How to make delicious mashed potatoes: rules, secrets, unusual ingredients. How to serve mashed potatoes beautifully: potato bast shoes Mashed potato decorations

Potatoes are the product that is most often consumed in our country. It can be found on the table both on weekdays and on holidays. If you show your imagination, then from this product it is possible to create a huge number of all kinds of dishes for every taste. At the same time, you can increase or decrease the calorie content of dishes by adding additional products, such as cheese or butter.

Preparing side dishes from potatoes is a pleasure, as no difficulties usually arise. Recipes for delicious side dishes are always quite simple and straightforward. Here are some of them.

Potato side dishes for every day

Potatoes are so versatile that dishes made from them may not be similar to each other. At the same time, you can provide lower-calorie recipe options. Here we will look at recipes for dishes that can be prepared every day.

Puree “Green Light”

Simple cooking method:

• The potatoes must be peeled, depending on the size of the tubers, large ones must be cut into several parts;
• Boil them in salted water until fully cooked;
• While the potatoes are boiling, you can start preparing the spinach leaves with garlic;
• First you need to fry the chopped garlic in oil;
• Spinach leaves need to be divided into several parts and stewed with garlic for a couple of minutes;
• after this you need to pour the cream into the frying pan, stir and simmer for 3 minutes, then add salt;
• using a blender you need to turn the spinach-garlic mass into a puree;
• after the potatoes are ready, mash them in the usual way;
• Combine the mashed potatoes with the spicy spinach mixture and stir until smooth.

This dish is perfect as a side dish for many meat, chicken or fish dishes. If you exclude garlic from the recipe, you will get a nutritious and healthy dish for children. Kids love unusual presentation, so they will definitely like green potatoes. And with the help of a pastry syringe you can get a beautiful and original portion serving with some interesting dish.

Potato sticks as a side dish “Couldn’t get any tastier”

In order to prepare this dish, you need:

• peeled potatoes – 1 kg;
• chicken eggs – 1 piece;
• wheat flour – 2 cups;
• nutmeg - half a teaspoon (ground);
• butter – about 70-80 g;
• half a glass of breadcrumbs;
• 5 tablespoons of sunflower oil.

Cooking time for potato sticks is about 2 hours.

Calorie content per 100 g is 180 kcal.

Cooking process:

So tasty, the sticks can be served as a side dish for chicken cutlets or stewed fish. Fried foods will make your lunch or dinner too fatty. It is better to provide something light - a vegetable salad, for example, or steamed dishes. In addition, these potato sticks can be eaten as a separate dish with sour cream, tomato or cheese sauce.

Cooking in the oven

It is believed that foods cooked in the oven are healthier than boiled or fried foods. This also applies to potatoes. Moreover, baked tubers are considered lower in calories, unlike other cooking methods. So, how to deliciously cook potatoes as a side dish in the oven?

"Village joys"

• young potatoes – 1 kg;
• salt, oregano, black pepper, paprika - 1 tablespoon each;
• vegetable oil – 5 tablespoons.

The time from preparation to serving the finished dish is 1 hour.

Calorie content per 100 g – 325 kcal.

Cooking method:

• small tubers of young potatoes need to be cut into quarters and placed in a deep dish;
• pour the oil into the pan and mix it with the potatoes;
• add spices there and mix again;
• We smooth the potatoes onto a baking sheet, greased with oil and spices, and place them in the oven for 40 minutes at a temperature of about 180-190 degrees.

This side dish is very popular among the population, as it is prepared very quickly, and in the end it turns out very tasty, aromatic and satisfying. Just like sticks, country potatoes can be eaten simply with sauces (barbecue, garlic, curry) or mustard. Tip: To prevent the potatoes from being so oily and greasy, after they are removed from the oven, they should be placed on a plate with a paper towel or napkins folded several times. This way, the excess oil will be absorbed into them and they will be more enjoyable to eat. These potatoes are also great with fresh herbs. You can chop it finely and sprinkle it on the finished dish.

Potatoes for the holiday table

On a formal table, potatoes can also take their place of honor. There are a lot of options for preparing holiday dishes. Let's look at the most interesting potato side dish recipes for the holiday table.

Gnocchi in Italian

Products for cooking:

• medium-sized potatoes in the amount of 2 pieces;
• chicken egg – 1 piece;
• 2 cups wheat flour;
• salt - to taste.

Cooking time for the holiday side dish is 1 hour.

