Nigel's Potatoes

I dug this recipe out of an old Nigel Slater book the other day. The book was called Real Food. They aren't so much recipes as they are delicious suggestions about what to do with things you find in your larder, fridge, garden, etc. That is the way I always cook, and those are the sorts of dishes I love to cook the most. They are so open to interpretation and you can so easily make them your own.

And this one is such a simple dish. It's basically just layered raw potato, fried onions and chicken stock. You don't even need to peel the potatoes. And you can adapt it up or down to serve as many or as few people as you like.

You just layer it all up in a baking dish and pop it into the oven. Well, you do fry the onions in some butter first. I let them get just a bit golden, because I love those scrumptious golden bits, don't you?

The potatoes get all soft and soak up the chicken stock and the onions almost turn buttery . . . . in short, fabulous. This dish is utterly fabulous. And if the potato is your favourite vegetable like it is mine, then you will be in nothing short of heavenly bliss.

*Nigel's Potatoes*

Servings vary
Printable Recipe

I adapted this from a recipe I found in an old Nigel Slater cookery book called Real Food. I have adapted it to feed as many and as few as you require.

For each serving you will need:

1 medium potato

1 small onion

60ml hot chicken stock (1/4 cup)

salt and black pepper to taste

a pinch of sugar

a small knob of butter

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Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F gas mark 5. Butter a baking dish large enough to hold your ingredients.

Peel your onions and thinly slice. Melt the knob of butter in a skillet. Add the onions. Sprinkle with some salt and black pepper and a pinch of sugar. Cook, stirring frequently until just softened. It is okay if they start to caramelize a bit. Those are the tasty bits.

No need to peel your potatoes, but wash them really well and dry them. Cut them into thin slices, about 1/4 inch thick. Start layering the potatoes in the buttered baking dish with the potatoes, lightly seasoning each layer of potatoes. I like to end with some onions just on top. Pour the stock over all. Cover tightly with foil.

Bake in the preheated oven until the potatoes are just tender. I did four today and it took about 45 minutes. Uncover the last 10 minutes or so of cooking so that they get golden brown on top without drying out. Let stand for about 5 minutes before serving.

Note - Obviously the cook times will be less for fewer servings, but you can still expect that it will take about 25 to 30 minutes.