Cookbooks
By Yotam Ottolenghi
4.8
(15)
Sweet Potatoes with Orange BittersJonathan Lovekin
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One of my greatest idols is Ruth Reichl, a clever writer who delightfully manages to approach food with just the right balance of weightiness and sense of humor, the latter often a rare commodity among "serious" authors. I love Reichl's recipes, I love her storytelling, and I always benefit from her vast knowledge. This recipe-a rhapsody for sweet, bitter, and salty-is based on one of hers, published in Gourmet Today, a selection from the sadly defunct Gourmet magazine, which Reichl edited for many years.
Ingredients
Serves 4
1½ cups (350 ml) freshly squeezed orange juice (the juice of 4 to 5 oranges)
⅓ cup (80 g) brown sugar
¼ cup (60 ml) red wine vinegar
¼ cup (60 ml) Angostura bitters
1½ tablespoon olive oil
Salt
4 to 5 sweet potatoes, unpeeled, halved crosswise, each half cut into 1-inch- (2.5-cm-) wide wedges (3⅓ pounds; 1.5 kg)
2 red chiles, halved lengthwise
3 sage sprigs (½ ounce; 15 g)
10 thyme sprigs (⅓ ounce; 10 g)
2 heads garlic, unpeeled and halved horizontally
3 ounce (90 g) chèvre (goat cheese) log, broken into pieces
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 425°F/220°C.
Step 2
Place the orange juice in a saucepan with the sugar and vinegar. Bring to a boil over high heat, then turn down the heat to medium-high and simmer fairly rapidly for about 20 minutes, until the liquid has thickened and reduced to scant 1 cup (200 ml; about the amount in a large glass of wine). Add the bitters, olive oil, and 1½ teaspoons salt.
Step 3
Place the potatoes in a large bowl, add the chiles, sage, thyme, and garlic, and then pour in the reduced sauce. Toss well so that everything is coated and then spread the mixture out in a single layer on a baking sheet on which it fits snugly, about 12 by 16 inches (30 by 40 cm).
Step 4
Place in the oven and roast for 50 to 60 minutes, turning and basting the potatoes every 15 minutes or so. They need to remain coated in the liquid in order to caramelize, so add more orange juice if the pan is drying out. At the end, the potatoes should be dark and sticky. Remove from the oven and leave to cool slightly before arranging on a platter and dotting with the goat cheese. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Adapted from Plenty More, by Yotam Ottolenghi, Copyright © 2014, published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Random House LLC. Buy the full book from Amazon or Bookshop.
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Reviews (15)
Back to TopTrianglegreat taste, but it takes much longer than 50 min to cook. Also better to cut sweet potatoes into smaller pieces - larger surface area for the glaze.Goat cheese entirely skippable.
Ovan1969
Bosnton MA
11/24/2023
This combination of flavors didn't work for our family. Something clashed. Might have been better with less Angostura bitters but I won't even bother to try. Too many other good recipes out there. I almost always love Ottolenghi's recipes but this was a miss.
pennsan
Toronto, ON
1/25/2021
Oops. Made two recipes in the same day and reviewed the wrong one. However, loved this one, too. I sliced the sweet potatoes wedges pretty thin to reduce cook time and to increase the deliciousness in each bite. Overcooked a bit but the flavor compensated for a bit of mushiness. Substituted bourbon for red wine vinegar which I couldn't find in my pantry.
allisonpharis
Sebastopol, CA
5/16/2020
Yummy. Followed recipe exactly. Next time I would prep the day before. Didn't take long but, with the five hour cooking time, would have made it easier. Converted my daughter who was on the fence about lamb.
allisonpharis
Sebastopol, CA
5/16/2020
So, you LEAVE ON the skin?
infinityfarm
Sunny Florida
11/12/2018
This sweet potato recipe is not only so very delicious, it is beautiful to look at. I doubled the sauce. The secret to this recipe is to not let the sauce dry out when roasting. A relative of mine who doesn't even like sweet potatoes couldn't get enough.
nance3
Michigan
3/12/2017
Superb! Love the flavor the bitters impart.
jsbjk
Winnetka, IL
11/29/2016
What a great blend of flavors, especially the 2nd day. Thinking of making for thanksgiving only will slice in thinner rounds and make the day before, place on serving platter and reheat for dinner. Hope that works!
walkergirllbg
sacramento, ca
11/13/2015
The reduction is ridiculously good. Well worth the effort to simmer the sauce before oven roasting.
nick_oh
TEXAS
4/25/2015
Everyone loved it. Bought and forgot the cheese - didn't need it. While the large slices of potato present well, we all thought that a smaller chop would mean, as my daughter put it, "more deliciousness on each bite". Too many potatoes for one pan - wound up using a large corningware casserole and a cookie sheet. The corningware worked better: easier cleanup, better caramelizing (without burning) more room to baste. Yum!
GillianS
Sparks, MD
3/20/2015
Such a great recipe! The orange-bitter combo adds so much depth and subtlety to sweet potatoes, which are very one-note on their own. This is my new go-to sweet potato recipe!
jennifer39
New York, NY
1/14/2015
This is a delicious and sophisticated method for fixing yams(I used red garnets). I also used Fee Bros bitters-orange, because I had that. Don't try this with parchment paper, I had to remove mine, the conductivity of the metal pan is needed for browning. Soo good!
cookfancy
Portland, OR
12/9/2014
Delicious! I made it with bitters and bourbon mix and without the cheese - definitely a keeper, and would work for other vegetables!
Anonymous
San Francisco, CA
11/28/2014
Tangy heaven. I was worried about the recipe being too sweet but it was not a problem. My oj was not fresh-squeezed, I was short on bitters by about a third, I was too lazy to go to another store for the red chilis - used red bell peppers and I forgot to add the chevre - doesn't need it = accidentally vegan! Still amazing and attractive. Adults and pre-schoolers liked it. Roasting pan clean-up will take some effort, Looking forward to making it with the chiles and the chevre. I will have to buy the large bottle of bitters from now on.
DolorysStormborn
Minneapolis
11/27/2014
Delicious... adding an interesting spicy twist to our Thanksgiving!
scottinsantacruz
11/27/2014
TagsOrangeCitrusFruitSweet PotatoPotatoRoot VegetableVegetableSageThymeGoatMeatSideDinnerLunchVegetarianMake AheadRoastCookbooks
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