MasterChef at Home: How to Make Traditional Scottish Potato Scones in 30 Minutes

Following her time on MasterChef Australia this season, Ali Stoner has shared her favourite quick and easy recipe with Lifehacker Australia: herbed potato scones.

Stoner explained over email that this recipe is for her “take on the traditional Scottish potato scone.”

“They are so versatile, and these are like a little Scottish riff on a blini. You can make them larger [and] add any herbs and spices – then they become adaptable in many different cuisines! Tasty tacos, smashing souvlakis and switch out the toast for brilliant breakfasts. They [the scones] can also be fried for an extra indulgence – making a tasty change to a Mexican tostada,” she said.

If you’d like to try this potato scones recipe at home, here’s a complete guide.

MasterChef at Home: Ali Stoner’s herbed potato scones

Serves 4-8 people | Cook time: Approx 30 minutes

What you’ll need for potato scones:

• 4 baking potatoes (I like the red ones)
• 1.5 cups of self-raising flour
• 1tsp salt
• 20g butter
• 3 handfuls fresh herbs (like parsley, dill, and coriander)

Equipment

• Potato ricer
• Frying pan
• Microwave

Directions for potato scones:

1. Prick the potatoes all over and microwave for 4 mins. Turn them over and cook again for 4 minutes. Turn again and cook for 2 minutes. Continue this process adjusting the time till they are cooked.
2. Prepare your herbs by washing and chopping very finely. Take the potatoes while warm, cut in half and push through a potato ricer straight onto your work surface – no need to remove skin. If you don’t have a ricer, just remove skin and mash thoroughly. Add the salt, butter and herbs to your potatoes then tip on a cup of the self-raising flour. Roughly combine with your fingers then start gently working into a dough till it comes together, adding a little more flour as required.
   Hot tip: It’s super important not to overwork this dough, just keep bringing it gently together till it forms a cohesive ball.
3. Roll gently into a log approximately 7cm diameter. Then with a sharp knife cut into discs about 1cm wide. The discs will squash up as the dough is warm and soft, so take each one, roll gently into a ball on a floured work too and press into a flat disc with your palm forming little pancakes.
4. Heat your frying pan and dry fry the pancakes till golden patches appear on each side. Set aside to cool a little while you prepare your toppings. They are best served a little warm, but you can pre-make them and warm gently in an oven at 160c before serving.
5. You can top these with anything. I [Stoner] have done three easy toppings with simple shop-bought ingredients and named them after the MasterChef judges.

Topping options for your potato scones:

‘The Jock’: Smoked salmon, creme fraiche, finger lime and dill.

‘The Andy’: Lemon zest and mascarpone, anchovy fillet, paprika and lemon flesh.

‘The Mel’: Lime, miso, Avo smash, chilli oil and coriander.

If you’re after more MasterChef recipes to try after these potato scones, check out this one-pot braised potato dish or fried chicken next.