How Do I Bake My Potatoes?

[Longsands]

I've got to prepare a bbq tonight (Saturday) and I've been asked to serve baked potatoes like the ones you get down on Samet or Koh Chang. I can bake tatties in an oven no problem but I ain't got an oven!! I do have a small BBQ. In the past I've wrapped them in tin foil and then stuck them in the coals, but they've come out burnt on the outside and semi-raw in the middle. The burnt taste permeated the whole potato.

I was thinking of boiling them first for say 10 minutes, then wrapping them in the foil, after that cooking them above the coals on the grill. Unfortunately no time to experiment - any advice most welcome. The clock is ticking.

[Blackandwhite]

Hey Mate

Boil them for fifteen less if they are smaller than the size of your fist.

Wrap them in tin foil and pop them in your BBQ. when it is hot it will take about 1.5 hours. When the spus are cooking keep them movings every fifteen mins.

Good Luck

[Longsands]

Cheers for that.

I'm just off to fire up the coals.

[Bozo]

Go there How to bake my Potatoes ?

Go yourself to google next time...

[Longsands]

That I did.

If you follow the links you'll see that they mention cooking in ovens. In my initial post I pointed out that I didn't have an oven. As time was of the essence I thought I'd try and get input from the board.

Thanks for your help anyway.

[Guest IT Manager]

Go there How to bake my Potatoes ?

Go yourself to google next time...

Bozo that was so caring. Thanks. And I think it's better to ask questions here for later so all some one does is go into their google search bar and type "thaivisa bake potato"

IT

[Guest IT Manager]

Are you using an open fire or a barbecue bucket?

If a bucket, do you have a wire grate on top.

If so, put some butter inside the gfoils and wrap the spuds and then turn them every ten or 15 minutes. Burning shouldn't happen if you re using glowing coals and not a flame.

Hope it helps.

IT/Part time Chef

[Bozo]

Go there How to bake my Potatoes ?

Go yourself to google next time...

Bozo that was so caring. Thanks. And I think it's better to ask questions here for later so all some one does is go into their google search bar and type "thaivisa bake potato"

IT

[tutsiwarrior]

and that's another thing I HATE about Thailand...everyone is expected to prepare meals in woks on gas burners. I have a stove with an oven that my wife almost had to sell her body for in order to find. Now we have nice roast meats with lovely tots when desired and beautiful marinated pork ribs unequalled in our district in the province.

The non-availability of suitable falang cooking gear is an evil design foisted upon the unsuspecting by falang vegetarians and corrupt Thai nutritionists when everyone knows that baking rather than frying is a healthier mode of preparation

[Guest IT Manager]

True. Also whats a piecost?

We have a round glass bowl with a fan and heat element in the lid. I am quite Kee nio. But it's ok because we also have a becket half filled with concrete into which we put charcoal. I am informed my neigbours parents taught him to do this. They were taught by their parents etc.

5 baht charcoal = amazingly good pork spare ribs, in a marinade I prefer not to disclose the infgredients of to weak stomached forum members, but it involves digging in the ground within 20 feet of the house, then pounding in a pestle/mortar for ten minutes.

Marinate for between 30 seconds and one minute. Put on barbecue and drink one beer. If under 18, ask your father.

Re the glass thing, number one son did roast chicken, or as he terms it when showing off his culinary skills "gai farang", with roast potatoes, steamed beans, pumpkin and its associated hilarity and a gravy out of a box by Oxo. He has also used similar formats for mu farang.

In a pinch, some chicken legs, (55 baht per kilo), also goes well on a barbecue. Same marinade, without the digging but add some tomato sauce, maggi sauce and almost anything else in the cupboard.

Remember, even if it tastes like nothing you had at home, you made it and established yourself as capable of surviving in the rough and tumble of Thailand.

Good cooking and enjoy eating.

IT/Chef under instruction

Can I have another beer please son?

[KevinN]

HEY TUTSI; I had some trouble finding a stove/oven, then one day we were walking down the street and in the SINGER store they had a fairly nice one for 6000 baht,we went in and bought it,the very next day I happened to see stove/ovens in 2 more shops at about the same price,,and Phetchabun ain't that big a town.

only thing is ,the oven thermometer is about 25 degrees celsius off on the low side and there is no thermostst control on the fire.

Kinda reminds me of at home and cookin on a wood stove,ya know that before the 20's there wasn't even a thermo in the door on the oven,,and my grandma used to fire with apple wood for a fast/hot fire to bake bread and pies.Tamarak or red fir for all the rest of the baking like a elk roast.

[Zendesigner]

hi longsands,

You can also so cook them semi soft in a normal pot of boiling water with the skin on. let them cool and wrap them in foil for over the barbeque later on.

Then they will only need to get hot, not completely cook which would take along time.

If you have a microwave you can even cook them in there. is mostly only good for small quantities like 1 or 2.

Put the patato with skin in a bowl with some water so that the potato is sitting in it half way in. Put in microwave, nuke for 4 minutes, turn the potato over and nuke again for 4 minutes. Then test to see if soft otherwise some more minutes.

You can eat them actually for dinner like that every day, quick and same quality.

B

ps : wash them first of course before you cook them

[tutsiwarrior]

IT...I suspect that what you describe is a well known method of preparation that has been supressed by manufacturers of conventional cooking devices for obvious reasons. Please release P&IDs, heat balances and arrangement drawings for various items of meat such that we can go forward, defeat swine monopolists and later to bask in multi-millionaire glory as heros of alternative third world cooking arrangements. Nobel prizes in the alternative cooking equipment design category soon to be forthcoming.

Conventional ovens do use a lot of fuel I must admit...

