This recipe really is just a few ingredients for the mashed potatoes.  What separates the home chef from the pro though is the order and techniques you use to make the mashed potato base.  First, you have to start with Yukon gold potatoes; they create the most aesthetically pleasing with their yellow color and slightly sweet taste.  They also fluff up beautifully.  Second, you have to use a ricer to make the potatoes, as a hand mixer will only lead to glue-y potato heartbreak.  And third, the order in which you add the ingredients to the pot

This recipe really is just a few ingredients for the mashed potatoes.  What separates the home chef from the pro though is the order and techniques you use to make the mashed potato base.  First, you have to start with Yukon gold potatoes; they create the most aesthetically pleasing with their yellow color and slightly sweet taste.  They also fluff up beautifully.  Second, you have to use a ricer to make the potatoes, as a hand mixer will only lead to glue-y potato heartbreak.  And third, the order in which you add the ingredients to the potatoes will make or break your dish.  

In a Dutch oven or large pot, fill up to ¾ of cold water and 6 tablespoons, or enough salt to make the water salty like the sea.  Peel your potatoes and drop directly into the cold water.  Some people dice the potatoes to get more surface area of the spud exposed to the water and salt, but we find it an unnecessary step and still churn out a perfect mash.  Once all the potatoes are peeled, bring the pot to the oven and bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer boil for about 25 minutes until the potatoes are super tender.  Drain well; the steam will also help evaporate the excess liquid.  In your Dutch oven, place about 3 tablespoons of the butter to coat the bottom so the potatoes won’t stick, and add the drained, steaming hot potatoes immediately back in  your Dutch oven. Rice all the potatoes into the Dutch oven then add the butter, about 2 tablespoons at a time.  Your potatoes must be steaming hot as they absorb the fat.  On the stovetop, warm the whole milk and about 2 ½ to 3 tablespoons of salt depending on taste and stir well.  Once all the butter has been gently worked into the potatoes with a spatula, return the potatoes to the stove, and add about ½ cup of the warm liquid at a time, while heating over low fire until all the liquid is absorbed.  If you want a runnier potato, especially for this dish, add a little more liquid along the way.  Liquid must be warmed though and if you salt properly, you won’t need to add any more salt to the potatoes once cooked.  Also,  you can add cream or sour cream to the recipe for a richer potato, but we find that the whole milk does the trick.  

Spoon the potatoes into 4 shallow mounds on a presentation platter, or you can make individual servings.  Top the first mound with sour cream and snipped chives, the second with goat cheese and a clove of the roasted garlic, garnished with parsley, the third mound with the king crab and a garnish slice of Meyer lemon and as the finale, the last mound with sour cream and a big dollop of Black River caviar.  We love this new discovery of caviar because it’s made in Uruguay, and if caviar could be organic, this is what it would taste like.  The caviar is clean, not oily, and has enough complexity, nuttiness and salt, even at their basic tier.  Serve immediately, either as a side dish or as an appetizer course.