Hi Isa! Thank you very much for taking time to participate. I appreciate your contribution that increase our knowledge of other cultures of the Earth. And potato is a good way to speak about what we have in common even of we come from different continents or if we have different point of views on politics, ethics, etc… :hehe:

 

And thanks for sharing a delicious recipe which reminds us of  summer :w00t:

 

The potato has a long history since the ancient farmers from the Central Andes (Peru and Bolivia) began domesticating wild potato plants.

 

Now in Kenya, as you wrote, the iro is prepared with potatoes.

 

 

The English word potato comes from Spanish  patata (the name used in Spain). The Spanish word is a compound of the Taino batata (sweet potato) and the Quechua papa (potato),

 

And what is the name (or the names ) used in Kenya to call the potato?

 
new_concept, Nov 30, 2008 @ 17:26

Hello,

as an originally Dutch person, I feel I should reply this one... The Dutch simply cannot live without potatoes in their life. When going on holiday, a lot of them even bring Dutch potatoes with them, even when travelling to a country where you can get them in the supermarket.

Traditional Dutch food is 'stampot', made with different types of vegetables and mashed potatoes mixed together. I imagine it can look somewhat unappetising for people who do not know this type of food.

We even build dykes in the 'stampot' to keep the gravy going all over the rest of the plate. Water management really is in our blood...

Myself, I have never taken potatoes with me on holiday, as I like to enjoy and find out about the local food. The cheesefondue really got me...! Love it! And with raclette, you can even eat... potatoes!!! ;)

 this is 'stampot boerenkool', probably the most favourite one in Holland. On it you see a real 'rookworst' (smoked saucage).

anyway, thanks!

Danielle
drb1, Dec 1, 2008 @ 18:41

this thread is making me HUNGRY!  :angry:

but if you must know, the Japanese love making "Niku Jaga", literally translated, "meat & potato". Many variations of recipes, but here's one version.

Ingredients (serves 4, appetizer portion)

4 potatoes
200grams thinly sliced beef 
1 onions sliced
1 carrot chopped
6 haricot beans or 12 snowpeas or handful of greenpeas (for coloring)
300~400ml 'dashi' *
2T vegetable oil

Seasoning:

1T sugar
3T mirin
2.5T soy sauce

* Dashi - japanese soup stock: http://japanesefood.about.com/od/soup/a/aboutdashisoup.htm
Alternatively use 1.5t of dry soup stock ("hondashi") 2 cups (360cc) of water.

To Prepare:

1. cut the sliced beef in 3-4cm bite size pieces.
2. peel the potatoes and dice into large bite sizes. (soak in cold water for 5-6 min: this prevents the potatoes from breaking apart while cooking)
3. Heat oil in pan, add beef and stir til it browns.
4. Add the onions, followed by the potatoes. Stir til onions are soft and potatoes are starting to become clear on the surface.
5. Add in the 'dashi' and remove the film that surfaces to the top and reduce heat
6. Simmer until stock reduces to half and potatoes are soft, then add the mirin, soy sauce and simmer for few more minutes.
7. Add the green beans just in the last few minutes.

Bon Appetite!

YouMeCo, Dec 1, 2008 @ 19:33

Hm.

I like oven-potatoes.

Take potatoes, peel and cut them - like traditional "chips" in UK, maybe.

Quarters, eighths.

Take fresh rosemary and thyme, salt and pepper, mix in a big bowl with some good olive oil and a sliced onion or two (as you like).

If you want, add some garlic, sage, mint to the mix.

Put into pre-heated oven (200° C) for 45 minutes on a deep baking tray.

Serve.

Potatoes like these are eaten in larger quantities than normal boiled potatoes - so prepare an ample amount...



Variation, with chicken drumsticks:

prepare a number of chicken drumsticks. They should be unfrozen.

The following is for 12 drumsticks, scale up/down as required.



5 EL Ketchup

2 EL Honey

6 EL Olive-oil

3 EL Soyasauce

3 EL Chilisauce, sweet-n-sour

at least 1500 g Potatoes - I'd take 2.5 kgs...

3 Zehe/n Garlic

250 g Onions

2 Zweig/e Rosmary

1 Bund Thyme

1 Glas chicken-stock

500 g Tomatos



You take the ketchup, the honey, the oil and the soya+chili sauce and heat everything in a small pot.

Then, distribute it over the chicken drumsticks.

The other ingredients (except for stock and tomatos) are prepared for oven-potatoes like above (onions sliced).

Put the chicken-drumsticks over the potatoes.

Then put into pre-heated oven. Add stock over time. After about 25-30minutes, add the tomatos. Should be done after 50-60 minutes.

Serve with fresh thyme!



Personally, I create my own ketchup for this, using

1kg tomatos

80 ml vinegar

1 onion

3 cloves of garlic

salt, pepper, nutmeg, ginger



because the ketchup on the shelves is way to sweet for me (and contains too much chemistry anyway...)

With the honey from the original recipe above, it gets just right, though...





Hm. If you know cooking a bit, this should be clear.

If not, I can give you the German recipe ;-)



rainer_d, Dec 2, 2008 @ 01:57

I realise I didn't include a recipe. Also, I wrote the word 'stampot' wrong, as it is written with two p's; 'stamppot'. Oops!

So, hereby a new entry, with a recipe for Stamppot Boerenkool:

ingredients:
750 grams of fresh kale, without the vein
1 kilo potatoes, peeled
1 smoked saucage
diced bacon
milk
mustard
butter

Put the kale with water in a pan and cook. Add a little salt if neccesary. After about 15 minutes, add the potatoes on top. This has to cook for about 30 minutes more. After 15 minutes of cooking, add the saucage, so the taste can get into the potatoes and kale.

Bake the diced bacon (without adding butter).

When all is cooked, remove the saucage, and mix the kale and potatoes together. Add a little milk for the texture and some mustard, salt and pepper for the taste. Put in the diced bacon with the fat and put the smoked saucage back on top.

Place on the table and have a delicious Dutch meal! Do not forget to make a bowl of gravy, to build your own dams... (Seriously, the gravy is a must, the dams... well, thats up to you!)

some people eat a whole saucage by themselves, but traditionally, you cut it into slices, or just chuncks and add it to your plate.

Enjoy!
drb1, Dec 2, 2008 @ 14:06

I forgot the butter: most people add milk and a litte butter for the texture...
drb1, Dec 2, 2008 @ 14:13

Nice la Causa Rellena, in Maloca, now I think in Cafe Latino in Nyon, there is a potato week, vey nice.
Susan61, Dec 2, 2008 @ 15:20