A magical combination of boiled potatoes, garlicky potatoes, and mashed potatoes—with a dash of potato salad thrown in for good measure.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs Yukon Gold or other small-to-medium potatoes
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt, divided
- 1 large clove garlic
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Leaves from 3 large sprigs parsley
Instructions
Serves 6
Prep and cook time: 30 minutes
Put the potatoes in a medium pot that has a tight-fitting lid. Cover the potatoes with water and add the salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a steady simmer and cook uncovered until potatoes are very tender when pierced with a fork, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes and set them aside to cool a bit; set aside the pot as well.
Peel and mince the garlic. Return the pot to the stove over medium heat. Melt the butter and oil together. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Cover and remove from the heat.
As soon as the potatoes are cool enough to handle (they should still be hot, just not skin-burning hot), put them on a large cutting board in a single layer. Smash each one with the back of a sturdy spatula, the bottom of a mug or small pan, or a flat meat pounder. You don’t want to obliterate them, just smash them so the skin break open and they have two flat “sides.”
Scrap potatoes off the cutting board and into the pot. Cover the pot. Hold the lid on and shake the pot vigorously. Finely chop the parsley, add it to the pot, and shake the whole thing again. Between the smashing and the shaking, you should have some chunks of potato held loosely together by the slightly mashed bits of potato, and all of it flavorful with garlic and parsley.
