This simple appetizer recipe got rave reviews the last time I served it to friends. Cheap and easy to prepare, too! And by cheap, I mean dirt cheap. You only need marble potatoes if you have all the other spices and ingredients on hand. Plus you will need an oven or an oven-toaster. Surprise you family and friends because, yes, this one definitely tastes gourmet without much of the hassle. Ready?
Things you’ll need:
1 lb Potatoes (small, round ones are best)
1/2 cup Olive Oil
1 (pseudo-heap) Tbsp Rosemary
1 (level) Tbsp Thyme
5 cloves of big-ass garlic
A dash of salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
What stuff to get and other miscellaneous tips:
Potatoes – Groceries label ‘em marble potatoes. Get the small round ones from your favorite grocery store, this costs about P25 or less
Olive Oil – I usually get Bertolli Classico Mild Taste, costs about P200. You may also use other olive oil brands or the “Extra Virgin” variant.
Rosemary and Thyme – a bitch to come by fresh so get McCormick
The Fun Part:
1. Wash potatoes thoroughly then put them aside
2. Finely chop your garlic
3. In a huge bowl or pan, put in Olive Oil and add chopped garlic, Rosemary, Thyme, Salt, and Pepper. Stir thoroughly to mix. You may use a spoon or your hands, whatever.
4. Put in your mini potatoes in the bowl with the olive oil and spices mix. Work the potatoes until every bit is coated with your spice concoction. Use your hands.
5. Put everything in a baking pan or your trusty oven-toaster tray
6. Cook in oven (at 400 degrees) or oven-toaster (at 400w) for one hour (you can’t rush gourmet but ‘s worth the wait)
7. Take out from pan, put in plate, and serve.
You’ll know you’re done when the skins of the potatoes look shriveled in parts. The process may take less time from an oven than an oven-toaster, so observe them skins. Instant appetizer! Serves about 6 as finger-food.
I won’t be too keen to substitute olive oil with vegetable or coconut oil, though. In food that requires long cooking time, it is best to use olive oils because it has been said that olive oil can withstand high temperatures better than other types of oil.
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The good thing with this is if you already have the olive oil and the spices, you will only need to buy the potatoes. Nifty, I know. You will definitely get praises like:
“You DID this?”
“You SURE you did not just buy this?”
“Tastes classy!”
“Ibang level ka toooool!”
“Pa-kiss nga!”
“Marry ME!”
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Twitter Updates
9 May 2008 at 3:29 am
Obviously… the related posts plug-in brought me here. LOL!
I read this post before though. Anyway, the point is… YOU COOK?!
9 May 2008 at 3:48 am
You dunno?! I do. Sometimes. Ask Bim how these potatoes taste like. He raves about them endlessly (exaggerated, of course).
11 November 2009 at 1:29 am
A guy who can cook… Oooh, sexy.
11 November 2009 at 1:36 am
I still can, I think. Dun have the time/drive to cook these days. Hmmm, I think Ima need to make a #2 recipe for show LOL
19 June 2010 at 12:03 pm
thanks chef fritz! i will try this today with some left over cebu lechon. haha
20 June 2010 at 1:02 am
Napaka-healthy ng pairing! mahahahaha!
7 July 2010 at 2:37 am
great recipe! i don’t know of anyone outside of my family who loves baby potatoes, so it’s really cool seeing this here. anyway i’d liek to share with you my take on this. :)
wash the baby potatoes in cold water until their skins are clean. cut each in half (assuming that they are all medium baby potatoes). parboil in water with a little vinegar (to help hold the shape together). after it’s almost cooked, about 5mins, remove it from the fire and drain.
heat up a heavy saute pan on high and then add oil. i wouldn’t recommend olive oil since it burns a lots faster than other oils, plus the delicate taste will be lost anyway. roughly mince some onions and garlic, add them to the pan- onions first then add the garlic after the onions begin to caramelize. add the garlic together with the drained potato halves.
now this is where you get an unexpected work out (assuming that your pan’s heavy). toss potatoes in the pan, allowing the oil to coat them and the spices to be distributed evenly. continue tossing (sauteing with a spatula if you prefer the less-workout-y version) until potatoes turn brown and crisp, about 15mins. before serving, remove from fire and add about a tablespoon of brown sugar, a dash of cayenne pepper, ground black pepper, and some salt to taste- tossing like hell to make sure every piece gets coated. leave on the pan to cool down a bit.
serve. :)
if you want it extra crispy, i strongly suggest that you keep the fire on high (just watch out in case it turns into coal), let the oil heat up first (there WILL be oil splatters), and drain the potatoes carefully after boiling (to reduce water). as an extra treat, you could try flipping EACH HALF flesh side down until crispy- it really makes a difference as far as texture is concerned.
anyway this comment is long enough. haha! see you around the internet, my baby potato friend! :)
13 October 2010 at 3:47 pm
we always use olive oil on our cooked foods because it has very low saturated fat–”