Easy Japanese Grilled Potatoes

Are you still garnishing your deluxe grilled meats with boring old baked potatoes? Add a little zing to your grilled spuds with this Japanese themed recipe. This recipe is quick (30 minutes), easy and very flexible. I originally picked up this recipe online and have been refining it for years. It is similar in many ways to this instructable.

The only two ingredients that are essential are potatoes and mayo; everything else is negotiable. If you want to substitute the soy sauce, then you'll want to add some salt.

1. 4 potatoes (long white in this case).
2. 1/2 cup of mayonaise (lowfat would defeat the purpose...)
3. 2 tablespoons of soy sauce (Japsnese brands are worth the extra cost)
4. 1 teaspoon of sesame oil
5. 1 teaspoon of wasabi (less if you're not sure what you're getting into)
6. 1 teaspoon of hot sauce (Sriracha in this case)

Most of these ingredients have a VERY strong taste. If you test the flavor before cooking, you may find it too punchy; but don't worry, the grilling brings it down a notch. 

Scrub your potatoes under running water and cut out any gnarly bits. Stab each potato with a fork about four times and stick them on a microwave-safe plate. Stick the plate in the microwave for about one minute per potato plus two minute: in this case 4 + 2 = 6 minutes. Cooking times will vary depending on the wattage of you microwave and the size of the potatoes. The goal is NOT to cook the potato thoroughly, but to soften it a bit.

Pull the potatoes out and let them cool while you light your BBQ and prepare the sauce.

Combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Carefully cut the potatoes along the long axis to make three or four big slabs (up to half an inch). You can use a fork to hold the potatoes and save your fingers from the steaming hot potatoes. You can push the slabs directly in the sauce.

Once you grill has reached 350°F, it is time to get you hands dirty... Carefully coat each potato slab with the sauce by dipping and squeegeeing off any excess sauce with your hand. Just lay the slabs on the grill; no need to oil the grill first, the mayo will keep the potatoes from clinging.

7 to 9 minutes per side should make nice grill marks and a golden blistered finish.

Feel free to share your adaptations in the comments below.