Sauté Potatoes Lyonnaise

First thinly peel the potatoes and cut them into even-sized pieces – but not too small.

Put them in a saucepan, cover them with boiling water, add some salt, bring to simmering point and cook for 15 minutes. Then drain them, arrange them on a wooden board and slice them thinly and evenly. For the next stage you need two medium frying pans and a small saucepan. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in the saucepan, add the onion and fry gently.

Now heat 2 tablespoons of oil in each frying pan and when it begins to sizzle, add the potatoes, dividing them between the pans so that they don't overlap. Fry them over a high heat, turning them after 5-7 minutes to cook on the other side until they are golden brown and crisp all over. Then, using a slotted spoon, transfer them to the crumpled paper to drain and scatter on the fried onion. Loosen the top of the pepper mill a little to get a really coarse grind and sprinkle over the potatoes; crush some rock salt between your finger and thumb and sprinkle on.

Lastly pull out the paper from underneath and serve at once – if you delay, the potatoes will go soggy.