Duck Fat Potatoes with Beet and Ruby Red Grapefruit Salad
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Valentine’s Dinner for my Husband
Trying to Impress for Valentine’s Day
Since I’ve started trying to cook fancy, I spent a lot of time looking for the perfect Food and Wine Night (#FAWN) dishes to make for Valentine’s Day. I kept a lookout for something that would require a new ingredient or cooking skill that I haven’t tried. I really wanted to impress my husband, Mike.
Thousand Layered Duck Fat Potatoes
I came across the duck-fat potatoes recipe and thought that not only do they look cool with the fried layers, but I remembered Mike going on and on about the duck-fat fries he had at a bachelor party last year.
Thousand Layered Duck Fat Potatoes recipe from Food & Wine.
In Lake Tahoe, Mike was invited to a 20-person bachelor party. That’s a lot of people to feed, but the host (thy Bachelor) was smart and organized. They were separated into “cooking” groups and each was assigned a meal to make during their Airbnb stay.
One of these groups made duck-fat fries and that blew Mike’s mind. I’m exaggerating a bit, but he did send me a text from Tahoe to tell me about them and then mentioned the fries a few more times after his trip. They obviously made a big impression.
Challenge accepted. When I scrolled over this recipe, I was determined to make them before reading the instructions.
We dipped the potatoes in mayo and chipotle aioli.
Roasted Beet, Ruby Red Grapefruit Salad, and Warm Honey Dressing
There were a few tempting Food & Wine recipe suggestions for February. What caught my eye was a Roasted Beet, Ruby Red Grapefruit, and Warm Honey Salad. I thought, if we are eating these decadent potatoes, we should pair them with a healthy salad. Plus, the colors were vibrant red and pink; pretty theme-y for Valentine’s Day!
The beet and grapefruit salad was fresh and delicious. Mike isn’t the biggest fan of grapefruit, but with the earthy beets and honey dressing it balances well. We had leftovers and it was still delicious over the next few days.
Topped with flakey salt and garnished with rosemary.
The Tips I Learned in Making these Recipes
The main event, Thousand Layered Duck Fat Potatoes, was a two-day prep affair. After the potatoes were sliced and covered in duck fat, they went into the refrigerator for 8 hours. So if you want to make this recipe, make sure you plan your days out. Once the potatoes are fried, they should be eaten right away for the max experience.
Other tips I have for this recipe:
Freeze longer than 30 minutes on fry day. Some reviewers mentioned that the potato cubes fell apart in the oil. Keep the potatoes frozen while you work in batches, keep the oil hot, and be gentle when using tongs to move them around in the oil. I only had a few potatoes fall apart and I ate them anyway.
I’m a huge salt lover, so any dish sprinkled with giant salt crystals is going to be a win. Leave the salt off if you’re not a fan. The duck-fat fried potatoes are yummy by themselves.
We had leftover potatoes and threw them in the air fryer the next day for a few minutes. They were just as good!
Both recipes were a success! I will definitely make the Thousand Layered Duck Fat Potatoes for guests, next time I host. They’re something new, not too difficult to make, and guaranteed to leave a lasting impression on my friends.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
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