Swiss Rösti and Poached Eggs

Name: Swiss Rösti and Poached Eggs
Ingredients: 1 1/4 lb white potatoes (about 4 medium to large spuds); 2 garlic cloves, finely minced; Salt and black pepper; 1 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter; Glug of olive oil; 4 free-range eggs; 1 tsp white wine vinegar, for poaching egg

By Milton Crawford

November 27, 2011

Potatoes are, without doubt, my favorite vegetable. You can keep your squashes and artichokes, your fennel and snow peas, your kohlrabi and endive just as long as I have my potatoes. After all, according to A. A. Milne, "If a fellow really likes potatoes, he must be a pretty decent sort of fellow."

But what's so good about potatoes? In a word: versatility. Once you think you know every way that you can cook a potato, another one comes along, and the Swiss rösti stretches the possibilities of the mighty tuber even further. I fell in love with its great blend of 'tato textures: crispy on the inside, creamy in the middle, it makes an ideal hungover breakfast with poached eggs on top.

The best way to prepare the potatoes is to boil them in their skins the night before and place them, unpeeled, in an airtight container in the fridge, for use up to 24 hours later. But if you haven't been able to organize this, just leave them to cool down for at least 30 minutes before grating them.

A word of warning: watch those shaky hands with wobbly poached eggs!

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