Nigel Slater’s recipe for sweet potato and bacon frittata

This is a pancake of sorts and probably what I would prefer on Shrove Tuesday to the usual sweet version with sugar and lemon.

Peel 150g of peeled sweet potato into very small dice, by which I mean cubes measuring roughly 5mm. There is no need to be too pedantic about this, but they should be of similar size, so they cook evenly. Finely dice 50g of smoked pancetta or bacon. Melt a thick slice (about 25g) of butter in a small, shallow-sided pan, about 18cm in diameter. Fry the pancetta in the pan for a couple of minutes, then keeping the heat quite low, add the sweet potatoes and cook for 7-10 minutes, until golden.

Preheat an overhead (oven) grill. Peel and finely dice 1 large banana shallot, then add it to the potato and continue cooking until it has softened – about 3-4 minutes. Chop a handful of parsley or coriander leaves and stir them in. Beat 2 large eggs, lightly seasoned with salt and black pepper, then pour it over the potato and shallot. Cook for about 3 minutes until the egg puffs up around the edges, then finish cooking under a hot grill, leaving the egg at the centre of the tortilla slightly liquid. Makes 1 frittata, enough for 1

Make this a vegetarian supper, without the pancetta if you wish. You could introduce a finely chopped mild chilli with the shallot, or a sprinkling of dried chilli flakes.

Keep the potato cubes on the small side, no larger than 1cm or the frittata will fall apart. Not that a tender, crumbly frittata is a bad thing, it just makes it tricky to transfer to a plate.

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