HFF 5.19: Foreign Food

[Yes, I'm doing these out of order because the one challenge severely delayed me, so I'm just going on without it for the moment.]

The Challenge: Foreign Food. Make a dish that is somehow 'foreign' to your cooking experience.

The Recipe:  To Boil Potatoes (A genuine Irish Receipt) from Eliza Acton's Modern Cookery (14th ed)

The Date/Year and Region: 1854, London

How Did You Make It: I scrubbed three modest-sized russet potatoes, placed them in my smallest cooking pot, and barely covered them with water. I brought these to a boil, added 1 tsp salt, and turned it down to simmer. From there, it was constantly tweaking the temperature to keep the water simmering but not boiling until the potatoes were mostly cooked through. When soft, I poured off the remaining water, and set the potatoes to dry (which took maybe a minute). I then used a fork to pierce the peel, and gently pulled the peel of each potato.

Total Time: About 30-40 minutes? I lost track of time.

Total Cost: Minimal.

How Successful Was It?: Tastes fine, didn't make a mess. Peeling the cooked potatoes was a little tricky because they were hot and the peels tended to break (especially the on the last one), but they were really easy to score and the peel came away easily, so it was a trade-off. The potatoes tasted nice. They put me in mind of both boiled and baked potatoes, being somewhat drier than the former (which I usually peel and chop before boiling) and more moist than the latter (which is the only way I usually cook potatoes in peels). I could see myself making these again whether for the novelty or for want of a potato peeler. Once cooked, the peels come off in one's fingers, with the occasional aid of a fork. It's also really efficient, with practically no edible potato flesh remaining on the peel.

How Accurate Is It? I didn't spring for heirloom potatoes; this is one of those receipts where there are so few ingredient and processes that I don't have much else to judge it on. I used the modern stove/pan, but after all, it's boiling, which is chemically the same regardless of heat source.

Tried to find small potatoes that would pack tightly.

The peels came off nicely in the end.