Good pureed potatoes by Chef Tenailleau
By chef Bruno Tenailleau.
Everyone knows how to cook and cream potatoes. But why is there such a difference from one purée to the next? The quality of the potatoes and the way you cook them is not everything!
To make good purée, you must first avoid the potatoes becoming waterlogged during cooking. Clean them thoroughly and cook them in cold water with their skin. 10 g of salt per litre of water and 20-30 min bubbling with a lid.
The cooking is not everything. Think about texture! If you want to reveal the flavour of your potatoes to the nose and to the taste buds, you have to manage the texture. It´s not about smashing your potatoes: if you do, you will get a sticky paste with no taste! Use a potato masher or a vegetable mill.
Avoid thermal shock Peel the potatoes while hot and scald your purée mill with the cooking water to heat it and to avoid your potatoes being in contact with the cold. This is important. If they cool too quickly, your purée will harden. It will become elastic and have the consistency of chewing gum. Instead of expressing all its flavour and aromas, it will imprison them and your poor taste buds will not get much enjoyment. You should also scald the saucepan over which you place the potato mill.
Dry your purée To concentrate the flavours even more, you should evaporate excess water. As soon as the potatoes have been milled, place your pan over a very low heat and stir it gently with a spatula. The excess water will evaporate and you will have better flavour.
What about the butter? 200 to 250 g. per kilo according to Joël Robuchon. This may seem like a lot, but it is still makes fewer calories than chips. Furthermore, the butter is not cooked. Choose good butter and add your own salt
. Creaminess The amount of milk you add will determine how creamy your purée will be. Pour the hot milk gently and incorporate it with a spatula. Finish energetically with a whisk to whiten and add finesse. It is time to add salt and check your seasoning.
There you are, your purée is ready. All that remains is to astound your guests!
Some more tips… For meat or poultry: make butter with herbs. Butter + parsley + basil + chive or something else.
When presenting a meal to your guests, opt for individual recipients that have been warmed in order to really enhance the appearance of your creamy purée.
As for the kind of potato, use the common Bintje or Agatha for the slightly sweet taste. Surprise your guests with the Vitelote that has purple skin. If you find rates: go for it…
Joël Robuchon
This prestigious chef has already influenced generations of cooks.
Best restaurant in the world, chef of the centruy...a plethora of stars, toques and other prestigious distinctions that are too many to list here, Joël Robuchon doesn´t have much left to prove. And yet, he continues to make purée.
By his own admission, he owes everything to his potato purée!
In 1980, putting potato purée on the menu of a high class restaurant seemed crazy. The critics were wild and mocked him, ""gastronomes"" (those who didn´t taste it) cried that it was a scandal…
30 years later, everyone knows the huge success that this purée has, but to this day, would you go to a gastronomic restaurant that served mashed potatoes? Maybe not…
So, because Joël Robuchon offered his recipe to the world and I have given you a few tips that will make all the difference, why not do it yourself!
