Mashed Potatoes with Bacon and Onion
Mashed potatoes topped with crispy-fried smoked pork belly and soft onions, served with pickled beets to cut through the richness.
While the potatoes boil, the pork belly is fried slowly from a cold pan, and the onions pick up sweetness in the rendered fat. The potatoes are steamed dry and turned into a hot, smooth mash before the crispy topping and beets are brought together at the table. The crucial detail is a dry potato mash that can absorb the hot milk without turning gluey.
Ingredients
The mashed potatoes
- 1.2 kg potatoes, starchy, e.g. King Edward
- 3 dl whole milk
- 50 g butter
- 1 pinch nutmeg, freshly grated
- salt, for the cooking water and the mash
- pepper, freshly ground
Pork belly and onions
- 400 g smoked pork belly, diced
- 3 onions, cut into thin wedges
To serve
- 1 jar pickled beets, sliced
How to make it
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into even pieces about 4 cm. Even pieces become tender at the same time, so the mash doesn't end up with both hard and overcooked lumps. ⏱ 10 min
- Put the potatoes in a large pot and cover them with cold water. Add 1 tbsp salt and bring to a boil. Boil the potatoes until a fork slides all the way through without resistance — allow about 30 minutes from a cold pot. ⏱ 30 min · passiveChef's tip Turn the heat down to a gentle simmer once the water has come to a boil. Hard, jumping bubbles knock the edges off the pieces, and those loose bits soak up water, leaving the mash wet and thin.
- Put the pork belly cubes in a cold pan and fry over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. They're ready when the fat has rendered out clear and the cubes are golden and crispy. Lift them out with a slotted spoon, leaving all the fat behind in the pan. ⏱ 10 minChef's tip A cold pan gives the fat time to melt out before the meat's exterior seizes. Listen for the sizzle to quiet down and the fat in the pan to turn clear rather than milky — that's the sign the rendering is finished.
- Fry the onion wedges in the pork fat over medium heat for 8 minutes, until soft and golden at the edges. Don't salt the onions — the smoked pork belly salts the whole topping plenty.
- Drain the water from the potatoes and put the pot back on the turned-off burner for 2 minutes. Let the potatoes steam dry until the surface turns matte and floury — dry potatoes absorb the milk better.
- Warm the milk with the butter in a small saucepan for 3 minutes, until the butter has melted and the milk is steaming lightly. Warm milk keeps the mash smooth, whereas cold milk makes it gluey.
- Mash the steamed-dry potatoes thoroughly with a potato masher, and beat in the hot milk mixture a little at a time with a wooden spoon. The mash is done when it's completely smooth and glossy and slowly settles back together behind the spoon. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and the freshly grated nutmeg.Chef's tip Mash by hand and stop as soon as it's smooth — a blender or food processor ruptures the starch granules and turns the mash into glue within seconds. A masher or ricer leaves the structure intact.
- Fold the crispy pork belly cubes back into the pan with the onions and let them heat through for 1 minute. The topping is ready when the fat bubbles around the cubes again.Chef's tip One minute, no more. The onions give off steam, and the moisture softens that crisp crust — as long as the cubes are still crackling in the fat, you're on the right side of it.
- Divide the hot mash among four deep plates and press a wide well in the center with the back of a spoon. Fill the well with pork belly, onions, and a spoonful of the hot fat so it runs down over the mash. Drain the juice from the beets and put the beet slices in a small bowl. Set the bowl on the table so everyone helps themselves along the way — the acidity cuts through the richness.Chef's tip Serve on warmed plates — mash is mostly water and starch and loses heat quickly on cold porcelain, going stiff before the table is served. The well of hot fat helps hold the temperature.
