Before we begin, let’s be clear about one thing: Potatoes in any form are delicious. Mashed, fried, baked, roasted—there’s no bad way to eat these splendid spuds. But there is a way that emphasizes the potato’s best features (the A-line skirt of cooking, if you will).
When done right, potatoes should be soft and fluffy on the inside, and delightfully crispy on the outside. And if they happen to be vehicles for tasty toppings like garlic, cheese, herbs and bacon, it doesn’t get much better than that, does it?
This Swedish method of making potatoes covers all of the above… and then some. Introducing Hasselback potatoes. You may have heard of this cooking technique that transforms the humble vegetable into an accordion-like shape, but what you probably don’t know is that it comes from Scandinavia; specifically, chef Leif Ellison, who came up with the dish in 1953 while working at Hasselbacken restaurant in Stockholm. Tusen tack, Leif. (That’s “a thousand thanks” in Swedish.)