Calorie content – ​​315 kcal per 100 g.

Preparation:

• Peel the potatoes and place them in a saucepan with water;
• Boil for 15 minutes from the start of boiling;
• make puree from it in any way (mixer, manually, blender, etc.);
• add salt and flour to the potato mixture and break 1 egg into it;
• we knead a kind of dough, but there is no need to knead thoroughly;
• from it you need to make flagella about 3 cm thick;
• each of them must be cut into pieces about 1 cm long;
• The gnocchi need to be boiled for about 3 minutes in boiling water and as soon as they float, remove from the pan using a colander.

It is better to eat them immediately while they are warm. If you have guests at home, then before they arrive, pieces of gnocchi can be prepared in advance and boiled just before serving. Since this does not take much time, no one will notice your absence.

Potato “fan” for garnish from the oven

Ingredients needed:

• 8 medium-sized potatoes;
• butter – 50 g;
• Parmesan cheese – 100 g;
• salt and pepper to taste.

It will take one and a half hours to prepare.

Energy value per 100 g – 315 kcal.

Let's prepare it like this:

• Before you start cooking, you need to preheat the oven. The required temperature is 180 degrees Celsius;
• potatoes must be carefully peeled, washed and dried with a towel (regular or paper);
• each potato must be cut into slices on top every 3-5 mm;
• Place each potato “fan” on an oiled baking sheet, pour melted butter (butter);
• The potatoes should bake for about an hour. At the same time, you need to constantly water it with oil from the baking sheet;
• 10 minutes before it’s ready, sprinkle with grated cheese and continue baking.

This side dish should be served hot.

Dishes for potato side dish

Potatoes themselves are a very versatile product that can be boiled, fried, baked, pickled and otherwise prepared. It goes well with many foods: meat, fish, vegetables, cheese and others. Here's what you can prepare for a side dish of potatoes.

Chicken fillet “Juicy” with pineapples and cheese

Ingredients for the dish:

• chicken fillet – 700 g;
• canned pineapples - 1 can;
• cheese – 250 g;
• mayonnaise – 5 tablespoons;
• greens for decoration;
• pepper and salt - to taste.

Preparation will take you 50 minutes.

The calories contained in a 100 g dish are 170 kcal.

Preparation step by step:

• cut the chicken fillet into pieces, beat each on both sides with a kitchen hammer;
• Place on an oiled baking dish in the oven;
• chicken fillet should be peppered and sprinkled with salt evenly on each piece;
• For each of them we iron out a pineapple circle;
• grease the fillet with pineapple on top with mayonnaise and sprinkle with grated cheese on the coarse side of a grater;
• Place the baking sheet in a preheated oven (180 degrees) for 40 minutes.

The finished dish can be decorated with fresh herbs and served with mashed potatoes, for example, mixed with spinach and garlic.

“Vegetable Fantasy” salad for fried or baked potato side dish

Ingredients to prepare the salad:

• fresh cherry tomatoes - 10 pieces;
• green peas - 1 can canned;
• lettuce leaves - 1 bush;
• sesame seeds – 1 handful;
• medium-sized fresh cucumber – 2 pieces;
• balsamic vinegar for dressing;
• olive oil – 1 tablespoon.

Cooking time for vegetable salad is 30 minutes.

Calorie content – ​​150 kcal per 100 g (serving).

Step-by-step cooking instructions:

• cherry tomatoes must be cut into 4 equal parts;
• cucumbers should be cut into thin strips;
• Wash the lettuce leaves, dry them and tear them by hand into small pieces of equal size;
• put vegetables in a salad bowl;
• open a can of peas, drain the water and pour into the salad;
• season the salad mixture with balsamic vinegar and olive oil;
• Before serving, each serving should be sprinkled with sesame seeds on top.

Instead of sesame seeds, you can use ground walnuts. It is not recommended to season this salad with mayonnaise, as it may lose its fresh vegetable taste.

Moreover, if it is served with potatoes, which were cooked with butter (butter, vegetable), cheese, and fried in a frying pan. It is better to serve light dishes with this side dish, for example, vegetable salad without heavy dressing, steamed cutlets. Thus, there will be no feeling of heaviness and pain on the stomach.

We know that children are not always willing to eat, and even if they don’t mind, they are simply bored sitting in front of a plate of porridge. Beautifully decorated main courses for children can be a real lifesaver for parents whose children are not big fans of serious food. But even if you don’t have problems with feeding, an unusually served side dish will be an excellent decoration for a children’s holiday table.

