There are so many ways to cook potatoes for the holiday season, each with their own perks. Pommes purée, luxurious and comforting; crispy roasted Yukon golds, a textural marvel; potatoes gratin, Dauphinois, or plain old scalloped, pleasantly rich. I’d like to add one more form of potato to the holiday canon: a huge rösti.
Potato rösti, a Swiss classic, is fundamentally a potato pancake. Yet it differs from your average latke or pommes Darphin; the potatoes are pre-cooked before frying. This gives it a slightly different eating experience: crispy on the outside in typical pancake fashion, but sporting a fluffy, mashed potato-esque interior. This also means that it’s a fabulous make-ahead option for the holidays. You can par-boil the potatoes a day before and chill them overnight, shredding them and frying in butter the morning of.
Giving it extra-large scale makes it particularly festive; use a massive non-stick pan and pack in the potato to give it some height, and it’ll be an eye-catcher on the table. From there you can serve it the way they serve hash browns at a steakhouse — neatly breaking it up between two hefty spoons — which would do well if you’re also roasting a prime rib for the occasion.
A rösti is also a blank canvas; top it with chives and sour cream, smoked trout roe, sizzled chopped rosemary or shavings of black truffle, for some holiday spirit.
Make-Ahead Potato Rösti
Serves 6-8
Ingredients
2 pounds extra-large Yukon gold potatoes (or as many you can fit in your pan), peeled and halved
1 stick unsalted butter
Kosher salt
Instructions
Fill a large pot with water. Add the potatoes and salt very generously (it should be close to seawater). Bring to a boil and simmer for 25 minutes; the potatoes should be soft enough to pierce through with a knife, but not falling apart.
Remove the potatoes and let cool. Package in a container or plastic bag and refrigerate overnight, or for at least 8 hours.
When the potatoes are cool, remove and coarsely shred them with a grater. Add a bit more salt to taste.
Heat half the butter over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add the potatoes and form into an even disc with a rubber spatula. Pack them lightly into formation.
Let the potatoes cook for about 10 minutes, until they start visibly browning on the edges. Remove the pan from the heat, place a lid or large plate over the pan with one hand, and flip the rosti onto it. Don’t worry if it becomes a bit misshapen during this process; it can be easily re-shaped.
Add the rest of the butter to the pan. Slide the rosti back onto the pan to cook the other side, re-shaping into a neat circle as necessary. Cook for another 10 minutes until golden brown. Repeat the flipping process if not fully browned.
Slide it off the pan onto a clean platter and garnish with flaky salt and anything else of your choosing.
If making ahead, you can place it on a wire rack sheet tray and let it sit uncovered. Then, 10-15 minutes before serving, you can heat it in a 350 degree F oven, uncovered. You can also re-fry it a bit in the pan if you like.