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Homemade Potato Salads
Faye Levy
Potato salads are one of the most popular items on summertime picnic tables. Supermarkets sell them by the bucket but if you are nutrition conscious, you might find that the store-bought varieties often have too much sugar, vinegar, salt or fat. With homemade potato salad, you have control over the taste and you can make it much more wholesome.
The most familiar potato salad is heavily coated with mayonnaise. Yet there is another kind of potato salad, popular in Mediterranean lands, which features potatoes dressed with vinaigrette. When made with flavorful oil, these salads can be just as delicious as old-fashioned mayonnaise-dressed ones. A case in point is the colorful Lebanese potato salad with tomatoes, mint and green onions (see recipe below), or the French potato salad with watercress or other fresh herbs with a touch of white wine.
Vinaigrette is lighter-textured and lower in fat and cholesterol than mayonnaise. Besides, it's more fluid, and therefore you need much less sauce to moisten the potatoes. By choosing buttery tasting Yukon Gold or other flavorful, good quality yellow-, white- or red-skinned potatoes, you can be frugal with the amount of dressing you add.
Basic potato salad is usually accented with onions. You can use yellow onions but red, sweet or green onions make a finer salad. Parsley adds a fresh herbaceous touch, and other herbs like chives, mint, cilantro, tarragon and basil give the salads a lively flavor.
Colorful cooked vegetables like beets, carrots or peas are a welcome addition, contributing to the salad’s taste, appearance and nutrition; add all three, and you have a traditional Russian potato salad. Zesty condiments such as pickled cucumbers, capers, black or green olives or chopped anchovies ensure that the salad won't be bland.
For easy preparation and good flavor, cook the potatoes in their skins and peel them after cooking; or leave the peel on if it is tender, to benefit from its nutrients. To speed up the cooking, cut large potatoes in half. Be sure the potatoes are cooked just right by checking them with a knife. Undercooked potatoes do not taste good; but overcooked spuds fall apart when cut and when tossed with the dressing.
You can make the vinaigrette dressing according to the classic French proportions of three tablespoons oil for every tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice. For a lower-fat version, use only two tablespoons of oil and, if the dressing tastes too sharp, add a teaspoon or two of water. Vary the flavors by using walnut oil or extra virgin olive oil and tarragon vinegar or other herb vinegars.
A useful French trick for adding flavor to potato salads is to briefly marinate the cooked potatoes while they are still warm, either in a mixture of white wine and a little oil, or in part of the vinaigrette dressing.
Serving temperature makes a difference in the quality of your potato salads. Most people serve them cold. However, very cold dressing usually congeals and makes the salad appear dry. If you taste the salad straight from the refrigerator, you might think it needs moistening and you'll be tempted to add more dressing. The salad tastes best if you let it stand at room temperature for about fifteen minutes before serving. Even better, serve it while it’s still lukewarm, so the potatoes have that delicious, fresh-cooked flavor.
Faye Levy is the author of Healthy Cooking for the Jewish Home (Morrow), 1,000 Jewish Recipes (Wiley) and Jewish Cooking For Dummies (Wiley).
PROVENCAL POTATO, GREEN BEAN AND RED PEPPER SALAD
This colorful appetizer has been popular in my cooking classes on summer salads. In the French manner, the potatoes are tossed with a simple white wine marinade immediately after cooking because they absorb seasonings best when they are still warm. You can serve the vegetables mixed together, or in three mounds as a deconstructed salad, the way the French serve crudités.
1 1/2 pounds red-skinned potatoes, scrubbed
2 tablespoons dry white wine
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3/4 pound green beans, ends removed, cut in 2-inch pieces
1 tablespoon strained fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (optional)
2 red bell peppers, grilled and peeled (see Note below), cut in thin strips
2 green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Put potatoes in large saucepan, cover with water by about 1/2 inch and add salt. Bring to boil. Cover and simmer over low heat about 25 minutes or until tender enough so that largest potato falls from knife when lifted; check by cutting largest potato at widest point. Drain potatoes in colander and peel while hot, with the aid of a paring knife. Cut potatoes in medium dice (about 1/2-inch).
Put potatoes in large bowl. Combine wine, 1 tablespoon oil, salt and pepper in small bowl and whisk until blended. Pour over potatoes. Toss or fold gently to mix thoroughly. Cool slightly so potatoes are still warm; or cool to room temperature.
Cook beans in a saucepan boiling salted water about 7 minutes or until just tender but still crisp. Drain, rinse with cold water until cool and drain well.
Make dressing: In a cup whisk remaining 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons oil with lemon juice and 1 teaspoon water. Add thyme and a pinch of salt and pepper.
Cut roasted peppers in strips and transfer to a bowl. Add 1 teaspoon dressing. Toss 2 tablespoons dressing with potatoes and add green onions and parsley.
Just before serving, add 2 teaspoons dressing to beans. Taste each mixture for seasoning. Serve vegetables side by side or lightly mixed, at room temperature.
Makes 4 servings.
Note: To roast and peel sweet red peppers:
Preheat broiler with rack 2 to 4 inches from heat source, or far enough so peppers just fit; or heat grill. Broil peppers, turning every few minutes with tongs, about 15 minutes, or until their skins are blistered and charred; do not let them burn. Put them in a plastic bag, close bag and let stand for 10 minutes. Peel using paring knife. Halve peppers; be careful because they may have hot juice inside. Discard seeds and ribs, and pat dry. Do not rinse.
LEBANESE POTATO SALAD WITH TOMATOES AND MINT
Fresh mint and green onions give this refreshing salad a lively flavor, and it needs only a small amount of the zesty lemon juice and olive oil dressing.
2 pounds boiling potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled
salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons strained fresh lemon juice
cayenne pepper to taste
1 tablespoon water
2 to 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
3 or 4 plum tomatoes, cut in small dice
Put potatoes in large saucepan, cover with water by about 1/2 inch and add salt. Bring to boil. Cover and simmer over low heat about 25 minutes, or until a knife can pierce center of largest potato easily and potato falls from knife when lifted.
Meanwhile prepare dressing: In a bowl large enough to contain potatoes, whisk lemon juice with a pinch of salt, pepper, cayenne pepper and water. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and whisk again.
Drain potatoes, rinse briefly and leave just until cool enough to handle. Peel them and cut in 1-inch dice. Add to bowl. Fold gently but thoroughly with dressing. Let cool. Fold in mint, parsley, and green onions. Taste and adjust seasoning; add another tablespoon oil if desired. Gently fold in tomatoes. Serve at room temperature.
Makes 4 servings.
LOW-FAT POTATO SALAD WITH CREAMY CUMIN DRESSING
This Indian-inspired yogurt dressing has a touch of ground cumin, which lends a subtle flavor. For garnish, the light, refreshing potato and green pea medley is sprinkle with toasted whole cumin seeds. It makes a good accompaniment for grilled fish.
2 pounds red-skinned potatoes of uniform size, scrubbed but not peeled
1 cup cooked peas
1 cup low-fat or non-fat plain yogurt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh coriander (cilantro)
1 small green onion, green and white parts, chopped
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
Put potatoes in large saucepan, cover with water by about 1/2 inch and add a pinch of salt. Bring to boil. Cover and simmer over low heat about 25 minutes or until tender enough so that knife pierces center of largest potato easily; do not overcook, or potatoes will fall apart when cut.
Drain potatoes in colander and peel while warm. Cut in medium dice. