Words by Liam Stretch

We all need hobbies, and Liam Stretch found himself working alongside Oakley's Vegetables to come up with as many potato recipes as he possibly could. Read all about his starchy expedition below.

2020 has been the most bizarre of years. Sean Connery died. Baby Yoda has a name now – Grogu. We had several lockdowns. And Donald Trump is still managing to be a bit of a twat. Amongst all of this, it has been a Renaissance of sorts—creativity has shone. In my immediate sphere alone, people are taking up new hobbies, and using artistic outlets to express themselves and relieve the stress from this chaotic cycle around the sun.

How did this manifest for me? I decided to stretch a humble food to its brink. I started with eggs and cooked one every day for the entirety of the level four lockdown and totally expended my desire for the poultry parcel for several months. The next iteration of culinary creativity came in the form of a starchy surprise – potatoes. I endeavoured to create a daily spud for all occasions. And thanks to local producers Oakley’s Vegetables, I was able to do just that.

Armed with several boxes of Golden Gourmets and Gourmet Trios, I set on the quest of potato perfection. Kicking it off with a potato rösti with a recipe for @butter_nz I eased myself in. Next, I discovered my absolute favourite way to have potatoes, in the form of Pizza Con Patate – or potato pizza. This is super simple, just a pizza base, thinly sliced potato, heaps of olive oil, black pepper and parmesan, and a generous sprinkle of rosemary and chilli flakes. Then there was fondant potatoes, spud and cheese muffins, Schezuan Hasselbacks, homemade hash, Japanese curry, gnocchi, potato toast, cottage pie, drop scones, and fries. See my Instagram highlights – @liamstretch – for the recipes. You’re probably thinking, how did you get by with all of those carbohydrates? Remarkably well, actually. The humble spud does not get enough credit for its health potential.

According to Healthline, they are actually packed full of nutrients. Standouts being its high Vitamin C and B6 levels, sitting around 30 per cent of the recommended daily intake. Also, a single standard potato also boasts nearly twice the amount of potassium in a single banana – so, sure to say, I didn’t have any cramp over this escapade. I genuinely found I had more energy and was down to a single coffee in the day. Potatoes are also brimming with antioxidants – particularly the coloured ones and have been known to improve blood sugar levels and gut health.

One other massive benefit within my family was the gluten-free status. As an incredibly versatile ingredient, it can be substituted for traditional flour-based meals too.

One particular dish I have in my repertoire now is Japanese Curry. Having loved it in its chicken form, I was starting my life as a vegetarian in this period, so it revealed itself as the perfect vessel for the potato.

So, for your enjoyment, below is a recipe I adapted from Naimko Chen of justonecookbook.com. I substituted the chicken for potato.

INGREDIENTS

4-5 large potatoes.

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Two carrots

Two onions

½ Tbsp ginger (grated)

Two cloves garlic

1 ½ Tbsp canola oil

Four cups chicken stock/broth – use Massal chicken stock cubes if you want a vegan option or a vegetable broth.

One apple

1 Tbsp honey

½ tsp kosher/sea salt (I use Diamond Crystal; Use half for table salt)

One box Japanese curry roux - can get from Kosco. Or alternatively, you can make a homemade roux as I did. This will take an extra 40 or so minutes. Recipe here https://www.justonecookbook.com/how-to-make-curry-roux/

1 ½ Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp Watties tomato sauce

Toppings:

soft/hard-boiled egg

Fukujinzuke (red pickled daikon) – I didn’t have daikon, so used pickled ginger.

INSTRUCTIONS

Gather all the ingredients.

Peel and cut the carrot in rolling wedges (Rangiri) and cut the onions in wedges.

Cut the potatoes into 1.5-inch pieces and soak in water for 15 minutes to remove excess starch.

Grate the ginger and crush the garlic and heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat and sauté the onions until they become translucent. Add the ginger and garlic, then the carrot, and mix. Add the chicken or vegetable broth/dissolved stock cubes. Bring the stock to boil and the scum from the surface of the liquid. Peel the apple and grate it (use as much as you like to add sweetness).

Add the honey and salt and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the potatoes and cook for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender, and turn off the heat. Meanwhile, you can make homemade curry roux.

When the potatoes are ready, add the curry. If you use the store-bought curry roux, put 1-2 blocks of roux in a ladle and slowly let it dissolve with spoon or chopsticks. Continue with the rest of the blocks. Then go to Step #17.

If you are using homemade curry roux, add a ladleful or two of cooking liquid from the stock and mix into the curry paste. Add more cooking liquid if necessary and mix well until it’s smooth.

Add the roux paste back into the stock in the large pot and stir to combine.

Add soy sauce and ketchup. Simmer uncovered on low heat, occasionally stirring, until the curry becomes thick.

Serve the curry with Japanese rice on the side and garnish with soft boiled egg and Fukujinzuke. You can store the curry in the refrigerator up to 2-3 days and in the freezer for one month. Potatoes will change the texture so you can take them out before freezing.

So, go on, give spuds a go. If you’re not a veggie fan, they’re way better for you than you ever thought – your mum can be assured you’re getting some vitamins. You can buy my potatoes of choice, Oakleys, at New World.

You say potato