RCP: Portugese wine-braised potatoes

[Jenise]

PORTUGUESE WINE-BRAISED POTATOES WITH GARLIC, BAY AND CHILIES
Adapted by COURTNEY HILL


4 SERVINGS
The traditional way of cooking potatoes with these classic Portuguese flavors is to slow-roast them in the oven or long-braise them on the stovetop alongside meat. But in “Authentic Portuguese Cooking,” author Ana Patuleia Ortins includes a quicker, meat-free version that yields a wonderfully delicious side. We adapted her recipe, opting to use a mixture of wine and chicken broth for simmering (wine alone tended to toughen the exteriors of the potatoes) and substituting jarred crushed peppers—the type often smeared onto Italian sandwiches—for the spicy Portuguese red pepper paste called massa de malagueta. If you cannot find crushed peppers, simply use ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes instead.


PORTUGUESE WINE-BRAISED POTATOES WITH GARLIC AND CHILIES
4 Servings

TIP
Don’t stir the potatoes too vigorously or they’ll break apart and make the sauce gluey. Aim to keep the large pieces of potato as whole as possible. Also, don’t reduce the sauce too far; as the potatoes sit off heat, they’ll continue to absorb the sauce.

1 HOUR
25 minutes active

2 pounds Yukon Gold or red potatoes, peeled and cut into 1- to 1½-inch chunks
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
1½ teaspoons jarred crushed peppers (see headnote) or ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1¼ teaspoons smoked paprika
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
¾ cup dry white wine
¾ cup low-sodium chicken broth
¼ cup lightly packed fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

In a medium bowl, toss the potatoes with the garlic, bay, crushed peppers, paprika, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper.

In a large saucepan over medium, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the onion and 1/2 tsp salt, then cook, stirring occasionally, until fully softened (6-8 minutes). Stir in the potato mixture, then add the wine and broth. Bring to a boil then cover, reduce to medium, and simmer stirring occasionally until a skewer inserted into the potatoes meets no resistance, about 30 minutes*.

Uncover and cook over medium, now stirring more often and adjusting the heat to maintain a gentle simmer until the liquid has thickened and lightly coats the potatoes, about 7 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover and let stand about five minutes. Remove and discard the bay and stir in the parsley. Taste and re-season with S&P.

*Seems rather a long time to me. Would shoot for 20 minutes, I think.

One-inch chunks for 30 minutes? Might be a lot but not by much.

And 1.25 tsp smoked paprika seems entirely appropriate. Think patatas bravas.

[Jenise]

One-inch chunks for 30 minutes? Might be a lot but not by much.

And 1.25 tsp smoked paprika seems entirely appropriate. Think patatas bravas.

Oh, sure, if you want patatas bravas. With that much paprika they'll be orange; and don't get me wrong I love smoked paprika. But the point was that the picture that accompanies the recipe shows fairly white potatoes and the recipe description "garlic, bay and chiles" doesn't hint at a paprika influence.

Jenise you mentioned you will be cooking the Madeiran Pork with Wine and Garlic. Milk St. suggested fresh peas with Chives to round out the meal, will you be doing that. as well, or do you have another veggie idea? One of the reviews I read on this mentioned it was a very memorable meal.
I think I will cut back on the amount of liquid, as some mentioned a lot of liquid left over and I have found this to be true with many braised dishes.

[Jenise]

I made it last night but I didn't follow the instructions exactly. Used 3 lbs of pork shoulder, not 5, which I cut into 2" chunks* and I lightly browned the meat before adding the marinade. After a 30 minute soak, I started the stew but didn't cut back much on the liquids as I wanted enough to mostly immerse the meat in a single layer in the pan I used. Be reminded that the instructions are to cook most of it down into a glaze. I also skipped/shortened other steps: did the whole thing on stovetop, and didn't remove the pork during the reduction phase--I just started reducing earlier. I added back a dollop of Madeira at the very end, in fact for a refresher on that flavor. Also, re vegetables, I'd picked up carrots at a local farm stand yesterday so sliced two into 1/2" chunks that I added at the beginning of the reduction phase. The sweet earthiness of carrot married perfectly with the Madeira. And I served it on short grain rice cooked with two garlic cloves halved and a good drizzle of EVOO--standard way I make rice for Spanish food, it provides a back note that's very Iberian. Otherwise, it would be too close to Chinese.

And I served it on short grain rice cooked with two garlic cloves halved and a good drizzle of EVOO--standard way I make rice for Spanish food, it provides a back note that's very Iberian.

I like this idea.

[Jenise]

Jeff, when I was single and living in Newport Beach I used to hang out with a group of South Americans, one of whom was a diminutive Peruvian veterinarian who loved to entertain. No matter what protein he served, a big pot of rice cooked with garlic, oil and salt was always involved. Tasty and expedient for a large group. I copy that idea but use a condiment-level EVOO instead for more flavor.

Pumpkin adds a handful of dried herbs to the rice water. It's fragrant but has a distinct personality depending on the exact mix. I like the garlic-oil profile as something more low-key but still supportive.

Thanks for the short-cut tips Jenise. I was just getting ready to order the meat and wondering how I could take out a few steps. At this point in my life, I am all for making the recipes easier.

[Jenise]

I just thought it was overly complicated, like the goal had been to get it off the stovetop when in fact that didn't have to happen at all. I'm sure my result was fairly identical in texture as well as flavor.

[Jenise]

So I made this recipe last night. Used less than the full 2 lbs of potatoes since I was cooking for two, but went whole on the rest of the ingredients with the exception of the smoked paprika, where I used about half a tsp.

Thoughts: the pull-back on the paprika was a good move. The potatoes retained that flavor but it was an accent, not full throttle. The color was a deep gold, not red. Had I added as much as the recipe called for, I'd have had something very similar to the dish I experienced in Haro, Spain, called potatoes and chorizo--just without the sausage. I sauteed the onions but only added half to the potatoes for the cook, then added the rest to the finished dish for an accent both textural and bright. I wish I'd used twice as much onion.

For the cook I set the timer for 20 minutes for the lidded portion. The potatoes WERE done enough as I stated here I believed they would be so I began the second stage of unlidded cooking at this point. Had I let them go another ten minutes they'd not have survived the stirring suggested in the non-lidded portion of the cook. All depends on how big you cut your potatoes, of course. Mine were all an inch or so on at least one side but not all were an inch thick.

AND THEN I F---ED IT UP. The lamb had another minute or two to go and then it would need a five minute rest, so I put the lid on the finished potatoes. When I went to serve, the potatoes had absorbed ALL the liquid. That gloriously coating sauce was GONE, and the potatoes disintegrated on being scooped out of the pan. DAMN.

Good info Jenise. I have less uncertainty about the seasoning and timing. Thanks !

[Jenise]

The key point is the final one--don't make the potatoes wait. Have everything else done, then serve immediately when ready.