Rosti Potatoes

Gotta take the picture quick before they're all gone

Rosti (roo'-shhhh-tea) are shredded potato pancakes seasoned with bacon, onions and black pepper. Simple dishes executed well. easier said then done. I learned this dish when I was just pup in the kitchen. By learning I don't mean someone showed me and I then I made a couple. I made rosti everyday for five years cooking 50 to 100 lbs of potatoes a day.

This is pefect for Sunday morning breakfast. You can cook some ahead and leave in a warm oven while the family sleeps in. Plan ahead. You can make the bacon onion mixture whenever. Boil the spuds on Saturday.

Feed 4 to 6 comfortably with left over bacon onion mixture. Start the potatoes the night before. Only takes 10 -15 minutes cooking time. You will need a meat grinder or food processor, a good non-stick pan

For the potatoes

Wash approx 2 lbs of starchy potatoes, do not peel. Chef, Yukon Gold or Idahos will do. Simmer in salted water with a bay leaf if you have one. Test for doneness after 20 minutes with a paring knife. It should meet just a little resistance. Better to be undercooked than overcooked. Drain, layout in a single layer and cool overnight or at least 4 hours.

For the bacon onion mixture

Set oven @375

• 1/2 lb of cheap fatty smoked bacon. Bacon ends and pieces works well if you can find them Cut into small chunks kept very cold. The colder the meat the easier it will grind.
• 2 lbs of onions pelled and rough chopped

Using a meat grinder or food processor grind all this together into a heavy pan. Put it on the stove with a medium high flame and cook for 2 -3 minutes stirring often. the goal is to start some of the fat rendering from the bacon. Then its into the oven stirring every 30 minutes until it looks like this.

Rosti Potatoes

Peel and shred the potaoes on a box grater into a wide bowl.

Add 1/2 teaspoon sea salt and 10 good turns of fresh ground black pepper

Add 1/2 cup of the bacon mixture

Add fresh chopped parsley if have any

Toss it around careful not break up the strands of potato.

Cooking Rosti Potatoes

Heat up your skillet over moderate heat. Add a Tablespoon of vegetable oil, swirl around and add a big Tablespoon of butter and swirl. Be sure to twirl when you swirl. Add the potatoes into a nice even layer.

Note that I push all the potates into a mound in the center, nothing sticking up on the side of the pan. Pull the heat back to medium and continue cooking about 3 minutes shaking the pan from time to time. Once they are nice and golden brown on the side you cannot see flip them. To flip the rosti put a plate over pan and turn it over. Slide a little more butter into the pan and put the rosti back in. Cook about the same amount of time as the first side.

Comments

[D Rubin]

Thanks for the head start, my friend. Can't wait to introduce my boys to the Rosti. Yet another whole new level for me...

[Isabelle Pommier-Collins]

Hello,
I made the Rosti last night for the first time. It was just delicious!
My husband, who is known to be a picky eater, loved it, ate a second helping of it and took the left-over to work for his lunch today... That never happens!
Your instructions were clear and to the point, your pics were very helpful. I took my own picture of the finished product and I am glad to say that it looks remarkably similar to yours. Thanks for sharing those great recipes with all of us.
Checking out your website for new recipes will become a weekly occurence!
Isabelle Pommier-Collins

[Gerry Nooney]

Thanks for the kind words Isabelle. Here is a another use for the rosti. Place a small one off to one side of the plate. Put two eggs shingled on the potato, then a piece of smoked ham, then a piece of swiss cheese. Its a great breakfast dish called "Sonnen Rosti". How did you make out with the pronunciation?
Thanks again, Gerry

[Isabelle Pommier-Collins]

Yes, you need to include the phonetic pronunciation of this one, too!
I made the rosti again, and this time I used italian sausage. It was very tasty, too, but did not hold up as well as my first one, when I cut it up to serve.... I'm just thinking that it was because there was a little bit more of the potato/meat mixture in the pan than the first time.

[Gerry Nooney]

Thanks Isabelle, Sometimes the potatoes can dry out after a day and feel looser. I like the dry crispy ones. Here goes a try at the phonetic spelling san~in~roo~shh~tea

Thanks again for the kind words

[Isabelle Pommier-Collins]

Hi Gerry,
I cooked the potatoes two days before I made the rosti, so they stayed in the fridge for two days. Your explanation is right on! Thanks.