4 Bites: Baked potatoes

Chippies

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Wash and dry medium sized agria potatoes that have a nice round shape. Cut them in half length- or cross-ways then, using a mandolin or a very sharp knife, slice them thinly. Pat slices dry and toss them in a bowl with a scant amount of good olive oil.
2. Lay out on sheets of baking paper on a baking tray and season. (I've used sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper, but try finely chopped rosemary and thyme, paprika, or use a favourite rub.) Bake in oven until they start to colour, then lower the temperature and move them around so they crisp up evenly.

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Masala baked potatoes

1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp garam masala
1 large onion, finely chopped
2-5 small green chillies to taste, finely chopped
1 bunch coriander, roots finely chopped and leaves chopped for serving
3 cloves garlic, crushed with 1 tsp salt
Knob grated ginger
3 branches curry leaves
1 lemon, zest and juice
1 cup peas, fresh or frozen
4 baked potatoes
Little olive oil to serve
To serve
Garlicky mint, coriander and yoghurt sauce

1. Grind coriander seeds with mustard seeds until smooth. Add ground turmeric and garam masala.
2. Mix chopped onion with chopped chilli and the finely chopped root ends of a bunch of coriander. Add garlic crushed with salt, grated ginger and the curry leaves.
3. Gently fry the onion and spice mixes in the butter until onion is soft. Add the lemon zest and juice and the peas and remove from heat.
4. Split baked potatoes down the middle and carefully scoop out the flesh so as not to wreck the shells. Mix potato flesh with masala mix, a handful of chopped coriander leaves and a little olive oil, and season to taste. Stuff back into potato shells and re-bake until hot. Serve with a garlicky mint and coriander yoghurt sauce.

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Hasselback potatoes

1. Preheat oven to 180C. In the food processor blitz small bunches of parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme with enough olive oil to form a slurry.
2. Remove to a jar, add the zest and juice of a lemon, salt and freshly ground black pepper and shake well.
3. Wash and dry medium sized potatoes and remove a slice from the bottom of each so they sit flat on the chopping board. "Hassle" the backs by carefully making cuts ¾ of the way down, right across the spud.
4. Fan open the slices and liberally brush the herb mix over them. Add to a baking tray and bake in oven until knife-tender and crisped up. Brush with a little more of the herb oil and sprinkle with sea salt to serve.

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Mashed potato and kumara fritters

1. Wash, peel and evenly chop 2 large agria potatoes and 1 large kumara. Cover with salty cold water and boil until tender. Drain and mash thoroughly with a little butter or sour cream. Season with salt, pepper, freshly grated nutmeg or mace and grated orange zest to taste.
2. Preheat oven to 180C.
3. Once potato mixture has cooled, place large spoonfuls on baking paper. Brush with egg wash, sprinkle with sea salt flakes and bake in oven until they have coloured evenly and crisped up on the outside. Serve as a side dish, or on their own with sour cream and apple sauce.

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