moro top ten: poor man’s potatoes

“this dish may be simple but there’s something about it that is inexplicably good”

from the original moro book, this is a good potato based side dish if you fancy a change from the more ubiquitous patatas bravas. onions, garlic and peppers are slowly cooked with bay leaves until they are soft and sweet and then the potato is added. variations include a dish with re pepper instead of green and with the addition of chopped egg (that’s one version i won’t be trying!).

so, how did i get on?

it’s easy enough to pull together, it just takes a bit of time for the onions and pepper to cook and then the potatoes. the way the recipe is written i was expecting a much oilier dish but i think i must have reduced the amount used, without realising, as my dish wasn’t at all oily and certainly didn’t need anything draining off at the end. 

the final verdict:

would i have tried this recipe if it hadn't been part of the moro top ten? no – i just don’t choose potato dishes when i’m working out what i fancy cooking.

would i try this recipe again in the future? yes – it does work really well. the potatoes pick up the flavours of the peppers and onions in a really nice way and it was a good accompaniment to the roasted belly pork with fennel.

moro’s patatas a lo pobre (serves 4)

15 tablespoons olive oil

3 large onions, thinly sliced

5 garlic cloves, thickly sliced

3 green peppers, halved, seeded and roughly chopped

4 bay leaves, preferably fresh

1kg waxy potatoes, peeled

sea salt and black pepper

set a large saucepan over a medium heat and add 5 tablespoons of the olive oil. when the oil is hot, add the onion and a pinch of salt. cook the onion slowly, turning down the heat if necessary, for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally until golden and sweet in smell and taste. now add the garlic, pepper and bay and cook for 15 more minutes to release their flavour.

meanwhile, cut the potatoes in half lengthways and each half in two or three pieces, depending how big they are. salt them lightly and leave for about 5 minutes. when the pepper has softened add the remaining oil and when the oil is hot again, add the potatoes. let everything simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for another 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. drain in a colander or sieve to remove any excess oil (you can keep this for further use) before serving.