Imtiyaaz Hart is a student at Capsicum’s Cape Town campus. His deconstructed potato and egg curry will have you coming back for seconds as will his herb-infused stuffed gnocchi. Both recipes below.
Deconstructed Potato and Egg Curry
For the Potato Pavé
Ingredients
1kg russet potatoes
1 cup of heavy cream
4 tbsp unsalted butter
salt & pepper
For Frying
2 sprigs of thyme
2 garlic cloves (crushed with skin on)
Method
Pre-heat oven to 180ºc. Pour the heavy cream into a large bowl and add 1 tsp of salt and ½ tsp pepper. Wash and peel the potatoes, then place a mandolin slicer above the bowl of cream and slicing the potatoes lengthwise into very thin slices. If you do not have a mandolin slicer, slice the potatoes very thinly and drop them immediately into the cream to avoid browning. Brush the insides of a rectangular pan or loaf tin with half the softened butter, then brush the baking paper with the rest and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Start layering. Trim the potato slices so that they form an even layer on the base of the pan. Drop a few tiny cubes of butter and sprinkle salt and pepper over the base layer. Continue with the next layer by laying more potato slices in a direction that would best fill the pan. Continue layering, adding butter, salt and pepper after each two layers. Once completed, fold over the sides of the baking paper to cover the top and cover tightly with aluminium foil. Place into the oven and bake for 1 hour and 45 minutes or until tender when pierced with a skewer. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Cut a piece of thick cardboard slightly smaller than the size of the pan. Wrap the cardboard in aluminium foil (for hygienic purposes) and place it on top of the pave. Place some heavy jars/cans or other weights on top of the cardboard to apply pressure, making sure the weight is evenly distributed. Once cooled to room temperature, place it in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight. To serve, run a palette knife around the two longer sides of the pavé to release it from the pan, or invert onto a cutting surface. Trim all sides and cut into 12 equal pieces and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Heat canola oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes cut-side-down, add the thyme and the garlic, and cook, basting with the liquid in the pan, until browned on the first side, then turn carefully and brown the opposite side. Serve with a poached egg and curry sauce.
For the Curry
Ingredients
1 red onion, diced small
1 cinnamon stick
2 tsp fennel seeds
2 tbsp curry leaves
2 tbsp roasted Cape Malay curry powder
1 tbsp roasted hot masala
2 tsp ground cardamom (or 2 whole)
2 birds eye chillies, chopped
2 tbsp crushed garlic
1 can chopped tomatoes
50g tomato paste
2 tsp sugar
500ml stock/water
salt & pepper
oil for frying
Method
Heat the oil and fry the onions with the whole spices. Add the garlic and chillies and sauté for a further minute before adding the tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar and roasted spices. Cook for 2 minutes and season to taste. Strain and add blocks of butter in a saucepan and mix well. Serve with the potato pavé and a poached egg.
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