OREGANO AND SMOKED PAPRIKA SWEET TATTY TOWERS WITH SUNNY SIDE UP EGGS
This dish looks the business and if you have a mandolin and a muffin tin we’re talking easy-peasy lemon squeezy! Smokey sweet potato slices, fragrant with oregano, stacked into towers and roasted. The perfect side to just about anything — I’ve teamed mine with cumin-spiked eggs for the ultimate brunch recipe, or tuck in with a chutney dip and you’re good to go. The contrast of the sticky, crunchy, layered edges make the sweet softness at it’s centre even more fabulous. Balance out the heavy qualities of the sweet potato and eggs with the fresh tang of a parsley, oregano and lime chutney — Kapha types can afford to heat it up with a bit of raw garlic and chilli — similar to a chimichurri but fresher, with only a dash of extra virgin olive oil and without the overpowering garlic burps. I’m more than a little bit excited about this recipe — wait until you taste it!
INGREDIENTS
Serves 4
700g sweet potato (about 4 medium-large)
3 tbsp (50g) ghee, melted (or your fav cooking oil)
2 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped (or 1 tbsp dried)
1½ tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp salt
Good grind of black pepper
For the parsley, oregano and lime chutney
½ cup packed fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp fresh oregano leaves (or 2 tsp dried oregano)
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lime
1 tsp raw runny honey
Big pinch sea salt and black pepper
Optional: ¼ tsp red pepper flakes or a pinch of cayenne/chilli flakes
If serving with fried eggs, add in a pinch of cumin
METHOD
Preheat oven to 350°F/190°C fan.
Place a stainless steel bowl on a very low heat source.
Add the ghee to melt, then the smoked paprika, salt, black pepper and fresh oregano, and mix. Remove from the heat.
Wash and scrub the sweet potatoes, then use a mandolin to finely slice them to 1-2mm thick — watch your fingers!
Transfer in batches as you slice into the bowl of ghee and spices to stop them browning. Toss well with your hands — as the ghee starts to cool, pop the bowl on a low heat source again to melt it.
Once all the sweet potato slices are evenly coated, stack and distribute them in the muffin tray. Place piles of the slices in the muffin tin until evenly distributed.
Roast for 25-30 minutes, or until the edges and the top are starting to brown and become more translucent and the insides are cooked (use a skewer or knife to check).
Use a spatula and fork to scoop them onto a serving dish and serve with eggs and/or chutney.
To make the chutney
Chop the herbs as finely as possible, then mix in the rest of the ingredients.
Taste and adjust the seasoning.
East by West tip: To make these ahead, don’t add the salt until you’re ready to stack and pop them in the muffin tin, otherwise the salt starts to draw out their moisture.
