A gorgeous, garlicky mess of potatoes and capsicum
Fresh, colourful and tasty, who doesn’t love a salad – and who better to show us than the queen of salads, Belinda Jeffery?
A gorgeous, garlicky mess of potatoes and capsicums
SERVES 4 PREP AND COOK TIME 1 HOUR 20 MINUTES My father-in-law lives in Spain and on our last visit we ate many versions of the classic Spanish dish of patatas pobres or poor man’s potatoes – a luscious mixture of onions, potatoes and capsicums, all slow-cooked in rather a lot of olive oil. I kept thinking it would make a wonderful warm salad (anything with potatoes and olive oil tends to go to the top of my list!). 1kg potatoes (waxy potatoes such as Dutch cream or nicola are particularly good), thoroughly washed
1 large red capsicum
1 large yellow capsicum
2-3 red onions, peeled and cut into 2cm chunks
2-3 large cloves garlic, finely sliced 6 thyme sprigs, leaves picked, plus a few extra sprigs, optional ½ cup (125ml) extra virgin olive oil
¼-½ teaspoon smoked paprika, optional
1 Sit the potatoes in a large saucepan and pour in enough cold water to cover them by a good 10cm or so. Salt the water and bring it to the boil over high heat, then adjust the heat so the water bubbles steadily and cook the potatoes for 20 minutes. Drain them and as soon as they’re cool enough to handle, peel away the skins and cut them into large bite-sized chunks.
Put the chunks in a large bowl.
2 Preheat oven to 220°C (200°C fanforced) and line a large baking tray with foil, then baking paper.
3 Slice the capsicums down their natural contour lines into large pieces. Remove the cores, seeds and white ribs, then cut the pieces into 2cm-3cm chunks. Add the chunks to the potato, along with the onion, garlic, thyme leaves, olive oil, 2 teaspoons sea salt and smoked paprika, if using. Gently but thoroughly mix everything together (I slip on a pair of food-prep gloves and use my hands to do this, as it’s by far the gentlest and most effective way of making sure everything is coated). Now slide the whole lot onto the prepared baking tray; spread it out evenly and put it in the oven.
4 Roast potato mixture for 20 minutes, then give it a good stir and cook for another 20 minutes or so, until the veggies are golden and caramelised in patches.
5 Remove the tray from the oven and let the mixture cool a little, then use the foil and baking paper to help funnel the potato mixture into a large serving bowl. Serve immediately, garnished with thyme sprigs, if you like.
“Christmas has always been associated with salads for me. My mum broke ranks from a traditional Christmas when she decided that cooking a hot lunch in the middle of summer with young children underfoot was a bridge too far. From that point on, our Christmas was a more casual affair. There’d be platters piled high with ham and chicken, but the star attraction was her salads. It was the big bowls of festive salads we looked forward to most. Now, with my family, salads still steal the show. I’d love to think that one or more of these salads become part of your Christmas tradition, too.
Happy Christmas!” Belinda Jeffery