Smashed Potatoes with Hatch Chile Tomatillo Crema

These crispy smashed potatoes served with an addictive hatch chile tomatillo crema

are perfect for game time or anytime. The recipe is grain free 

and there's a paleo vegan version, too!

Have you ever smashed a potato? If not, you're missing out. It's an easy and fun way to get roasted potatoes that are actually crispy, and shaped like beautifully abstract flowers to boot.

I saw this smashed potatoes idea over on Oh She Glows about a year ago, pinned it enthusiastically, thought about it often, and didn't actually try it until last week. That's one of the perils of reading as many food blogs as I do: there are so many great recipes to try, and so little time!

These smashed potatoes are going into the regular rotation, though. I'm going to offer a brief explanation of why they're better than plain old roasted potatoes (which are pretty delicious to begin with). When you roast whole small potatoes, only a very small portion of their surface area comes into contact with the hot pan below, and they don't have any jagged edges elsewhere to crisp up. Thus, it's really only a tiny spot on the bottom that becomes sufficiently crunchy.

However, when you smash a potato, almost half of its surface area is smushed onto the pan, where it becomes nice and crunchy once the pan heats up. And, on top, there are all kinds of corners and bits of potato jutting out that get nicely browned and crisp as well. So, it's all about getting as much of the potato as possible to be flat on the bottom or sticking out on top. That's my scientific explanation and I'm sticking to it. And that's why you should add smashed potatoes to your weekend to-do list.

I wanted to make a unique sauce to go with these potatoes. Inspired by the tomatillos I got at the farmers' market and the Hatch chiles I spotted at Whole Foods, I decided to make a Hatch chile tomatillo crema. It can be anywhere from mild to spicy depending on the spice level of your chiles, and if you love things super spicy you could always throw in a jalapeño, too. Either way, the rich sour cream, tart tomatillos, and smoky peppers go really well together in this crema. I was a little disappointed at first because I had envisioned a crema verde, but the chiles I got were so vibrantly orange that it didn't pan out that way. If you want yours to be green, just make it with all green chiles. 

As soon as I dipped a spoon into the bowl of the food processor to get a taste of this crema, all my misgivings about its color faded away. It is GOOD--good plain on a spoon and downright amazing on these smashed potatoes. This recipe makes more crema than you could probably eat with 2 pounds of potatoes, although there's no judgment here either way. If, like me, you have extra crema, it's a perfect dip for chips, crudites, wings, you name it. It's also great on top of any kind of burrito bowl-type meal.

Other than these potatoes, the most exciting news in my life is that I got my first copy of my cookbook in the mail. Paleo Planet is still 25% off on Amazon if you'd like to preorder a copy! It has 125 delicious, internationally inspired paleo recipes and a photo for every single one. I'm super excited to have the actual print book to flip through and cook from, but there's a Kindle version, too. To get a sneak preview, including a recipe for marinated skirt steak with cilantro-lime ghee, check out my announcement post here.

Hatch Chile Tomatillo Crema
Yield: About 2 cups
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

3/4 pound (12 ounces) fresh tomatillos, husked and halved
1 large shallot or 1 small onion, peeled and quartered
4-6 cloves garlic, peeled
2 Hatch chiles (substitute 1 large poblano pepper if Hatch chiles are not available)
2-3 tablespoons lime juice, to taste
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup sour cream* or homemade cashew sour cream for a vegan version
1 teaspoon flaky sea salt, or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

*I like Green Valley Organics lactose-free sour cream, which I buy at Whole Foods.

Heat a grill pan or cast iron skillet over high heat. Brush the pan with olive oil and add the tomatillo halves, onion pieces, garlic cloves, and chiles. Cook for about 5 minutes, until blistered on the bottom, and then flip and cook until blistered on the other side. Transfer the vegetables to a heatproof plate or bowl once they're charred and soft. The peppers will likely need a few more minutes after the other vegetables are done.

Add the tomatillos, shallots, and garlic to the bowl of a food processor. Let the peppers cool until you can handle them. Wearing gloves to protect your hands, stem, peel, and deseed the peppers. Don't worry if a few seeds or patches of skin remain. Add the peppers and all the remaining ingredients to the food processor and process until smooth. Taste and adjust for seasonings as desired.

Smashed Potatoes
Yield: 3-4 servings
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes

Ingredients (adapted from Oh She Glows):

2 pounds new potatoes or other small potatoes
Sea salt
Extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Chopped fresh basil or cilantro, for serving

Place the potatoes in a medium saucepan with water to cover and a few pinches of sea salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. About halfway through the simmering time, preheat the oven to 450°F. Drain the potatoes and let them cool for a few minutes.

Grease a baking sheet (lined with parchment for easy clean up) with a little bit of olive oil. Put the potatoes on the baking sheet and smash them with the bottom of a glass so they burst. You want to flatten them to less than half an inch thick. Drizzle a generous amount of olive oil on top of the potatoes, and sprinkle on sea salt and black pepper. Roast for 20-25 minutes, until the potatoes are browned in spots on top. If you peek underneath, they should be nice and brown on the bottom.

Sprinkle your herb of choice onto the potatoes. Serve hot with the hatch chile tomatillo crema drizzled on top or on the side for dipping.

These potatoes are best right away, but leftovers are still delicious (albeit slightly less crunchy) if you reheat them for 10-15 minutes in a 450°F oven.

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