Mashed Potatoes with Bacon (2 Versions)

Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Have you planned out your menu yet? I have been putting a lot of thought in my Thanksgiving menu lately because it’s a perfect time to bring my loved ones all together.

Well, since both of our parents live far away from us, we are going to spend the holiday with our homies in SF this year. Where exactly? Our place, of course!! As of last Friday, a headcount of five was confirmed. Sweet! This puts me into a hyper mode of menu planning.

Let’s start off with the traditional side dish today – mashed potatoes. I have TWO versions of mashed potatoes using the exact same ingredients for ya! 🙂

Before we look into the recipes, let’s talk about our two main ingredients for a second.

First, potatoes! How do you usually cook potatoes for mashing? Do you boil them in water until fork tender? Me too. But recently, I have started steaming my potatoes because steaming helps to retain the nutritions of the potatoes. Not only that, the skin comes off really easily after steaming. No peeling and cutting is necessary in advance.

Next, bacon! Bacon plays a very important role in both recipe versions but in different shapes. In version I, with bacon dices evenly spread out, the crispy action is something fresh to go with the smoothness and moistness that mashed potatoes can bring. In version II, with small little bacon pieces as a meaty topping, our mashed potatoes are totally brought to the next level of elegancy.

All right, let’s get started right away…

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MASHED POTATOES WITH BACON (VERSION I)[printfriendly]
Yield: 4 Servings, on the side

INGREDIENTS
4 potatoes (about 1 lb)
2 slices of bacon, diced
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
1 oz butter, melted
2 tablespoons milk
sea salt and ground black pepper
chives (optional)

1. Steam unpeeled potatoes for 15 minutes or until they are fork tender. If you choose boiling, peel and cut the potatoes into cubes beforehand. Mash them well in a large bowl.
2. Sauté bacon dices over high heat in a nonstick skillet for 3-5 minutes or until the color of the bacon becomes dark red. Transfer to a paper towel to soak up the fat.
3. Add onions in the skillet and use the bacon fat to cook the onions until translucent.
4. Turn off the heat and use the remaining heat to melt butter.
5. Add melted butter, bacon, milk, a pinch of salt and black pepper into the mashed potatoes and toss until even. Adjust the flavor by adding more salt or pepper if necessary.
6. Garnish with chives and serve warm.

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Ready for something different, fun and still equally delicious? Let’s dive in version II. As I said, we don’t put the bacon directly into the potatoes in this version. Instead, let’s pull it out, smash it when it’s crispy and sprinkle the little pieces of bacon all over our wonderful mashed potatoes. Why don’t we make it yield more this time?

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MASHED POTATOES WITH BACON (VERSION II)[printfriendly]
Yield: 6 Servings, on the side

INGREDIENTS
6 potatoes (about 1 1/2 lbs)
3 slices of bacon
1 cup onion, finely chopped
2 oz butter, melted
1/4 cup milk
sea salt and ground black pepper
chives (optional)

1. Steam unpeeled potatoes for 20 minutes or until they are fork tender. If you choose boiling, peel and cut the potatoes into cubes beforehand. Mash them well in a large bowl.
2. Heat up a nonstick skillet over high heat and place bacon slices in. Cook each side for 3 minutes or until crispy. Transfer to a paper towel to soak up the fat.
3. Add onions in the skillet and use the bacon fat to cook the onions until translucent.
4. Turn off the heat and use the remaining heat of the skillet to melt butter.
5. Add melted butter, milk, a pinch of salt and black pepper into the mashed potatoes and toss until even. Adjust the flavor by adding more salt or pepper if necessary. Dish the mashed potatoes.
6. Smash the bacon into small little pieces. (I used my food chopper to do the job.) Sprinkle the bacon pieces over the potatoes.
7. Garnish with chives and serve warm.

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Here you have it – two versions of Mashed Potatoes With Bacon! Make your choice and enjoy. I will be sharing my Thanksgiving menu with you next week. Stay tuned. 🙂