POTATO FLAKES AND GREEN BEANS CLEVER RECIPE FOR QUICK MEATLOAF
Do we have potato flakes? If the answer is yes, it doesn’t mean we necessarily have to make a purée or at least not just that.
This preparation where potatoes are dried and ground is not only easily available in every supermarket and lasts a long time but most importantly is extremely versatile, easy to use, and economical. You can easily create the POTATO GATEAU or the POTATO FLAN with SPECK and CHEESE or the tasty POTATO MEATBALLS with MORTADELLA.
Today I’ll show you how to create a vegetable meatloaf with green beans from a simple bag of potato flakes, very similar to the GREEN BEAN AND POTATO MEATLOAF, typical of the Ligurian tradition with few and simple moves and without having to boil the potatoes.
A simple vegetarian dish to make, balanced in flavors and textures, fragrant and with an intense but delicate taste at the same time that can be served warm or at room temperature.
To prepare the Meatloaf with Potato Flakes and Green Beans you will need few and simple ingredients: a bag of instant potato flakes, eggs, parmesan, ricotta, marjoram, green beans (even canned), and a pinch of salt.
The result will be a soft potato flan inside with a crunchy and “sandy” crust that everyone will like. Additionally, with potato flakes, recipes are all versatile that you can adapt to your tastes.
You can enrich the filling with spinach or replace the green beans with zucchini or incorporate cured meats like mortadella or cooked ham into the dough: a clever recipe with potato flakes that will not disappoint you.
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 157.33 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 12.45 (g) of which sugars 3.03 (g)
- Proteins 8.57 (g)
- Fat 8.37 (g) of which saturated 4.15 (g)of which unsaturated 2.48 (g)
- Fibers 1.26 (g)
- Sodium 168.62 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 50 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE THE MEATLOAF WITH POTATO FLAKES
- 1 packet potato flakes (75 g)
- 1 1/4 cups milk (or water see NOTES)
- 3 eggs (medium size)
- 2 tablespoons grated parmesan
- 9 oz ricotta
- 1 package green beans (canned 7 oz drained)
- 1/2 shallot
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- to taste fine salt
- 1 pinch marjoram
- breadcrumbs (to sprinkle the pan and the meatloaf)
Tools
- Bowl
- Spoon
- Pan
- Baking dish
POTATO FLAKES CLEVER RECIPE FOR GREEN BEAN MEATLOAF
In a large bowl pour the instant potato flakes, 1 pinch of salt, the grated parmesan, the eggs, the marjoram and the warm milk and start mixing with a spoon until you get a homogeneous mixture. Add the ricotta and incorporate. Set aside the mixture.
In a large pan pour a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and sauté ½ thinly sliced shallot. Add the canned green beans drained from their preservation liquid, season with salt and let flavor for a couple of minutes. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
In the bowl with the potato flakes mixture pour the green beans with their cooking base and mix with a spoon to fully combine. Lightly grease a baking dish, sprinkle with breadcrumbs and pour the potato flakes and green beans mixture. Level with a spatula without pressing too much. Create the typical lines of the meatloaf with the tines of a fork, sprinkle again with breadcrumbs and add a drizzle of oil on the surface.
Bake at 392 degrees Fahrenheit in a static oven for 30-35 minutes. Cooking times vary depending on the oven, the size of the baking dish and consequently the thickness of the meatloaf. It should become slightly golden on the surface. Remove from oven and serve warm or at room temperature.
STORAGE
The meatloaf with potato flakes can be prepared in advance in the morning for the evening. If consumed within the day it can be kept at room temperature. If there’s any leftover, put it in a closed container and store it in the fridge for up to 2 days. When you want to eat it again, just bring it back to room temperature or if you prefer it warm, heat it for 1 minute in the microwave or oven.
NOTES AND TIPS
INSTANT POTATO FLAKES: in the market, there are different types of instant potato flakes, choose only those labeled “with potato flakes” because the preparations with potato powder do not produce the same result and might be too “mushy”.
MILK: The amount of milk is indicative because not all instant potato flakes preparations have the same liquid absorption capacity. After you have prepared the mixture for the meatloaf and before adding the green beans, check that the consistency of the mixture is compact but not too dry, it should be soft and a little firmer than purée. If it’s too dry, add a little milk, if it’s too liquid, add 1 tablespoon of potato flakes or 1 teaspoon of breadcrumbs.
RICOTTA: Ricotta gives the meatloaf flavor and softness, I recommend not to eliminate it from the recipe’s ingredients.
GRATED CHEESE: For a stronger flavor, you can use grated pecorino cheese instead of parmesan.
GREEN BEANS: Since this recipe is designed to shorten the preparation time of the meatloaf as much as possible, I used canned green beans. Nothing prevents you from replacing them with frozen green beans, which must be boiled first, but also fresh green beans which in this case must be cleaned and boiled in slightly salted water before being flavored in the pan with oil and shallot.
MARJORAM: In the Ligurian green bean and potato meatloaf recipe, this aromatic herb is always present, it gives fragrance and flavor to the recipe. You can use it fresh or dried.
VARIATIONS ON THE POTATO FLAKES AND GREEN BEANS RECIPE
GREEN BEANS: Instead of green beans, you can use other vegetables such as spinach, previously blanched and flavored in a pan with oil, salt, and a pinch of pepper, or zucchini but also carrots or broccoli.
RICH MEATLOAF: If you want to make your potato flakes and green beans meatloaf even richer, you can add cured meats like mortadella or cooked ham cut into cubes or cheeses like mild provola or melting cheeses also cut into cubes.
CRUNCHY MEATLOAF: If you want an even tastier and crunchier meatloaf crust before baking, sprinkle with a mix of breadcrumbs and parmesan. The cheese will melt and give your meatloaf an even tastier taste and form a crunchy, golden layer on the surface.
LACTOSE-FREE MEATLOAF RECIPE: For a completely lactose-free version, you can replace cow’s milk with the same amount of water and use lactose-free ricotta, while grated parmesan is normally tolerated by those who cannot consume lactose, but you can omit it if you prefer.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
How are they made, what are potato flakes?
Potato flakes are obtained by air drying and grinding fresh potatoes (without the peel). The specific processing they undergo significantly improves their preservation and ease of use.
