Giant Rosti Recipes

RöSTI POTATOES WITH RACLETTE

Steps:

• Chop the herbs on a dry, clean cutting board, mix together in a small bowl and set aside. Heat a large, straight-sided skillet on high. Add the butter and swirl. Turn heat to medium and add the leeks, season with salt and pepper, and cook the leeks are until very soft but not browned, about 10 minutes. Add the herbs and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Grate 2 of the potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Immediately place the potatoes in a clean towel and squeeze, twisting to extract as much liquid as possible. Repeat this step after the first layer has added to the pan.
• Heat a medium, nonstick skillet on high. Add the oil and when hot, add the potatoes. Press with a spatula to form a cake covering the bottom of the pan. Add the Raclette in one layer, allow it to melt, then add the leek mixture. Cover with the remaining grated potatoes and press with a spatula to form an enclosed potato cake stuffed with the leeks and cheese. When the bottom is browned and crispy, about 12 minutes. Flip, add more oil as necessary, and cook other side until golden and crisp, 10 minutes.
• Remove to a cutting board and cut into wedges to serve.

GIANT POTATO AND LEEK ROSTI

Steps:

• Place the potatoes in a large pot of lightly salted water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium. Cook, uncovered, until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife, 25 to 35 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water. Cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours and preferably overnight.
• Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F. In a very large (12-inch) nonstick skillet (if the skillet handle isn't heatproof, wrap it in a double thickness of aluminum foil), heat the butter over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook until tender, stirring often, about 4 minutes. In a small bowl, mix the salt and pepper. Season the leeks with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt-and-pepper mixture. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside. (The leeks can be prepared up to 1 day ahead, cooled, covered and refrigerated.)
• Peel the potatoes and shred on the largest holds of a box grater. In the skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the goose fat over medium-high heat until very hot but not smoking. Spread half of the potatoes in the skillet in a layer. Season with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt-and-pepper mixture. Spread with the leeks, leaving a 1-inch border around the edges. Top with the remaining potatoes, and season with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper.
• Cook until the edges of the pancake are golden brown, about 5 minutes. Hold a flat round skillet top, plate, or pizza pan on top of the skillet. Inver the skillet and the skillet top together so the pancake falls, upside down, onto the skillet top. (If this seems too heavy to handle, slide the pancake carefully out of the skillet onto a plate. Place a second plate on top and invert.) Return the skillet to the stove and heat the remaining tablespoons goose fat until very hot. Slide the pancake back into the skillet, browned side up. Cook until the underside is browned, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Bake for 10 minutes. Turn the pancake as before, and bake it until crisp, about 10 more minutes.
• Transfer to a warm round platter and sprinkle with the chives, if desired. Serve hot, cut into wedges.

GIANT ROSTI

Steps:

• In a large bowl, stir together grated potatoes and onion, and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
• Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a 9-inch nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. When bubbles subside, add the potato mixture and tamp down to spread into an even layer. Place a piece of foil over the top of the potatoes, then weight them down by placing a heavy plate on top that is slightly smaller in diameter than the pan. Cook, undisturbed, until the bottom is well-browned, about 15 minutes. Lift an edge of the potatoes with a spatula to check.
• To flip, remove plate and foil. Invert the plate over the top of the potato cake and, holding the pan and plate together with oven mitts, flip the whole operation so the potato cake lands on the plate. Melt remaining butter in the frying pan, then slide the cake, uncooked side down, back into the pan. Replace the plate and foil on the top, as before, then cook until underside is brown and crispy, about 10 more minutes. Remove plate and foil and slide cake onto a serving plate. Cut into wedges and serve plain or with sour cream and chives or green onion.

POTATO ROESTI

Steps:

• Combine potatoes and onions in a tea towel. Squeeze as much liquid as possible from the mixture. In a large mixing bowl, combine this mixture with the oil and divide into four equal parts.
• In a 10-inch non-stick saute pan melt 1/2 a tablespoon of butter. Season one part of potato mixture with salt and pepper and spread into a thin layer in the pan. Brown for 5 to 7 minutes. Invert the roesti onto pan lid and remove pan from heat. Add additional 1/2 tablespoon of butter to the preheated pan. Slide roesti into pan raw side down and brown for an additional 5 to 7 minutes. Remove to a rack and hold in a warm oven. Repeat previous steps for remaining potato mixture.

ROSTI WITH BACON, MUSHROOMS AND ONIONS

Steps:

• Boil the potatoes in their skins for 20 minutes, drain and leave to cool. Peel them. Using a cheese grater, grate them into a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with salt.
• In a frying pan saute the bacon and onions. Strip the leaves off the sprigs of thyme into the pan. Add mushrooms and cook for about 5 minutes until soft. Combine with the potatoes and mix gently, taking care not to mash them too much.
• Heat oil in a frying pan and add 3 or 4 spoonfuls of the mixture, See cook's note*. Using a spatula, pat the mixture into a round flat cake. Brown it over a high heat. When the bottom side is cooked flip it over. Repeat with remaining potatoes to make 6 cakes.
• Put 1/2 tablespoon of butter and a slice of Gruyere on each cake and melt under a hot grill or broiler. Turn the Rosti onto a plate and serve with a green salad, if desired.

OVEN-BAKED RöSTI CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Dry-fry the bacon in a pan for 5 mins until crisp, then chop into small pieces. Boil the whole potatoes for 5 mins, drain, then place in a bowl of chilled water.
• When cool enough to handle, pat the potatoes dry and roughly grate into a large bowl. Toss with the oil as you go, to stop them from sticking. Roughly grate the onion and squeeze out any excess juice, then stir into the potatoes along with the bacon.
• Place a baking sheet in the oven for 5 mins to warm through. Liberally grease a 23cm loose-bottomed cake tin with butter. Scatter the potato over the tin, trying not to pack it down, then dot all over the top with butter. Place on the hot baking sheet and bake in the oven for 1 hr 20 mins until the potatoes are cooked through and crisp on top.