having a dutch husband, coming up with potato dishes becomes always a challenge. he was raised on potatoes and absolutely love them. the problem is, since japanese don’t eat as much potatoes as westerners, i can only think of a few dishes to cook.
once i cooked 肉じゃが (nikujaga), japanese stewed potatoes cooked with onions, carrots, pork slices, seasoned with soy sauce, sake and mirin. in the japanese kitchen, the dish is regarded as おかず (okazu), a side dish. i served it along a bowl of white rice, miso soup and some other side dishes like pickles or something, and my husband got a bit furious and said to me, “why are you serving rice with potatoes?!? i don’t need any rice, i can’t have two different staples at the same time!….” this was totally a brand new experience for me. in fact, i’d never had potato dishes without rice. here again, i stumble upon yet another cultural difference.
anyway, i wanted to explain how important potatoes can be for a dutchman. to my dismay, i always end up wasting potatoes (they tend to start sprouting on me), and this time, i didn’t want to make it happen – hence the gnocchi.
it was so easy actually and came out nicely. final result? a smiling husband.
gnocchi di patate (potato gnocchi) for 2
ingredients:
200+g of potatoes (2 medium sized potatoes)
50g of hard flour
a pinch of salt
directions:
1. first you boil the potatoes (approx. for 20 – 25 min).
2. once boiled, peel the skin when the potatoes are still hot
3. mush them!
4. put the flour and the salt.
5. knead the dough
6. make 2 tubes of 2 – 3cm diameter
7. cut into 2cm pieces and make small balls
8. push each ball with a fork slightly and leave its mark
that’s it! from 5 – 8, it’s easier to do it with extra flour.
boil it in boiled water, and when the gnocchi start to float over the surface, it’s ready. drain the water and mix it with the sauce.
mushroom sauce
ingredients:
3 shiitake mushrooms, chopped
3 eringi mushrooms, chopped
1/2 a clove of garlic, cut into 6 pieces
1/2 onion, chopped
2 tbsp of butter
2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
a pinch of rosemary
a cup of water
1/4 cup of white wine
a half cube of chicken stock
salt & pepper to taste
some parmiggiano leggiano
directions:
1. melt butter in a frying pan and add olive oil
2. gently fry garlic, onion and rosemary until the onion is transparent
3. add the mushrooms, stir-fry a little bit and sprinkle salt & pepper. stir-fry a bit more
4. add the wine until it gets absorbed
5. add the water and chicken stock and cook for another 3 min. or so.
6. add salt & pepper to taste
when serving, sprinkle over the grated parmiggiano leggiano & extra pepper.
buonappetito!
SMALL TOKYO KITCHEN 