one of my favorite go-to quick week-night meals, bursting with flavor, interesting textures, and vegetarian protein.
despite being made with mostly pantry ingredients, i crave this dish all the time. this pita fulfills all the different flavor profiles and textural interest that i want at any given time, but can still be thrown together when i get home from a long day of work with no energy to cook an involved meal.
the tanginess of the goat cheese with the brightness of lemon juice and fresh scallions together with the sweetness of roasted red peppers and the creaminess of potatoes with caramelized onions all on a toast, soft, and crunchy pita always hits the spot, no matter how long my day may have been.
it may not be glamorous and it may be completely meatness, but this sandwich has never once disappointed me.
dont sleep on this one!
spiced fried egg:
an indian-inspired comfort food recipe
servings: 1-2 people (2-3 pitas)
prep time: 5 minutes
cook time: 10 minutes
total time: 15 minutes
ingredients
potato filling
~1/2 lb of potatoes
(preferably medium-starch like white or yukon gold)
1/2 onion (preferably yellow)
2 garlic cloves
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
sprinkle of cumin
1/2 tsp salt
olive oil as needed
goat cheese spread
1/3 cup goat cheese
1/4 cup chopped green of scallion
1/2 tsp dried marjoram
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
ground pepper to taste
2 pita bread
1/2 cup roasted red pepper (from jar)
instructions
- boil potatoes in generously salted water.
- while potatoes are boiling, mince garlic and slice onions into thin strips. set aside.
- chop green of scallion or chives. set aside.
- when potatoes can be easily pierced with a fork, drain potatoes and transfer to pan. turn the heat to medium.
- crush potatoes with wooden spoon and salt liberally. water will begin to evaporate off potatoes.
- when the bottom of potatoes begin to brown, drizzle olive oil over the potatoes and flip with tongs. salt the other side of the potatoes.
- drizzle more olive oil on the potatoes, then sliced onions and garlic.
- when the second side of the potatoes begin to brown, mix everything in the pan and allow onions and garlic to cook into potatoes.
- when onions become translucent, add paprika and cumin.
- mix potatoes and remove the pan from heat.
- in a new pan, toast one side of the pita bread on medium heat.
- while the pita is heating, add goat cheese, chopped scallion greens, lemon juice, olive oil, marjoram, and salt to a small bowl. mix to make a goat cheese spread. set aside.
- drain roasted red pepper. crush red pepper in a small bowl with wooden spoon. you can also puree it, if you prefer. add salt and mix well. set aside.
- when pita is toasted, remove it from heat.
- apply roasted red pepper spread and goat cheese spread to one half of pita on the toasted half. apply fried potato mix to the other half of the pita.
- fold the pita and enjoy.
some notes
my favorite potato to make this meal with is yukon gold potato, but you can use any that you happen to have on hand at the time. i often make this with russet potatoes, as they are the cheapest potato to purchase in my area so i often have them left over.
you dont need to crush the roasted red pepper. sometimes i like to leave them whole. if you happen to have any other red pepper spread, you can use that as well. i have used the trader joe’s red pepper eggplant spread for this, and it has been delicious as well!
although i dont usually have it on hand, having nice olive oil and fresh lemon juice makes a huge difference when mixed into the goat cheese spread.
i know it’s controversial, but i always leave on the potato skins, no matter the type of potato. they add texture and vitamins that i love, especially when i have the patience to really crisp them in the pan. why would i go through the trouble of peeling a potato? but peel them if you must. in the end, you gotta make it your own!
im a huge fan of marjoram. its the only herb i use in this dish because i really would like it to shine here, but oregano and thyme could also be delicious!
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