“Myparentsweren’tadventurouscooks,sowealways
ateverytraditionalfoodgrowingupinFinland.We’d
havefish– oftenherring,sardines,salmon,troutor
pike– andthefishwasalwaysservedwithpotatoes
ontheside.PotatoesareFinland’sideaofbreakfast,
lunchanddinner.
“Thesimpleflavoursofmychildhoodreallyinfluenced
CafePaci’spotatodumplingswithXOtrout.Whenyou
getridoftheword‘dumpling’and‘XO’,it’sreallyjust
potatoandtrout.Andthat’swhatwe’dhavewhen
Dadgothomefromworkat5.30pm– perhapsbaked,
andagain,alwayswithboiledpotatoes.Myparents
aresalt-and-pepperpeople,andwouldn’tevenknow
whatXOsauceis.I rememberthefirsttimetheyheard
aboutsoysauceandbroughtit intothehouse.They
weredippingsausagesintoit likeit wasa mustard
ortomatosauce,andthenit satinthefridgefor 12
years!I stillfindit verycomfortingtoeatsuper-simple,
super-Finnishflavours.It tasteslikehometome.
“WhenI wasgettingreadytoopenCafePaci,I
thoughtXOsaucewastoopopulartoputonthemenu.
ButI atedinneratMomofukuSeiobo,maybea year
ago,andchefPaulCarmichaelhada dishthathadan
XOmadefromsaltcod.It reallyopenedmyeyestothe
factyoudon’talwaysneedtouseprawns,scallopsor
expensivehamstomakea deliciousXO.Fromthere,
I knewI wantedtocreateanXOdishthatwasnottoo
Asianorspicya flavour;somethingthatwasverysubtle
andmoreaboutaromaticsthanheat.A nodtothat
traditionalFinnishfishandpotatocombinationthat
ourfamilylovessomuch.
“InFinland,makingdumplingsis oftenaboutmaking
useofleftovers.They’remadewitheverydayfood
likepotatoes,oroldbreadsoakedinmilk.It’snothing
luxurious,butit’ssuper-tasty.Andevenmoresowhen
mymumstrainsoffyesterday’ssoupandusesthat
brothtopoachthedumplingsin.Formyversion,
insteadofrelyingonflourandegglikeyouwouldif
youweremakinggnocchi,weusea lotmorepotato
starch,whichmakesthedumplingsmuchlighterand
fluffier.Youdon’thavetogototheeffortofmaking
thedumplingsif youdon’twantto.Youcouldjust
warmleftoverboiledpotatoesinthepanandusethe
XOasa dressing.ButI liketheideaofhavingatleast
sixfriendsover,andgettingeveryoneinvolvedovera
bottleortwoofwine.Whenyoumakefoodtogether,
you appreciate it so much more when you eat it.”
PasiPetänen
Cafe Paci, Sydney, NSWGOURMET TRAVELLER 91PotatodumplingswithXOtrout
SERVES 6-8 // PREP TIME 30 MINS // COOK 1 HR 10 MINS (PLUS CURING)1 kgDutchcreampotatoes
(about5 potatoes;
eveninsize),scrubbed
110 gm(3/4cup)baker’sflour,
plusextrafordusting
100 gm(2/3cup)potato flour
1 eggyolk
XOTROUT
400 gmpieceskinlessocean
trout,pin-boned,cutinto
1cmdice
50 mlfishsauce(ortotaste)
2 tspsweetpaprika
80 gmunsaltedbutter
80 ml(⅓cup)vegetableoil
150 gmgoldenshallots(about
4 shallots),finelychopped
6 garliccloves,coarsely
chopped
3 longredchillies,seeds
removed,finelychopped
150 mlShaoxingwine
2 tspbrownsugar(ortotaste)
2 tsplightsoysauce
(ortotaste)
1 tspoystersauce(ortotaste)1 ForXOtrout,placetrout
ina bowl,addfishsauceto
taste,tosstocoatandset
asidetocure(30minutes).
Rinsetroutandpatdrywith
papertowel.Heata frying
pan over low heat, add troutandcook,stirringcontinuously
witha woodenspoonand
pressingtroutslightly,until
troutbreaksdownintotrout
“floss”(30minutes).Stirthrough
paprika,thentransfertopaper
toweltodrain.
2 Wipepanclean,addbutter,
oilandtrouttopanovermedium
heatandcookuntilbutter
startstofoam(4-5minutes).
Addshallot,garlicandchillies,
reduceheattolowandcook,
stirringcontinuously,untiltrout
is flakyandcrisp(12-15minutes).
Addwineandcookuntilslightly
reduced(10-12minutes).Remove
fromheat,seasonwithsugar,
soysauce,oystersauceand
blackpeppertotaste.XO
troutwillkeeprefrigerated
forupto1 week.
3 Meanwhile,cookpotatoes
ina largesaucepanofboiling
saltedwateruntiltender
whenpiercedwitha knife
(45minutes).Drainandset
aside.Whencoolenoughto
handle,peelandputthrough
a mouliorpotatoricer.Working
veryquickly,foldfloursand
1 tspsaltflakesintopotato,
mixingquicklywitha spatula
tocombine,thenaddegg
yolkandmixquicklyagain.
4 Placedoughona lightly
flouredsurface,rollinto
1cm-thicklogs,thencut
into1cmdumplings.Transfer
dumplingstoa traydusted
withextraflourandsetaside.
Dumplingswillkeepfrozen
forupto1 month.
5 Cookdumplings,in
batches,ina largesaucepan
ofboilingsaltedwateruntil
theyfloat(2minutes).
6 Draindumplings,then
addtoXOtrout,tossto
combine and serve.➤