Smashed Potatoes With Thai-Style Chile and Herb Sauce
This recipe is inspired by suea rong hai, or “crying tiger,” a Thai dish of grilled beef served with a fiery sauce of crushed Thai chile, fish sauce, lime juice, toasted rice powder and cilantro. Here, the bright and punchy sauce is the perfect foil to crispy roasted potatoes, but it would be just as welcome spooned over fried brussels sprouts, sautéed shrimp or grilled steak. Finally, while the sauce in this recipe is equal parts acidic and spicy, feel free to add more chiles — including the seeds and ribs — to take the heat up a notch. This dish requires a little time but its preparation is simple. Potatoes are surprisingly nutritious, packed with vitamin C and potassium. The skins also provide a good amount of fiber.
Makes: 4-6 servings
Time to cook: 60 minutes
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 pounds small new or Yukon gold potatoes (ideally about 1½-inch wide)
- Kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon minced Fresno or serrano chile, or ½ teaspoon red-pepper flakes, plus more to taste
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce or tamari
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- ¼ cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro, plus whole leaves for serving
- ¼c up thinly sliced scallions, white and green parts
Cooking Instructions
- Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Brush a sheet pan all over with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
- Place the potatoes in a large pot and fill with enough water to cover by 1 inch; add 2 tablespoons salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower and simmer, uncovered, for 15 to 18 minutes, until the potatoes are just fork tender. Pour into a colander to drain, then return the cooked potatoes to the pot off the heat to help any remaining moisture evaporate.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the fish sauce, lime juice, rice vinegar, chile, soy sauce, sugar and garlic, then stir in the cilantro and scallions.
- Place the potatoes on the prepared sheet pan. Using the bottom of a measuring cup, gently smash each potato until it’s about ½-inch thick. Drizzle remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil over the potatoes and carefully flip to coat both sides in oil. Sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt and roast for 30 to 40 minutes, until golden brown and crisp.
- Transfer the potatoes to a platter, sprinkle lightly with salt, then spoon the sauce on top. Garnish with cilantro leaves and serve hot.
Nutrition per serving
207 calories; 9 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 29 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 4 grams protein; 530 milligrams sodium.
Recipe: Lidey Heuk, NY Times Cooking
