I like leftovers, but with holidays like Thanksgiving, I end up with more protein than dressing. I’m a fan of potatoes and such, and not so much a turkey (or tofurky) sandwich. So I have a favorite leftover potato dish.
Now you should keep in mind, I only measure if I’m making rice or baking. The rest of the time, it’s ‘to taste’ or by muscle memory. Ironically, if my wife is trying to tell me to season, I do get mad when she can’t tell me how much salt or whatever she wants me to put in. I will try to give you an estimate.
Ingredients
2 sweet potatoes (or yams, if you must)
2 red potatoes (though any will do)
1 onion
Wet: mayo, dijon mustard, lemon juice
Dry: cumin, coriander, chives, Hungarian paprika, garlic, hot peppers
Cooking Directions
Chop the potatoes into thumbtip sized chunks and toss them into a 425 degree oven, oiled and salted and peppered. You’ll want to check on them a couple times, rolling them around to make sure they get evenly cooked and crisped.
While that’s going on, chop the onion and put it in a pan with salt and pepper. Leave it on low and simmer for as long as it takes to get clear and golden. If you use a red onion, it takes longer. If you use an onion that’s been cut open in the fridge for a while, it goes fast. I use a cast iron pan, which is already well seasoned, so it’s just a bit of oil and I’m off to the races.
As that cooks, make the sauce!
I’ll make this really easy for some of you. You’re making a spicy mayo, enough to coat the potatoes lightly.
Depending on how wet you like your potatoes, use 2 to 4 TBL of mayo. I usually use about 3, but I like the food a little try when I eat it with fattier food. That said, with white meat leftovers, you want more. Add in about a TBL of dijon mustard as well. If you don’t have any, use some mustard seed, but you do want this tangy taste in there. Finally there’s a TBL of lemon juice.
In the mayo goes the cumin, coriander, chives, paprika, garlic, and hot peppers. How much? it depends on how much mayo/mustard/lemon juice you used. I’ve actually never measured this part in my life, but I would guess it’s around a half to three quarters of a TSP of each. Now keep in mind, this is a “to taste” dish, so I put in a lot of cumin, coriander, and paprika because I love those flavors. I use Vietnamese hot peppers because that’s what I had this week, but I’ve used Chinese peppers before, as well as chile/jalapeños. The point is the heat there.
I like sometime green in it, which is why the chives are there. Sometimes I’ll toss in oregano instead and, if you do, remember that the dried stuff is more potent than the fresh! Speaking of dried, yes, I like the dried garlic. Sometimes I’ll even sprinkle it on the potatoes before they go in. If I have fresh garlic, I’ll cook it with the onions. If I have some jars of minced garlic, that goes into the onions.
Once those potatoes are golden and crispy (or soft, depends on your taste), toss them into a bowl with the sauce and the onions and mix it up.
Serving Directions
While it’s piping hot, put it on a plate with some warmed up turkey and enjoy. If you’re like me, chop up your protein and quickly stir fry it up to warm it and sear it, and toss that into a bowl with the potatoes. Heaven central.
Open Source It!
Fork the recipe all you want, pun intended. I will note that the sweet potatoes are an absolute must. It’s not the same without them. Balsamic vinegar is interesting as well. Many times, I just stare at the spices and smell them to see if they’ll have the right zing. When I’m alone, I chop up green onions and toss them in raw, but my wife prefers it cooked. I’ve been told it’s a great dish to serve with bacon, which I’ve never done.
My favorite thing is that I can make this vegan (if you know how to make vegan mayo alternatives) so it’s something I can serve for my friends.