Fermented Potato Bread: The Saga

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Today is the culmination of many months work. And the culmination is this very inconspicuous special: Fermented Potato Bread by restaurant Amass (København, DK), with leek spread.

Nick frequently gains inspiration for new specials when we go on vacation and eat at restaurants in other cities and countries. Last time Nick and I were in Copenhagen (May 2015 for Copenhagen Beer Festival) we ate at a number of restaurants where the chef spent some time at Noma. Amass was one of these restaurants. The chef, Matt Orlando, is actually American and worked for Rene as a Sous Chef for two years and later as a Chef de Cuisine for another several years.

The fermented potato bread was served on the side to be the accompanying bread with the multi-course meal. It was a touch sour and tangy the way a good sourdough loaf is, but underneath you could taste the richness of the potatoes. The texture was unusual, more like a dense pancake than a loaf with crumb, but when topped with the accompanying leek spread, it was unspeakably addictive.

I watched in amazement as Nick, who usually takes a polite bite or two of bread to try it, ate not one, not two, but three fermented potato breads! And this was at the beginning of a twelve-course meal!

When the Chef came by to personally deliver a course, Nick asked him how he makes the potato bread. Good naturedly the Chef described the process as such, “Make mashed potatoes, weigh them, add 1% salt, vacuum seal them and then ferment them in a warm place for up to ten days. When you have the desired flavor add yogurt and flour.”

The chef then said the record for the number eaten was seven. I later teased Nick he only needed to eat four more to meet the record!

Once we returned from Copenhagen Nick set out to re-create the fermented potato bread, but he was unable to get the yogurt and flour ratio right. After several failed attempts Nick instead used the fermented potatoes to make gnocchi, which have been on the specials menu several times since last May.

Finally Nick discovered Matt Orlando unveiled the recipe on a blog. Using the exact ratio Nick was finally able to re-create the fermented potato bread of our dreams and saving you, dear guest, a trip to Copenhagen.

The Fermented Potato Bread is made daily and will be available for the next two weeks every day until we sell out!

This year we are sending Christopher Sanders, our General Manager with Nick to Copenhagen for the beer celebration. They will eat at Amass and compare the original Fermented Potato Bread to Nick’s version. Stay tuned for pictures from that dinner and more inspiration from Denmark!

 

2 Responses to Fermented Potato Bread: The Saga

  1. Amanda says:

    If Nick could figure out how to make the RN74 black truffle bread rolls (some kind of potato brioche) and get back to me, that would be great 🙂

    • Molly says:

      I’ll let him know there has been a request! Further research (including a visit to Seattle) might be in order!

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