Braised potatoes

Sometime ago I discovered Molly Stevens' All about braising, a lovely companion to our then new dutch oven. And while I went through it quite thoroughly, looking for more and more ways of having things cook in a pot for over two hours at low heat, I somehow missed what could be the One Way of making potatoes.

The idea is so simple. Just find some thin-skinned new potatoes. Wash thoroughly, place in dutch oven and add water (or broth, though do that at your own risk) and some wine to cover half of the potatoes. Add salt and pepper, some herbs, some fat, and some bruised garlic. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a gentle simmer, and cook, covered, for about 40 minutes (Molly Stevens says says 20, but that has never worked for me), turning once with a spoon midway through. Remove lid, bring heat to medium-high, and let the liquid evaporate, shaking the pot a few times to let the braised garlic coat the potatoes.

The original recipe has bay leaves for the herbs and olive oil for the fat. I like combining thyme and rosemary, and combining butter and olive oil. But that's me. Sage and duck-fat might work wonderfully for all I know.

(Disclaimer: The potatoes in the picture were never braised. The dutch oven was busy with a lamb shoulder, so we baked them.)