In the photo below you will see interesting ideas for decorating side dishes and meat main courses for children of different ages.

Ingredients

• Rice – 100 g
• Processed cheese (briquette) or hard – 100 g
• Sausages or boiled sausage – 50 g
• Lemon wedge – 1 pc.
• A piece of carrot

Preparation

1. Boil the rice until tender, let it cool a little, put it on a plate and use a teaspoon to form two slides out of it - oval and round.
2. We cut the processed cheese into slices 3–4 mm thick, the main thing is that they do not break. We connect two pieces and cut out the lower legs with a knife - this way they will turn out symmetrical.

We also cut out the two front ones at once, then make triangular ears and a tail. We put everything in the right places.

1. From a slice of sausage (1 - 2 mm), cut out 2 circles and 6 smaller ovals with a mold - these will be pads.

According to the shape of the cheese ears, we make 2 of the same sausage ears, only smaller so that the cheese layer is clearly visible. We place the pads and “palms” on the front paws.

1. Remove the pulp from the lemon slice and place the remaining crust instead of the collar. Decorate it with a small circle of carrots.
2. Black “stripes” - triangles, if desired, are made either from nori seaweed (sushi is rolled into it) or from thinly cut olives.

Plain buckwheat can become your child's favorite dish if it is beautifully decorated.

Ingredients

• Buckwheat – 100 g
• Milk sausage – 1 pc.
• Chicken egg – 1 pc.
• Carrots – 1 pc.
• Olives – 1 pc.

Preparation

1. First, boil all the ingredients except the olives, peel the egg and start preparing the dish.
2. Place buckwheat in a round mound, cut about 2 cm from the sausage on each side, and divide the ends in half. We put them in place of the paws.
3. Place the whole egg in place of the head.
4. We make rings from boiled carrots: cut off a couple of slices and use a mold to make round holes in them. The rings should be large enough so as not to slip off the egg. We put the cut edges of the olives inside - the eyes are ready!
5. If desired, the mouth can be made from a piece of bell pepper.

Ingredients

• Sausages – 3 pcs.
• Sausage – 1 pc.
• Olives – 1 pc.
• Green onions – bunch
• Lettuce – 3 sheets

Preparation

1. We boil the sausages, they will be useful to us because of their shape - with them the elephant will turn out to be more plump, and the sausage - it is needed for decoration.
2. Chop the onion and place it on washed and dried lettuce leaves on a plate - this will be “grass”.
3. Cut 6 thin slices from the boiled sausage, make cuts on the sausage closer to the beginning according to the size of the slices, put 2 of them inside, as shown in the photo.

We cut the remaining sausage lengthwise and make 3 narrow thin strips about 3 cm long. In the place where the trunk will be, make a hole with a toothpick and put a strip into it - the trunk.

1. We also decorate the rest of the sausages.

Ingredients

• Potatoes – 2 pcs.
• Cucumber – 1 pc.
• Radish – 1 pc.
• Lettuce – 1 sheet
• Cracker – 1 pc.

Preparation

1. We prepare the puree as usual, the main condition is that it should not be too liquid so as not to spread! We place it on a plate in an oval, simulating the uneven structure of feathers with a spoon.
2. Instead of the owl's head, we lay out a cracker, and at the bottom we attach a triangular lettuce leaf in the form of a tail. Instead of a cracker, you can take a slice of black bread or diet bread, cut out with a round cutter.
3. Cut 5 - 6 thin slices from the cucumber. Two will be eyes, and three will be cut in half and placed in place of the wings, one under the other on both sides.
4. We cut the radishes very thinly and place two slices of suitable diameter on top of the cucumbers - the “eye”. Decorate with green peas on top.
5. If desired, place a triangular piece of radish, imitating a beak, and two cucumber sticks in place of the “eyebrows”.

The idea to decorate the salad in this way came from a famous children's cartoon.

Ingredients

• Medium beets – 1 pc.
• Sour cream – 2 tbsp
• Egg – 1 pc.
• Carrots – 1 pc.

Preparation

1. Boil the egg and vegetables as for a regular salad.
2. Grate some of the beets on a fine grater, season with sour cream and place on a plate in a round mound. Using a knife, carefully form the ears and wings.
3. Using a cookie cutter, cut out circles called “eyes” from boiled egg whites.
4. We clean the carrots, cut them into slices and first make a “beak”, then stripes for a cap.
5. We make “legs” from the remaining beets by cutting out several sticks. Alternating carrots with beets, lay out the cap.
6. We finish by making small details from beets: “pupils”, pompoms, tassels on the ears, etc.

