THE ULTIMATE POTATO POTJIE

Enough for 6 as a side dish

1kg baby potatoes, washed 3 tots butter (1 tot is 25ml) 1 tot olive oil 1 onion, chopped 8 garlic cloves, peeled but whole 250g button mushrooms A sprig or 3 of rosemary 5ml (1 tsp) salt 5ml (1 tsp) black pepper 250ml (1 cup) pitted black olives 250g sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and chopped 1 tot fresh parsley, chopped

Put your potjie on the fire and cook the potatoes in salted water until they are tender. Take the pot off the fire and drain the potatoes. Put the pot back on the fire and add the butter, olive oil, onion, garlic, mushrooms, rosemary, salt and pepper to the potatoes. Stir until the butter has melted, and heat futher until the potatoes start to fry. Using a potato masher, the back of a wooden spoon or the bottom of a wine bottle, press lightly on each potato until it cracks open slightly and starts to absorb the flavoured butter, oil and other juices. Cook for about 10-15 minutes, using a wooden spoon to ensure everything gets browned but nothing burns. Continue until the potatoes, mushrooms, onions and garlic are golden brown. You can gently toss or turn the potatoes, but you don’t want them to fall apart. Now gently stir in the olives and sun-dried tomatoes and continue to fry the whole lot for a few minutes.

I like to serve this straight from the pot, as the cast-iron holds its heat and keeps the potatoes warm. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and serve. If you want to go even bigger, you can add some crumbled feta cheese to the potjie just before serving.