Our little rented farmhouse sits smack bang in the middle of the potato-growing heartland of the Central Highlands. Each summer, massive diesel tractors turn over the rich volcanic soil into neat rows. A few weeks later the rows are planted by another large tractor full of potatoes that are unrecognisable as potatoes. They are covered in some sort of creamy-white powder, and are owned by the factory that will eventually process the crop, turning them into fries for the world’s largest takeaway franchise. The fries are part of the system that’s making people very sick, and I think they give the humble spud a bad reputation. Potatoes have been a starchy staple for cultures around the world for centuries. They’ve saved entire generations from famine, and they’ve been relied on as human fuel in hard times in many countries.
I love potatoes, and like bread, butter, coffee and pasta, I refuse to give them up. I don’t care about their carb-loading attributes, because I believe in balance. I wouldn’t eat potatoes every day of my life, but on occasion I like to cook this meal and really pig out and fill up on this humble and easy-to-grow food source.
It’s probably not traditional to eat this classic Spanish meal with chorizo, but that’s the beauty of being the cook – you can cook your family what you like. When I make a new batch of chorizo I often freeze a few sausages for meals like this. If you can’t access fresh chorizo, it still works well with the harder, cured variety.