Bacon or gammon in a garlic tomato sauce topped with potato wedges and mozzarella.
Serves four (but easy to scale up and down).
Cut four large
potatoes (or unsuprisingly more if they are smaller) into wedges (I cut each into eight: cut longways in half, then half and half again. Put in an oven tin, drizzle over a couple of teaspoons of
oil then rub all the potato slices together to coat. Spread them in one layer and put them in the oven (about 200c/GM6) for about 45 mins.
I usually leave them for about half an hour, then check them and begin making the next bit. If they aren't yet cooked through (stab a thick one to make sure it's soft) and starting to go a bit crispy yet (depends on how thick the slices are and how packed the tin is), you might need to leave them in a bit longer, or turn the oven up a bit.
(If you are using leftover cooked gammon or bacon, make the sauce and then add it)
Cook the
bacon or
gammon chopped into small bite-size pieces for a couple of minutes in a pan. (You probably won't need to use any oil, as the meat will release some fat if you start cooking it gently.) You can use sliced bacon, chopped up bacon or gammon steak, lardons et cetera. I usually find cutting a bacon or gammon joint up is the best value and freeze the rest for another meal. How much is up to you, a pound of meat (450-500g) is
more than enough for four, and less wouldn't seem mean in this dish. Especially if I am using chunky pieces from a joint, I sometimes take the meat out of the pan and spread over the oven dish I will be baking it in and pop it in the oven while I make the sauce to give them a roasted taste and texture.
Chop a couple of
onions (I usually chop one fine to thicken the sauce and one a bit chunkier) and soften them in the pan for a couple of minutes with some crushed
garlic (up to you how garlic-y you like it, I usually use about half a bulb).
Then add a
tin of tomatoes, some
black pepper, a big pinch of
oregano and a squirt of
tomato purée (2-3 tsps). Bring it to the boil and let it simmer for a few minutes so it is thick and not runny.
Mix the sauce and meat and spread evenly over an oven dish. Put the lightly crispy wedges over to cover and then thin pieces of
mozzarella here and there over the potatoes.
Put back into the oven for about ten minutes for the mozzarella to melt and bubble.
You might also like:
Potato and Bacon Soup - this is an idea for any unused meat
Other meals with mozzarella
Beef in Beer
Chicken and Bacon Casserole
Chilli Beef Stew
Stuffed Peppers
For more ideas, follow me on twitter @Tyne_Teas
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