Potato Soup - Polish Style

A traditional winter soup in its thicker form, but also a summer soup served warm in its lighter form

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Ingredients

30 g	butter
1 clove(s)	garlic, crushed and finely chopped (optional)
1 large	onion, medium diced
150 g	Pinhead oats, also known as nibbed or chopped oats
1	bay leaf, optional
900 g	potatoes, peeled and diced into 1 inch/2-3cm cubes
	water, to cover
600 ml	milk
	salt, to taste
	fresh ground pepper, to taste
	scraping of nutmeg, optional
	parsley or chives, to garnish, chopped, optional
1 tbsp	soured cream per serving, optional

Method

Preparation time: ca. 40 min / Grade of difficulty: easy / Calories per portion: n/a

Pinhead or nibbed oats are quite different from porridge (porage) or breakfast oats. Pinhead oats are the whole grain chopped into 2 or 3 pieces but otherwise unprocessed. Porridge oats are typically rolled whole grains and lightly toasted.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the onion and fry gently until soft and translucent (do not brown). Add garlic if using. Add the pinhead oats and bay leaf (if used) and toss in the butter for 2-3 minutes. Stir often to avoid sticking to the bottom of the pan. Add the potatoes, about half a teaspoon of salt and just cover with water. Raise the heat and bring the potatoes to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer covered until the potatoes are soft. Use a pointed knife to test that they are cooked. Stir every few minutes to avoid the potatoes from sticking or burning.

Add the milk and bring slowly back to a boil. Stir constantly. Add more salt, if needed, and freshly ground pepper. Serve in a deep soup bowl with a scraping of nutmeg, garnish and soured cream as desired.

For the lighter summer version:
Use a medium onion. Reduce the weight of oats to 100g. Use 450g of floury potatoes plus 150g of a salad potato variety (pink fir apple is a good one, when available). Peel the floury potatoes and dice as before. Wash the salad potatoes if necessary, and without peeling, cut into 1 inch/2-3cm length pieces. Smaller salad potatoes should be cut in half and may require a slightly longer cooking time, but will retain their shape. Add only 1/4 to half a teaspoon of salt. Use 400ml milk. Otherwise cook and serve as before. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. Serve warm in a small deep bowl.