Pellkartoffeln mit Quark und Leinöl

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Medium lidded pot
• •Mixing bowl
• •Small whisk or fork
• •Sharp paring knife

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the potatoes

   Put the scrubbed potatoes in a pot, cover them with cold salted water, and bring them up gently to a simmer. Starting cold cooks the centres before the skins split; a hard boil knocks them about and lets water into the flesh. Cook 20 to 25 minutes, until a small knife slides through without forcing.

   Choose potatoes close in size. One large hero potato in a pot of small ones leaves you with three done potatoes and one stubborn stone.
2. 2

   Mix the quark

   While the potatoes cook, beat the quark with the milk until it loosens but still holds on a spoon. Stir in the onion, most of the chives, the salt, and black pepper. Keep it cool, because the cold quark against the hot potato is the whole pleasure, and warm quark turns dull and sour in the mouth.

3. 3

   Check the oil

   Smell the linseed oil before it goes near the plate. Fresh Leinöl smells nutty and green; old oil goes bitter and sharp because flax oil turns quickly once opened. If it smells wrong, don't save the dish with more salt. Buy fresh oil and keep it cold next time.

4. 4

   Dry the jackets

   Drain the potatoes and put them back in the warm empty pot for one minute with the lid off. This dries the skins so they peel cleanly and keeps the potato flesh floury instead of wet. Weggeworfen wird nichts: if the skins are thin and clean, eat them.

5. 5

   Plate and pour

   Split the hot potatoes open on each plate, spoon the cold quark beside or over them, and pour the linseed oil in a golden ribbon across the quark and potato. Finish with the remaining chives, pepper, and a little more salt if the potatoes ask for it. Würzen, Fett, Salz zum Schluss: the oil and final salt come last because their flavour is brightest before the potato drinks them in.

6. 6

   Serve at once

   Serve with radishes or cucumber if you want crunch, but don't bury the plate under salad. The hot potato, cold quark, and fresh oil do the work. Eat before the potato cools and before the quark warms. That's the timing.

Chef Tips

• •Use fresh linseed oil and store it in the refrigerator after opening. Flax oil is fragile, and rancid Leinöl tastes like old paint, not Saxony.
• •Full-fat quark is the right base. Low-fat quark can work if you loosen it with a spoon of milk, but it tastes chalky unless the oil is generous.
• •Don't peel the potatoes before cooking. The jacket protects the flesh from water, and dry potato is what lets the oil taste clean instead of greasy.
• •If raw onion is too sharp, rinse the diced onion under cold water and dry it well. You keep the bite without letting it bully the quark.

Advance Preparation

• •The quark can be mixed up to 6 hours ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator; add the chives close to serving so they stay fresh and green.
• •Cook the potatoes just before eating. Reheated jacket potatoes lose the dry, floury texture that makes this plate work.
• •Open linseed oil should be kept cold and used within a few weeks. Buy a small bottle unless you cook this often.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 490g)