Malt Vinegar Potatoes with Caramelized Shallot Yogurt

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This is the closest you’ll ever get to eating chips for dinner and having it be socially acceptable. These Malt Vinegar Potatoes with Caramelized Shallot Yogurt do an excellent impression of a bag of Ruffles and french onion dip. I know I talk up a lot of my recipes because, well, it’s my job. And I mean everything I say about them. But sometimes I wish I could accurately express how much I like a particular recipe without sounding like a broken record. I am not just in like with this recipe, I am full-on, hills-are-alive in love with this recipe. So let’s talk about it!

The people who perplex me the most are the people who can keep bags of chips in their house. I have a friend that sometimes has upwards of three different kinds of chips squirreled away in their cupboards and they barely dig into them. They actually can ration them! I can’t do that. If there is a single bag of chips in my house, it won’t last 24 hours. I know a lot of people go on about their chocolate obsession and I get it, chocolate is great. But chips are where I lose my self-control.

Now, in recent years I’ve tackled this problem by simply not buying chips. You can’t be tempted if you remove the temptation, right? Wrong. I still get cravings and if I go to the grocery store even the slightest bit hungry, I will make a B-line for the chip aisle. I may be able to talk myself out of buying a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos, but it will take me a good 10 minutes to do so. And to an outside observer, I’m just staring blankly at snack food, which isn’t ideal. 

So, I’ve had to find creative ways to curb my chip craving, with slightly more sensible choices. And today’s Malt Vinegar Potatoes with Caramelized Shallot Yogurt is my most successful experiment to date. Honestly, this dish does make you feel like you’re having chips and dip for dinner. But you have the added bonus of knowing you didn’t. Plus, as much as I love ruffles and onion dip, these potatoes are a lot more filling and a lot easier on my waistline. But having said that, I wouldn’t refer to these as “diet” food. I was, after all, motivated by flavor, not dietary virtue.

So let’s talk about what we’re looking at here? Well, we have a medley of baby potatoes par-boiled in malt vinegar before being doused in olive oil and roasted to golden perfection. They’re perched on a bed of creamy Greek yogurt flavored with caramelized shallots, scallions, garlic, and just a hint of honey. The potatoes are finished off with a handful of mixed greens for freshness and a drizzle of chili-crisp. Yeah, this dish has a lot going on. So let’s break it down.

Let’s start with the star of the show, the potatoes. I used a mix of potatoes but really any variety of baby potatoes will do. I like the look of baby potatoes in the finished dish, but if you only have full-grown spuds you could just give them a coarse dice. You won’t have as much crispy skin, however, which I consider to be a bummer.

To prep your baby potatoes, you’re going to halve them and place them in a small saucepan. You want a small saucepan for this because you want to be sure the potatoes are fully immersed. We’re going to cook the potatoes in a cup of malt vinegar and enough water to cover. If you use too large a saucepan, you’ll have to add a lot more water to ensure the potatoes are covered. The more water you add the more you’ll dilute the vinegar and mute the flavor. From here, boil the potatoes until they’re fork-tender. This should take about 15 minutes.

Once the potatoes are tender, arrange them on a baking sheet and douse them in olive oil. And I mean douse. Make it rain oil. This is how we’ll get that gorgeous golden color you see in the photos and that crispy skin I mentioned. Make sure you place the potatoes on the baking sheet cut-side-down and give your spuds space. This will encourage airflow around the potatoes, which will result in crispier taters. The potatoes roast for about 25 minutes and all you have to do is rotate the pan once halfway through.

So that’s the potatoes tackled, let’s talk yogurt. This dip is also very hands-off and can easily be put together in tandem with the potatoes. This Caramelized Shallot Yogurt starts predictably enough with shallots. Slice the shallots into half-moons and pop them into a skillet with shimmering olive oil. Add a healthy pinch of salt and turn the heat down as low as it can go. Put a lid on the skillet and walk away. Give the shallots a stir every so often, but not too often. We want to give them plenty of time and space to cook down and release all their sugary juices. Take the shallots off when they turn a deep amber. This should take about 20 minutes. Resist the urge to turn up the heat and speed up the process. These babies need time.

When the shallots are in the last 5 minutes of their caramelization, add 2 cloves of minced garlic. This gentle cooking will take the bite out of the garlic. I don’t like to add the garlic too early as it is prone to burning. Once the shallots are where you want them, you have little more than stirring ahead of you. Add some scallions, salt, and a touch of honey and you’ve got yourself a dip.

Finally, it’s time to assemble the dish. Start with a generous pool of the yogurt dip. To that add the potatoes and a generous handful of mixed greens. I like to serve additional greens on the side so people can add more if they want. I definitely added a little more to my portion, I find the greens bring a very pleasing bit of freshness to the dish. And as a final flourish, a drizzle of chili crisp. I used Lan Gao Ma because it’s my favorite. But feel free to use any chili oil you like. I think Calabrian chilis would be delicious as well. I got this wonderful idea from my friend Lily who put LGM on her smashed potatoes and I’ve been obsessed with the idea ever since. She is so clever with her flavor combos.

So that’s pretty much everything you need to know about these Malt Vinegar Potatoes with Caramelized Shallot Yogurt. This is such a sensational side that it threatens to steal the whole show. Not that my chip-loving heart minds. I genuinely hope you give this a try. It’s so good I just want everyone, particularly the chip fiends among us, to give it a try.

Enjoy!