If there are any traces left on the plate while laying out the salad, wipe them off with a napkin. We decorate the dish with flowers and stars made from carrots and squirrels, and parsley.

Another idea for how to serve rice in a beautiful and fun way!

Ingredients

• Rice – 100 g
• Chicken egg – 1 pc.
• Bell pepper (red) – 1 pc.
• Boiled chicken meat – 50 g
• Cheese - slice
• Greens, mushrooms - optional

Preparation

1. Place the boiled rice on a plate in the shape of a hare figurine.
2. We cut out “eyes” and “teeth” from the protein, a carrot and a mouth from the pepper, and make it from pieces of olives. We put everything in place.
3. We make a “handbag” from a piece of boiled meat. It can also be made from cheese or pepper. It all depends on what exactly you need to feed the child!
4. We make the sun from the yolk, and cut out the rays from a slice of cheese.
5. You can decorate the plate with herbs and halves of fried mushrooms.

Ingredients

• Spaghetti – 50 g
• Boiled carrots – 1 pc.
• Canned corn – 1 tbsp
• Olives – 1 pc.
• Greenery

Preparation

1. Without breaking, boil the spaghetti and lay it out in a heap.
2. Using a carrot slice, we use a round mold to make “eyes” and a triangular beak.
3. Place corn in front of it
4. We make paws from cuttings of parsley or dill, and place round pieces of olives on top of the carrot “eyes”.

Ingredients

• Children's sausages (they are smaller) – 2 pcs.
• Spaghetti – 100 g
• Yellow bell pepper – 1 pc.
• Ketchup or tomato paste

Preparation

1. From the boiled spaghetti we make a “cloud” on the edge of the plate, and from the pepper we cut out a circle and triangular “rays”. We put out the sun.
2. We cook the sausages and put one whole, and cut the other and put the halves in the form of wings. From the remaining part we make a “tail”.
3. Using drops of ketchup we draw portholes.

Ingredients

• Barley – 100 g
• Sausage – 1 pc.
• Cucumber - 1 pc.
• Egg – 1 pc.
• Green onions - a few feathers
• Olives, greens.

Preparation

1. Boil the sausage, pearl barley and egg.
2. Place the porridge on a plate in the shape of a cat's face.
3. We make cheeks and ears from slices of boiled sausage, and eyes from pieces of protein and cucumber slices. We cut the olive into pieces and replace the vertical pupils.
4. We select onion feathers according to size, place 3 pieces on each side of the sausages - these are mustaches. “Cat” for the children's table is ready!

Cut out a circle from rye or wheat bread. 2 smaller circles of egg white will become eyes. We draw paws with ketchup, and cut out claws from bell peppers.

A “smile” can also be made from ketchup, and pupils from pieces of olives!

We form a machine from mashed potatoes on a plate. We use ketchup to designate the headlights, and 2 stacks of cut cucumber slices will become the wheels. We use green onions to mark the contours of the windows, and place the boiled sausage on the “roof.”

To beautifully serve a child a seemingly banal dish - potatoes with a cutlet, there is no need to philosophize!

Let's form a “head” from the puree, and the cutlet will become a “body”. We will use slices of bell pepper as a beak, slices of fresh tomato as a scallop, and we will place sprigs of dill instead of feathers and wings.

None of the children will be able to refuse pasta decorated in this way! We put them on a dish, slices of cheese and halves of olives will serve as eyes, the back of a cucumber will serve as a nose, and a quarter of a tomato will serve as a mouth.

We lay out the corn kernels as if they were teeth, the curls of the bell pepper as a mustache, and half a tomato will be a bandana.

We place the leaves of Chinese cabbage at the bottom of the plate, under the pasta, as if it were a beard, and on the side - instead of sideburns.

Mashed potatoes will become much more interesting and tastier if you turn them into “SpongeBob”!

Align it on a plate with a knife to make a rectangle. We make arms and legs from cheese sticks, and from cucumber skin (this will make them thinner) – a smile, shoes and eyelashes.

The radish circles will be the eyes, and the peas will be the pupils. Protein and sausage can be used to add details - teeth and square pants!

As you can see, beautifully decorating main dishes for children is not difficult even for an inexperienced cook!

