This book made me buy duck fat. It's true! Unlike many readers who discovered Poppy Cooks on TikTok or Instagram, I saw The Potato Book - 101 Recipes from the Potato Queen on the new release shelf of my library portal and reserved it immediately. Who doesn't love potatoes? Patiently waiting for 6 weeks for this popular title, little did I know that my roast potatoes would never taste the same again.
Living in England, Poppy O'Toole trained in Michelin-starred restaurants but lost her job as a Junior Sous Chef during the pandemic. Deciding to make cooking videos and gaining a substantial audience, Poppy filmed a series called '25 Potatoes Recipes to Get You Through the Second Pandemic'. The resulting success was huge and Poppy embraced the love for potatoes and went FULL POTATO in her content from that point on.
Later filming 'Around the World in 80 Potatoes', '12 Days of Christmas Potatoes' and 'Cooking Potatoes Every Single Day until I Physically Implode' she's now the Potato Queen and was nicknamed the 'High Priestess of Potatoes' by Nigella Lawson.
Since reading her book, I've started following Poppy on Instagram and watching her work magic with the humble potato in the kitchen adds another delicious layer of enjoyment.
The first recipe I tried was The Classic Roast Potato, which involved a number of additional steps to what I was doing that produced potatoes that are crispy on the outside yet fluffy on the inside. Yum! The next recipe I attempted was (you guessed it) the Goose-Fat Roasties. They're so delicious my husband has taken to calling them pro-tatoes and they're now a regular staple on steak nights.
When my time with the The Potato Book was up, it was filled with so many terrific recipes I was loathe to return it to the library and decided to buy a physical copy for myself. This rarely happens with a recipe book, earning The Potato Book - 101 Recipes from the Potato Queen by Poppy Cooks an instant 5 stars.
Well, I don't know if I can get goose fat where I live, but this does sound interesting. Excellent review.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Davida! I didn't know where I could buy duck fat from either but it's available to purchase at Woolworths and Coles. It comes in a jar and is in the olive oil section, happy hunting 😋
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