Sunday 11 November 2007

Roasted spiced sweet potatoes

Now, read these comments from Epicurious.

'This recipe converted me from a lifelong dislike for sweet potatoes'
'I really liked the sweet potatoes and I usually don't like sweet potatoes'
'This recipe converted my sweet-potato hating husband'
'My husband, who doesn't particularly like sweet potatoes, thought it was delicious'
'I don't really like sweet potatoes, so this recipe was a pleasant surprise'
'My husband who really doesn't care for sweet potatoes enjoyed them'

And now, analyze. Is there something similar to them, maybe?
Hmmmm...
You got it! And though I didn't need any converting, I really liked the dish.



Roasted spiced sweet potatoes
(adapted from Epicurious, serves 4-6)

1 tsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried hot red pepper flakes (less if you don't love the heat)
1 tsp salt
900 g sweet potatoes
3 tbsp vegetable oil
  1. Preheat oven to 220C
  2. Coarsely grind coriander, fennel, oregano and red pepper flakes in a coffee grinder/spice grinder or with a mortar and a pestle. Mix with salt.
  3. Peel the potatoes and cut lengthwise into wedges (depending on their shape, you may also first cut them into two, so that the wedges are not very long - that's what I did)
  4. Take a large roasting pan and add the potato wedges, spices and oil. Mix well.
  5. Roast in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes, then turn the wedges over and roast for another 15-20 or until they're tender and slightly golden.
  6. Serve alongside meat or with a yoghurt/sour cream dip.



The wedges were quite spicy for someone like me - I don't usually eat the spicy stuff. So next time I'd certainly add less pepper flakes.
When I finished preparing the spice mix, air around me was thick with fennel aroma, but in the end, the dish wasn't that much about fennel, the herbs and spices cooperated well - making the end result very good indeed and not specifically pointing out any of the flavourers. Under the spicy not-very-crispy crust, the insides of the wedges were like sweet potato mash - so soft and tender.

I prepared a quick yoghurt sauce for eating with the wedges, but I imagine they'd be wonderful with some meat, too. Still, I'd prefer for snow to fall down before trying that version out...

4 comments:

Patricia Scarpin said...

These would go well with so many types of food, Evelin!

Evelin said...

Patricia, that's what I'm thinking, too!:)

Bakerella said...

I just recently became an admirer of sweet potatoes and these look just great.

Evelin said...

bakerella, me too! me too! if you're an admirer, I suggest you to try these out;)