You don't have to read hundreds of cookbooks to find out how to make mashed potatoes. This knowledge is written in our subcortex, somewhere between borscht and scrambled eggs. Milk, butter and egg yolk will save even the most hopeless and tasteless potatoes, the main thing is not to over-salt them.

Mashed potatoes in the oven

The best side dish is mashed potatoes, and that's not up for debate. But boiled potatoes are so boring on weekdays that you don’t want to cook them for a holiday. Of course, nowadays there is no time for delights, because you want it on a budget and tasty. Therefore, there is no need to give up tender and soft puree, you need to serve it beautifully!

Even the most fastidious readers will be surprised! We have prepared 12 ideas on how to serve mashed potatoes so that they become the signature dish on the holiday table.

© DepositPhotos

Unusual ways to serve mashed potatoes

To make potato dishes tasty and healthy, potatoes should be chosen correctly. Never skimp on your health!

And if time is short, there is a little trick on how to cook jacket potatoes in a couple of minutes. You need to fill the washed tubers with water, wrap the container tightly with cling film and place it in the microwave. Cook at maximum power for 5–7 minutes, the time depends on the size of the potatoes.

Anastasia Orlova | 11/12/2015 | 3089

Anastasia Orlova 11/12/2015 3089

It would seem that nothing could be simpler - boil the potatoes, mash them and serve them as a side dish or an independent dish. However, this can be done in non-standard ways.

1. Kaleidoscope on a plate

Divide the puree into three equal parts. Add finely chopped parsley or spinach puree to one, finely grated beets to the other, carrot juice or finely grated boiled carrots to the third.

Place colorful portions of puree on one plate and serve to your guests.

2. Potato roses

Using a pastry syringe or a bag with a shaped nozzle, make beautiful roses from the puree on a greased baking sheet. Bake them until golden brown in the oven and serve as a holiday dish.

3. Cobweb

Place a portion of mashed potatoes on a dish and smooth it out with a spoon. Ketchup
draw a web.

Cut the green onion feathers into six equal pieces, bend each in the middle and along the edges. Place onions in the shape of spider legs on the drawn web, and an olive on them.

Make eyes from canned corn (cut the grain across, without cutting all the way through, unfold the halves) and small pieces of olive.

4. Cheerful clown

Distribute the mashed potatoes on a plate and level it out - it will be the face of a clown, place fresh cabbage salad on top in the form of a head of hair.

Make eyes from boiled quail eggs and pieces of olives. Cheeks and mouth - from boiled carrots; bow - made from boiled sausage and corn grains.

Everyone knows how to make mashed potatoes. This knowledge is written in our subconscious, somewhere between fried potatoes and scrambled eggs.

The best side dish of all times and peoples of the post-Soviet space is mashed potatoes, and this is not discussed. But boiled potatoes are so boring on weekdays that you don’t want to cook them for a holiday. Of course, nowadays there is no time for delights, because you want it on a budget and tasty. Therefore, you don’t have to give up tender and soft puree, you just need to learn how to serve it beautifully on the table!

I present to your attention 12 ideas from styrnet on how to serve mashed potatoes so that they become the signature dish on the holiday table.

UNUSUAL WAYS TO SERVE MASHED POTATOES

The simplest and most original way is to make shaped pyramids out of the puree using a pastry syringe.

Place the puree on top of the minced meat and vegetables and bake the dish for a few minutes in the oven.

Cover a small portion of a meat dish with a portion of a delicate side dish.

Great idea for potato ice cream!

No one will guess that puff pastries can contain delicious mashed potatoes.

Guests will be surprised by spicy mashed potatoes with dill in glasses. Add a layer of sour cream between the potatoes to enhance the flavor of the dish.

Try throwing a potato party too!

Fake pig made from mashed potatoes will appeal to adults and children. To keep the dish in shape, add hard cheese to the potatoes. Inside you can put fried minced meat with onions and vegetables.

Make a colorful side dish by adding carrot, spinach or beet juice to the puree. And you can mask the excess taste with spices and aromatic herbs.

Colored potato balls will decorate any holiday!

Another option for oven-baked potato pyramids.

Gorgeous potato pears!

And if time is short, there is a little trick on how to cook jacket potatoes in a couple of minutes. You need to fill the washed tubers with water, wrap the container tightly with cling film and place it in the microwave. Cook at maximum power for 5-7 minutes, the time depends on the size of the potatoes.

According to the site - http://maminy-shpargalki.com/