Hasselback Batata-Harra | The Wizard of Whatever

This recipe for batata harra — Arabic for spicy potatoes — is super simple and super yummy! Hasselback potatoes are stuffed with Lebanese white cheese, baked until crisp and melty, then coated with butter, lemon, garlic, and parsley for a delicious dressing. Serve with Lebanese garlic sauce — aka toum — and garnish with tabbouleh if you like!

Ingredients:

Roasted Potatoes:

• 2 large yellow flesh potatoes, cut Hasselback style (see *Note)
• ½ cup (120 ml) crumbled Jebneh Bayda, or any other Lebanese white cheese
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) chili flakes
• ½ lemon, juice
• Salt

Toum:

• 18 cloves (or ½ cup/120 ml) garlic, cold
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt
• 1 lemon, juice (or ¼ cup/60 ml)
• 1 ½ cups (360 ml) vegetable oil

Method:

For the Roasted Potatoes:

• Preheat oven to 375 F (190 C).
• To cut the Hasselback potatoes: Lay a pair of chopsticks on a clean surface, left to right, parallel, with a gap between them.
• Find a ‘flattish’ side of a clean, scrubbed potato. Lay the potato, ‘flattish’ side down, between the chopsticks. Pull the sticks in tight to the potato. The chopsticks are a guide to make sure the potato is not cut completely through.
• Starting at one end of the potato, use a sharp knife to make a series of slits, ⅛- ¼ inch (3 – 6 mm) apart. Cut down to the level of the chopsticks and leave the bottom intact.
• If not using right away, cover and store the potato in cold water to prevent oxidation.
• Carefully separate the Hasselback potato slits and open slightly, taking care not to break the potato into pieces. As you open, fill each gap with a little bit of cheese to keep it open.
• Place the potato on a lined tray and drizzle on oil, season with salt.
• Transfer tray to oven and roast for 25 minutes.
• Mix butter, parsley, garlic, chili flakes, lemon, and salt in a bowl. Add over the potato as soon as it comes out of the oven.
• Keep warm.

For the Toum:

• Add garlic and salt to a food processor and process until fairly smooth. Do not overheat.
• While the processor is running, alternate adding the oil and lemon to the garlic in a steady even stream until a thick, creamy mayonnaise-style sauce is formed.
• Reserve cold until ready to serve

To Serve:

• Place a dollop of the toum onto a dark plate.
• Use the back of the spoon to spread into a rectangular shape, then swipe from left to right leaving high edges.
• Add potato over the swipe in the same direction.