A Potato Galette, Sort Of.

I came of age in the kitchen in the early 1980s. One of my favorite Saturday morning shows was Julia Child and More Company. I missed the French Chef era and this was the first time I saw food TV and thought, that's for me! Julia was serious, fun and the food looked great. I bought the book that went with the series and an immediate favorite, especially with roast chicken, was a straw potato galette. 

I'd sort of forgotten about them until I bought a spiral cutter on impulse, thinking I'd make zucchini pasta, among other things. I have and it's fun but it dawned on me potatoes would be an ideal vegetable for this new toy. 

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I "spiralized" a potato and half of a white onion and mixed them together. I placed them on a tea towel and squeezed like hell to get any excess moisture out of them. 

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In the pan I'd be cooking in, I cooked about a quarter cup of bacon parts and once cooked, removed the meat and let it rest on a paper bag. I added a little olive oil to the remaining bacon fat and then added the potato and onions to the hot oil. 

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I kept smashing the mixture down to solidify it and make it one, then placed a lid on the pan and let the potatoes cook for about six minutes. Then I flipped the whole galette in the air and it worked pretty well. You need a very well-seasoned pan or a non-stick version, and plenty of fat to keep it from sticking. A little nerve doesn't hurt. You can also invert it on to a plate but that seemed to tame for me. 

Another five minutes and the bottom was browned and all was good with the world. Crunchy on the outside and creamy within. 

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This was breakfast, so after salting, I cut up a piece of the galette, topped it with some bacon bits and then plopped a good fried egg on top and ground pepper as well. Of course the yolk makes the most perfect sauce and my only regret is that I don't have the time to do this every morning. 

As I said, this would be a perfect bed for a resting roasted chicken but even a simple salsa, Mexican or even Italian salsa verde, would be a good idea. What about a scoop of warm beans and a crumble or threee of queso fresco?

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Published by

Steve Sando

I dig beans.

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