What if I told you these little pieces of heaven were good for your gut health?? It's true! Potatoes, if cooked properly, are full of resistant starches, a prebiotic source, which helps increase short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) levels in the gut. This is important because low levels of SCFA have been linked to dysfunction of the gut and numerous colonic disorders like IBS and colon cancer. Resistant starches are just that, resistant, to digestion, meaning they are not broken down in the small intestine, rather, they are fermented in the colon by the microbiome, producing what is also referred to as prebiotic fiber, or essentially what the bacteria and fungi need in order to thrive. Resistant starch is created by first boiling the potatoes then immediately cooling, a process called retrogradation, allowing the starch to be less digestible. This is also a great way to make my Potato Salad as well!
Be sure to check out my YouTube video below where I demo making my Oven Roasted Smashed Potatoes alongside my Roasted Pork Shoulder!
INGREDIENTS
Approximately 2 - 3 cups potatoes (I used a combination of red and Dutch yellow baby potatoes)
4TBS olive oil
1-2TBS Himalayan sea salt
2-3TBS fresh rosemary, chopped
Preheat oven to 350*F.
Meanwhile, fill large stove top pot with water and bring to boil.
Add potatoes and boil for about 15-20 minutes or until softened.
Immediately place in an ice bath (bowl of ice and cold water) or run under cool water until potatoes chilled.
Dry off potatoes and add them to a mixing bowl, coating with sea salt, rosemary, and oil and combining until well mixed.
Transfer potatoes to a baking sheet and gently press each potato with the palm of your hand until "smashed".
Drizzle potatoes with a little extra oil then roast in oven for about 15-20 minutes or until golden and crisp.
