In praise of the potato

For hundreds of years, potatoes have fed much of the world. Whether roasted, boiled, baked, or mashed, the humble spud has been the preferred side dish for – and sometimes even the star of – countless meals in the Americas and Europe. But recently the ubiquitous dinner companion has struggled. Millenials seem to prefer rice as their starch, so potato sales have dropped. To help buoy the spuds, The Guardian asked top chefs as well as its regular contributors to share their favorite potato dish.  

The twenty recipes span the gamut from simple to complex, with a few twists thrown in for good measure. Freelance chef Rosie Sykes makes a risotto using potatoes, while Josh Eggleton takes a turn by using seaweed butter to dress cooked spuds. Food writer Rachel Roddy pairs potatoes with green beans while chef Aiden Byrne goes all in by adding pumpkin and truffle. You’ll find everything from hash browns to Hasselback potatoes in the list. 

Naturally, the EYB Library teems with fantastic potato recipes to help you rediscover this humble yet inexpensive and nutritious food. Here are several Member favorites: 

• Roasted potatoes with caramel & prunes from Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi
• Potato frittata with feta and scallions from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perelman
  
• Speedy sweet potato quesadillas from A Modern Way to Eat by Anna Jones
  
• Roasted potatoes and eggplants from River Cottage Veg by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
  
• Spanish potato salad with chickpeas from The Washington Post by Shannon Martinez and Mo Wyse
• Hasselback dauphinoise from The Guardian by Felicity Cloake (pictured above)