Mash

Appears in

Published 2005

About

One of the most comforting foods imaginable, mash is quick to make and goes just as well with grilled fish or sausages as with a fortifying stew or a grand roast. A plain, buttery potato mash is fine in itself, but many flavours can be added to suit the dish it is to accompany. Other winter vegetables — celeriac, fennel, parsnip, turnip — used half and half with potato make good mashes. Irish colcannon has cooked shredded cabbage beaten into a mash made with milk.

Instead of butter or milk, make the mash with cream or crème fraîche, yogurt, olive oil or a nut oil. Nutmeg, mace, ginger and turmeric are good seasonings; saffron gives a musky flavour to olive oil mash, and a dash of Pernod livens up a potato and fennel mash. Other favourite additions include roasted garlic, a teaspoon or two of Dijon mustard or pesto, and to accompany fish make a mash with grated lemon rind, lots of chopped parsley and a little lemon thyme. I’ve included a recipe for horseradish mash (below); vary your mash to suit the meal you are preparing.

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