fries. And minced meat is a cinch! We've been using mushrooms and tofu in place of minced pork and minced turkey with a lot of success, especially in Chinese and Thai dishes, where a lot of fresh herbs and spices are used, you can, and should, let the flavouring do all the talking.


This Shepherd's Pie is just as easy to veganize. The mashed potatoes require just a bit of olive oil and nut milk to make it silky smooth. And the filling ... well, once you've got the usual suspects - Worchestershire sauce, rosemary and thyme, the vegetables itself can just be what you have in your fridge.

I used a whole lot of mushrooms, which are fabulous because they are earthy and rich. They mimic the texture of minced meat really well, and they have that great umami taste that is so meaty. I could have easily added tofu, chickpeas, or some beans to this as well. See? Easy!


So once you commit to going 'plant-based' or what I loosely call 'mostly-vegan', stock your pantry with 20 types of lentils and beans from your Indian store, cans of tomato pastes, purées and sauces, tetrapacks of veggie broths, all sorts of frozen vegetables available in the freezer section in Costco, and you're off to a good start. Ooh! And the most important part ... herbs (ok, dried is fine) and seasonings. Now subbing for meat has just become exponentially easier. This fueling with flavour thing is becoming more relevant by the minute ;) Ride along with me ...



Ingredients:
For the mashed potato topping:
8 russet potatoes
120 ml (1/2 cup) cashew (or any other nut milk), warmed
60 ml (1/4 cup) olive oil

Ingredients:
6 tbsp coconut oil
500 g potatoes, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
500 g okras

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 bay leaves
4 cloves
1 large onion, diced finely
1 inch piece of ginger, minced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
4 tomatoes, chopped

1 tbsp coriander powder
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
1 tsp amchur
2 tbsp fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)

Directions:
1. Wash, and cut the tops of the okras, then halve them. Lay them on a paper towel and pat them dry.
2. In a large fry pan, heat the 6 tbsp of coconut oil, then in two batches, panfry the potatoes until golden. Lay them on a paper towel lined baking sheet.
3. When the potatoes are done, pan fry the okras in the same pan, also in two batches. Lay these on another paper towel lined baking sheet.

4. Dispose of the remaining oil and in the same pan, heat 2 tbsp of coconut oil, and when hot, add the cumin seeds, bay leaves and cloves.
5. Cook the onions until translucent, stirring often, about 5 minutes.
6. Add the ginger and garlic, cooking until it turns soft, then introduce the chopped tomatoes.
7. Cook until the tomatoes have turned mushy, adding a bit of water if necessary.
I prefer a dry masala, but if you like a bit of gravy, go for it.

8. The dry spices can all be mixed in at this point.
9. Gently stir in the potatoes and the okra, cooking a further 5 minutes to thoroughly incorporate the masala into them.
10. Rub or crush the fenugreek leaves in your hand, and stir into the aloo bindi masala.
11. Taste, then season with salt, then garnish with cilantro to serve.

Why? Because once in a while you find yourself staring blankly at 20 oversized potatoes in your kitchen and can't fathom why those bags from Costco have to be so darned huge. Always looking on the bright side, you then think that it is probably for the better because it forces you to get your creative juices flowing and expand your culinary horizons. 



Not that potato soup is beyond my horizon, but seriously, I haven't made it until today. Monique scoured some recipes on Youtube and came up with some versions of baked potato soup (not that the potatoes were baked, but it featured sour cream, green onions and bacon, typical of baked potatoes), then I looked for some more written (i.e. no video available) versions and came across potato soup that starts with mirepoix (i.e. a trio of aromatics: onions, celery and carrots). We combined the best of both worlds and violà, we have a recipe! Our Fully Loaded Potato Soup!



First time's a charm? Yes, it is on this one. This potato soup was most suited to the chilly evening (single digits in C now) and just a teeny bowl was so comforting and warming to the belly. The onions, carrots and celery brought another layer of flavour that made it unnecessary to load up on the cheese and bacon (LOL, I can't believe I'm saying this! Strange, but true). And ... I ditched the traditional sour cream and used Greek yogurt instead. Another win!

Creamy, rich and utterly satisfying.

