Yes...Potatoes cooked in Duck fat

Duck fat is a common pantry staple in France and is considered by most culinarians as liquid gold. Unfortunately, for most of us in the states it’s not as readily available like the other cooking fats are.

When I’m looking to add a deeper and more complex flavor to a dish I use duck fat. It’s a great replacement for butter and oil; it contains healthier fats and it’s higher in linoleic acid. It doesn’t take much to make a dish extra special.

Recently I came across Gourmet’s recipe for Pommes De Terre Sarladaise (potatoes cooked in duck fat.) The original recipe serves 4-6 side dishes and calls for 1.5 lb rinsed, peeled, and cut 1/4” thick slices of Yukon gold (waxy) potatoes, 3 Tbsp duck fat, ½ cup parsley, and 2 garlic cloves. I tweaked a few things by adding a couple of pinches of red pepper flakes and about 1 Tbsp of minced rosemary.

Before you prepare your potatoes, herbs, and spices heat the duck fat in a large skillet over medium to high heat. After the fat has completely melted add your potatoes, a couple of pinches of salt, and cook on medium to low heat, turning occasionally, for about 20-30 minutes, or until lightly golden and tender. After the potatoes are cooked thoroughly gently stir in your chopped herbs and spices. Serve immediately with mayonnaise.

Originally when I made the dish I thought the 5 hour braised short ribs would be the star. They were good, really good, but the crispy potatoes cooked in duck fat stole the show.

*Whole Foods carries rendered duck fat.