Tax Bars with a Hidden Sting
Based on:
TypeSide dish
Serves4 people
DateSeptember 16, 2026
Stacked potato bars as a toll gate: neat outside, with a sharp sting inside.
Neatly stacked potato bars with a sharp filling of spicy mustard and pickle: on the plate, you see a toll gate, referencing the scrapped road tax. Tidy on the outside, but a sting within.
Ingredients
- 800 g waxy potatoes
- 2 tbsp coarse mustard
- 4 medium pickles
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp smoked paprika powder
- salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper
- 1 bunch chives
Method
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into batons about 8 cm long and 1.5 cm thick.
- Boil the potato batons for 5 minutes in salted water, drain, and pat dry.
- Mix the olive oil with paprika powder and some salt and pepper.
- Brush the potato batons with the oil mixture.
- Fry the batons in a large frying pan over medium heat until golden brown and cooked through (about 10 minutes).
- Cut the pickles into thin strips.
- Mix the mustard with finely chopped chives.
- On each plate, stack 4 potato batons as a toll gate (two horizontal, two vertical on top).
- Tuck a pickle strip and a dab of mustard-chive mix between the batons, so each bite delivers a spicy surprise.
Serving notes
- Serve with extra mustard on the side for the brave.
- Garnish with extra chives for an official, neat look.