Patates lemonates

The story

Patates lemonates, lemon potatoes, are a standard of the Greek home oven all year: wedges baked in olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano and a little water until the liquid is absorbed and the edges brown. At Easter they become the usual partner for the lamb. When Penni Pappas described the lamb on the spit for Neos Kosmos, she listed roasted potatoes, tzatziki and garden salads as its traditional accompaniments, and the Greek producer Biologiko Xorio writes that oven-baked or roasted potatoes go with the meat on Easter Sunday. In homes that roast the lamb or goat in the oven instead of on a spit, Greece Index notes, potatoes roast alongside to soak up the drippings, and the meat is seasoned with the same lemon, garlic and oregano. The method is plain, but the order matters. The potatoes first cook in the liquid, which softens them and carries the lemon inside, and only once it is absorbed do the outsides crisp in the oil left behind. Some Greek cooks whisk a teaspoon of semolina into the liquid to help it cling. Allow about half a pound of potatoes per person, and put them in the oven about an hour and a quarter before you plan to sit down.