Smothered
Potatoes..... mmmmm...this dish goes great with all sorts of main
courses. I like em' with pork roast or smothered pork chops.
5 - 6 medium red potatoes
1 - 2" X 2" piece of salt meat.
1 med. onion chopped
Cooking oil or bacon grease to just cover bottom of pot.
Pinch of garlic powder or one clove of fresh.
Small handful of fresh parsley
Salt (maybe) and fresh ground black or white pepper.
1/2 cup green onions.
Cube the salt meat in 1/2" X 1/2"
pieces. Boil the meat in a few cups of water to remove excess salt,
about 10 minutes. Remove and save the water.
Put oil in a pot and, on a medium heat, sauté
the onions and salt meat until they are evenly browned.
After onions and meat are browned add about 1/4 cup of
water (see note below) and stir to deglaze the pot then add potatoes and pepper (no salt yet).
Lower the
fire to med-low, and cook until the potatoes are just
starting to soften a little stirring frequently (it will burn quick).
Don't be afraid to scorch a small amount of the potatoes just a
little, this adds flavor. Turn the fire to "Low" and add the green onions, parsley and garlic, stir and continue to cook
uncovered.
You may see you need to add a little oil and/or
water, this is a judgment call on your part. Remember however that
this is the "smothered" method of cooking so there
should be no remaining water in the pot once it is done.
It's done when the potatoes have just started to
cream. The consistency you're looking for is pieces of potato with a
slight bit of creaminess. You should be able to lift a forkful off
the plate without it dripping.
Taste and add salt as needed.
Note: Salt meat water: You can taste the water to see if
it actually tastes good (a little meat flavor and a little salty).
If it does you can add a little of this to the potatoes. I've seen
where the water was actually bitter in which case you wouldn't want
to use it.
We used to drizzle a little cane syrup over the
potatoes to jazz it up a little.
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