15 Hour (Bacon) Potato
It wouldn’t be a potato series without throwing in the iconic 15 Hour Potato now would it?! But as it’s Christmas, I’ve made it extra special. Introducing my 15 Hour BACON Potato 🥓🥔
The addition of bacon gives this potato dish a subtle saltiness and succulent meaty kick that is just wonderful. For anyone new to the world of the 15 hour spud, don’t be put off by the long hours, because 12 of those are spent resting in the fridge. The true pain is having to wait for these babies overnight.
These bacon cubes make the most impressive snacks/appetisers and I’ve even included a recipe for a little dipping sauce to dunk these babies into. I may have to do a poll of my favourite 15 hour creations because this is a strong contender for the top spot, alongside the original and the coronation spud (which I made to celebrate the Queens jubilee).
For the veggies in your life…
If you’ve got any veggies visiting this festive season, they don’t need to miss out on the 15 hour fun as there is a vegetarian recipe that will keep em happy! It was actually one of my most requested recipes in 2021.
Ingredients
- 6 Maris Piper potatoes
- 5 cloves of garlic
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- 1 jar duck fat/1 block beef dripping
- 1 pack of smoked streaky bacon
- 2 tbsp mayo
- 1 small bunch of chives
- 1 lemon
Method
- Peel and thinly slice the potatoes using a mandolin if you have one. A mandolin will guarantee even slices and it is so much quicker - but remember to always use the guard! I'm not responsible for any accidents. Melt the duck fat/dripping in a pan and infuse with 4 cloves of garlic and thyme.
- Preheat the oven to 150ºc/300ºf.
- Put the potatoes into a large bowl and pour over the melted fat. Line a loaf tin and start to layer up the potatoes. After every 3-4 layers of potato, lay down strips of bacon and repeat. Reserve some slices of bacon for later.
- Using another loaf tin to weigh the potato down, pour in dry rice, pasta or baking beans if you have them. Cook for 3 hours and then refrigerate overnight with the weight still on top. Meanwhile, cook the reserved slices of bacon until really crispy and leave to go cold.
- Remove the weight and de-mould the potato terrine. Slice into cubes and deep fry for 3-4 minutes at 180ºc/350ºf. Chop up your cooked bacon and sprinkle all over the top of the potato cubes.
- Quickly make your sauce by mixing together mayo, chopped chives, grate in the last clove of garlic and squeeze in a bit of lemon juice. Season well with salt and pepper and serve with the potato bites.