This week’s awesome recipe is one of my all-time favourites. I absolutely love potato Rosti but it is quite hard to find somebody that makes it right! This dish, which can be served as a side or as main when topped with a fried egg, is an absolute tummy dream! The Gruyère cheese and leek add such a wonderful flavour to a classy Swiss favourite. Even my finicky 6 year old loves this dish!
What You Need:
- 6 Parboiled & grated potatoes
- 3-4 chopped leeks
- 100 grams of Gruyère cheese
- 3 Tbs butter
- Few splashes of Vegetable Oil
- salt and pepper
- 1-2 eggs (optional)
- Large 12″ – 15″ heavy bottomed skillet (preferably cast-iron)
Direction:
Parboil your potatoes (slightly firm but not cooked through) and allow them to cool completely. I like to soak them in cold water for about 10-15 minutes or you can chill them in the fridge for an hour or two.
While the potatoes are cooling, thoroughly rinse your leeks to remove all the sand and dirt and then chop.
Fire up your skillet and ensure it is hot. On med. heat, give a splash of vegetable oil and 1 Tbs of butter. Once melted, through in your leeks with a dash of salt and pepper and cook until soft (about 6 min). Put in a bowl and set aside.
Peel and grate your cooled potatoes (with the larger shredding slots) into a bowl.
Grate the cheese and gently mix it with the cooked leeks.
Heat your skillet and add a splash of oil and 1 Tbs of butter. Turn the heat to med-low Add 1/2 of the shredded potato to form a layer on the bottom of the pan and ensure it is right up against the sides of the pan. Add your leek and cheese mixture and spread evenly to cover the potato. Add the rest of the shredded potato to from another uniform layer and top with a dash of salt and pepper.
Fry the potato until deep golden brown (about 7-11 min). Be patient and do not cook too fast as the potato needs to crisp, brown nicely and cook through.
Once golden brown on the one side, we now need to flip it. Take a large dinner plate and place it on top of the potato. Place your hand onto the bottom of the plate and Flip over the pan to allow the potato to fall out onto the plate. Add a splash of oil into the pan and 1 Tbs of butter. Slide the potato pancake back into the pan to cook the other side to a nice golden brown (7-11 min).
Once tender, crisp and a deep golden brown, repeat the procedure using the dinner plate to remove from pan or it should just slide out onto a serving plate. If serving with fried eggs to serve as a meal, fry your eggs to your liking during the last minute of cooking the Rosti and place right on top. Garnish with a bit of Chives or Tarragon. If serving without the egg, add a dollop of sour cream on top and then your garnish.
Tip:
Add half a chopped onion or shallot to the leeks when frying! It will really make the dish pop or substitute Pecorino Romano instead of Gruyère cheese!