Ingredients:
12 slices lean bacon, cut into thin strips
1 onion, diced finely
2 carrots, diced finely
3 celery stalks, diced finely
60 g (1/2 cup) flour
480 ml (2 cups) vegetable stock
720 ml (3 cups) milk
4 large Russet potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch chunks (need iron? don't peel them, just scrub)
125 g (1 cup) shredded or grated cheddar cheese (plus more to top)
240 ml (1 cup) Greek yogurt (bit more to top)
Salt and pepper, to taste
6 stalks green onion, sliced thinly (4 stalks into the soup, 2 to top)

Directions:
1. In a heavy bottomed stockpot, brown the bacon until 'almost' crisp, then place it on a paper lined plate or baking sheet to soak up excess oil.
2. Remove all but 1/4 cup of bacon oil, then add the onions, carrots and celery, cooking until they have softened. Keep stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan while you're at it.
3. Sprinkle the flour and whisk it in, it will start to get a bit thick.
4. Add the vegetable stock a little at a time if the roux is too hard to whisk.
5. When the flour has cooked through, add the rest of the broth, then the milk, whisking it in, making sure there are no visible lumps of flour.
6. Place the potatoes in the pan and let it come to a boil on medium heat until it softens. To check whether the potatoes are cooked, poke it with a fork.

7. When done, grab your immersion blender and, very carefully, smooth it out to your desired consistency. Too thick for you? Add some broth or milk at this point, then bring to boil again.
8. Stir in the cheddar cheese, yogurt, and green onions, then season to taste.
9. Pour into bowls, and top with more cheese, yogurt, green onions, and those bacon bits you reserved.

Aloo = Potatoes, Gobi = Cauliflower and Matar = Green Peas. These three vegetables together in an onion and tomato based gravy makes one of the most popular vegetarian dishes in Indian restaurants world wide.

Okay ... maybe it's only Aloo Gobi. But why stop there? Or Aloo Matar? Or Gobi Matar? Why stop at two vegetables when you can have three? I know ..... right?



Looks tedious, but in fact, this dish is deceptively simple. Just par-cook the potatoes and cauliflower and prep all the aromatics. The spices will do all the work.

It's kinda like that for most Indian dishes, I guess. The exhaustive list of ingredients may just throw most people off. While that may be unfortunate, it is the very thing that makes it so delicious, layer upon layer of aromas and flavours, with most spices really beneficial to your well being.

So grab your chopping board and your beautiful knife (it's the small things that keep my passion fueled), mise en place your ingredients, and you're good to go!

Ingredients:
3 large potatoes, diced to bite sized pieces
1 large cauliflower, cut to bite sized pieces
3 tbsp coconut oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 large onion, finely diced
2 inch piece of ginger, finely diced
6 garlic cloves, finely diced
3 large tomatoes, chopped (or 1 can tomato sauce - not ketchup!)
1 tsp turmeric powder
3 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp amchoor
Salt, to taste
1 cup frozen peas

Directions:
1. In a large saucepan with boiling water (enough to submerge the potatoes), boil the potatoes for about 10 minutes until just cooked through. Drain the water and place potatoes on a bowl.
2. In the same pan, boil fresh water and half cook the cauliflower florets as well. Drain and set cauliflower in another bowl.

3. In a large fry pan, heat the coconut oil, then add cumin seeds.
4. When the cumin starts to sizzle, add the onion, ginger and garlic and cook until the onions start to brown, 3-4 minutes.
5. Add the tomatoes (or sauce) to the pan and cook, stirring, until oil begins to separate. This will take around 5 minutes.
6. Once the oil separates, add the dry spices and season to taste. Mix well. If the sauce is too thick to your liking, add a cup of water. (The potatoes do soak up some moisture).
7. Add the potatoes and cook about 5 minutes until tender but not mushy.
8. Add the cauliflower and green peas and cook a further 3 to 4 minutes.

Garnish with cilantro and serve with Jeera Rice or Bhuga Chawal and a generous dollop of yogurt.

Inspired by the Potter series, hence the foray into English mains. First came the butterbeer, then the shortbread, now shepherd's pie.


Found a recipe by Alton, tweaked it, and have made it twice so far! Needless to say, it was quite a hit!
Just goes to show that we should venture outside our comfort zone now and then.

This recipe fits an 8x12 lasagna pan or glass baking dish. Personally prefer the lasagna pan as it's a tad taller and won't cause an overflow.

Ingredients:
For the mashed potato topping:
10-12 russet potatoes
1 cup milk, warmed
4 tbsp unsalted butter