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Potato & mushroom persillade with poached eggs
###It may look simple, but the key to this dish hangs on a few precise elements. The potatoes need to be more waxy than floury, to hold their shape when frying, and you need to remove as much starch and water as you can to get them to brown well. It also pays to cook the mushrooms and the potatoes separately as it is difficult to get colour on either if the pan is too crowded. The persillade is brought to life by the heat of the pan at the end; this takes the raw edge away from the garlic, and opens up the grassy notes in the parsley.
Cook's notes
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Ingredients
- 600g waxy potatoes
- 4 Portobello mushrooms
- oil for frying, e.g. sunflower or vegetable
- salt and pepper
- 1 lemon
- 1 garlic clove
- 30g parsley
- butter
- 2 eggs
Method
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Step 1
Give the potatoes a wash and scrub. Coarsely grate them into a colander – no need to peel them. Rinse them under cold water until the water runs clear. Drain and press them down in the colander to remove as much excess water as you can.
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Step 2
Slice the mushrooms, but not too thinly. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a large frying pan. Throw in the mushrooms with a pinch of salt. Fry them over a high heat, until they have started to brown. Remove them from the pan and keep to one side.
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Step 3
Heat another tbsp of oil in the frying pan. And add the grated potatoes. Season with a pinch of salt and cook over a medium heat for 6-8 mins, turning often, until starting to colour.
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Step 4
While the potatoes cook, place a pan of salted water on to boil. Zest half the lemon and chop the zest together finely with the garlic and parsley leaves.
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Step 5
Add the mushrooms to the potatoes along with a walnut-sized knob of butter. Cook them together for a further 3-4 mins, until the potatoes are tender and the mushrooms are reheated.
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Step 6
Meanwhile, drop the boiling water down to the gentlest of simmers and add a good squeeze of lemon juice. Crack the eggs gently into the pan of water. Poach for 3-4 mins, until the whites are set and the yolks are still runny. Remove with a slotted spoon.
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Step 7
Stir the parsley mix into the potatoes and mushrooms, along with a squeeze of lemon juice. Mix well and adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper and more lemon juice to taste. Divide the mix between 2 plates and top each with a perfectly poached egg.