I am a fairly new convert to smashed potatoes. Whatever clever little cookie came up with the idea deserves a medal! There is crispiness of the skin, softness of the potato flesh and because they are slightly crushed, they soak up any other flavours that you want to add to them.
This is a really versatile dish that you can serve up in Summer with a fresh salad or as part of a BBQ or in Winter you could serve it along side some steamed or baked vegies or for the non-vegans, it would be perfect with a steak.
The measurements I have provided are just examples because it really is a dish that you can add more or less of flavours. If you really like lemon, then go a bit heavier on your lemon drizzling. You can also play around with what you add to the potatoes. I love the combination of lemon, dill and artichoke hearts but you could also use olives or capers and mix through your favourite herbs.
For the artichoke hearts, I use the Sandhurst brand because they are nice and soft and you don’t have the really hard chewy parts that some brands have. You could of course use fresh artichoke hearts and prepare them prior but for a quick and easy dish, bottled is perfect.
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 12 small potatoes
- ½ cup lemon juice
- 100g bottled artichoke hearts - cut into quarters
- 1 small bunch of dill
- sea salt & pepper
- Cover potatoes with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and bring to a simmer until potatoes are just tender. I usually use a mixture of chat and red Pontiac potatoes but it doesn't really matter what you use.
- Drain water and one by one, lightly squash each potato with a potato masher . You want the potato to be flattened but still holding a little bit of shape so that it doesn't completely fall apart. Place smashed potatoes on a large plate or tray on top of paper towel. Cover and place potatoes in fridge for about 1 hour to dry moisture. This step isn't essential if you don't have time. It does seem to make the potatoes hold together a bit better when cooking.
- Heat oil in a large frypan and when hot, add a few potatoes at a time. Make sure that you leave enough room to be able to turn potatoes over with an eggflip. Cook on one side for about 2 minutes. Drizzle about 1tsp of lemon juice on each potato and sprinkle sea salt and some dill as well before turning over. Be careful when you drizzle the lemon juice into the frypan because it might splatter a bit. Repeat the same on the other side. When cooked on both sides, remove and cook the next batch. You may have to add more oil each time.
- When all potatoes are cooked, add the artichoke hearts. You just want to quickly warm the artichoke hearts so this will only take about 1 minute.
- Arrange the potatoes on a serving platter, scatter the artichokes around and sprinkle with chopped dill. You can also drizzle a bit more lemon over the top if you like.
Leave a Reply