[tutsiwarrior]

yeah Kev...we got a Whirlpool thats got the temp indicator on the oven door and that suits us OK...judge by weight what it takes to heat clear through on high heat then turn down the heat until the end...

Man...elk roast...that must have been grand. The only elk I had was from a friends freezer in Oregon...a steak cooked stove top and was wonderful...now, a joint cooked in the oven...

[Bozo]

So, were your potatoes successfully cooked ?

[Jeepz]

KevinN~

If you can find an oven thermometer you usually can "regulate" your oven. Once you know what the actual temperature is, simply pull the oven dial off and place it back on so that it aligns correctly for the actual temperature. The dial (what we call them here in the states) is normally a slip fit with the stem accepting it at almost any position.

They are supposed to do this at the factory, but obviously they don't always. Measure the temperature at the center of the oven. Rack in the middle, thermometer in the center of the rack.

Jeepz

[Jeepz]

Baking potatoes on a fire. Did that as a kid in the scouts. Potatoes and corn on the cob. Simply wipe potato with veg oil or butter, wrap well in foil. Then place close to but not on fire. Turn often, every five or ten minutes. A bit of practice and you will see how far from the fire is right. Takes awhile to cook.

I bake potatoes in the oven at 350 to 400 degrees for an hour. But I'm using big russets that are popular stateside. Just keep rotating the potato and don't get it too near the fire or it will burn. You are just emulating an oven, the potato doesn't really care where the heat comes from.

Jeepz

[tutsiwarrior]

jeepz...with the advent of microwave ovens it's not too difficult to come up with a nice baked russet. The big trick is to have your oven fired on the gas bottle and stick in your meat and some peeled and halved spuds and have the entire mess turn out excellently cooked at the same time.

The big challenge would be to take your locally fabricated oven without any instrumentation other than a sight glass on the window on the oven door and do a pot roast with blade of beef, onions, carrots and potatoes...but where to find the meat? When I was a kid I loved pot roast although I didn't like meat too much. My mom would always give me the eye of the meat that didn't have too much fat...tutsi's chateaubriand for one...I was special 'cause I was the oldest...

When I was in the boyscouts on one outing one group actually packed in a dutch oven with pot roast and the trimmings but then couldne't get the fire going properly...some idea that one of the fathers had. They ended up with raw meat and were sick later in the night...

Other scout troops just used to eat instant meals...add to boiling water. Then the kids could play kick the can in the dark as long as they wanted without having to worry about the meal.

I stole cigarettes from the scout master and got caught...stripped of my second class badge and summarily expelled...didn't matter as I became a surfer and didn't have time for the scouts anyway...

[Jeepz]

Tutsi~

Yeah, I used the microwave for a long time, but for some reason have reverted to my stove these days. I occasionally indulge in "Twice Baked" potatoes. Bake in oven. When done scoop the inside out, tuck the potato skins back in the oven (ten minutes) while I give the insides a whirl with some cheese, sour cream, and buttermilk. Maybe a few sliced up green onions (scallions) or even a bit of pressed garlic. Then pull the nice crispy skins out of the oven, refill them with the potato mix and pop back into the oven under the broiler for a couple of minutes to give the top for a bit of light browning on the top. Oh yeah, salt and pepper to taste.

The second trip into the oven really does crisp up the skins and make them nicer, really should be called thrice-baked potatoes.

re: dutch ovens

Good camping dutch ovens have a flat top for holding coals. Oven gets buried in coals, then more coals scooped on top. Need to keep a fire going so you can add coals as they burn out. A little different design from the dutch ovens we normally have in our kitchens. No kitchen is complete without a nice red Le Creuset in the mix.

Jeepz

[ASIC]

The dial (what we call them here in the states) is normally a slip fit with the stem accepting it at almost any position. 

Ha ha ha ha ha! So that's what you call them Where I come from, we call them female genitals. Now, please tell me what that's got to do with the topic: How Do I Bake My "potatoes"

ASIC

[Jeepz]

ASIC~

Your Bad! I start thinking about all those possibilities and I'll end up having to re-regulate my own oven.

Jeepz

[Bozo]

[ASIC]

Rack in the middle, thermometer in the center of the rack.

That post has endless possiblilties... I love cooking!

[Bozo]

[Longsands]

After taking on board a lot of helpful advice, I plumped for a 15 minute boil, then wrapped them up in a heck of a lot of foil, then threw them in the coals, for about 1 hour. I then put them on the grill for about another 30 mins as I cooked the meat.

Ended up with what I thought were quite nice baked potatoes, although they had severely reduced in dimension.

As regards my guests' opinions all I can say is that my dog and I ate a lot of potatoes last night!!

A couple of guests said 'aroi' after a little nibble, then slyly hid them under the salad. Some just didn't like the look of my brown shrivelled tatties and didn't give them a try. The missus ate one and was complimentary so not too disheartened.

I'll be trying again in the near future.

Thanks for all your help.

Now, what was that I just read about female genitals...!!!!!

[Pink Mist]

True. Also whats a piecost?

$2.50 with sauce

[tutsiwarrior]

bronco...what it takes for my banana cream (pie) costs more than that...wouldn't even cover the bar fine...

[tutsiwarrior]

longsands...that was one item that you didn't mention...who was coming to dinner?...Thai or expats? If the former I believe that most of us would have said don't bother with roast ot baked spuds...to exotic for the local palate. It's hard to incorporate chiles and nam plaa into the cooking procedure...

[TizMe]

It's hard to incorporate chiles and nam plaa into the cooking procedure...

After cooking, inject the spud with a mixture of chilli and nam plaa.

[tutsiwarrior]

roast, mashed potatoes with chiles and nam plaa?...turn over rover...we are on to a new page of Thai cuisine...coming to you at BKK roof top restaurants at 500 baht per serving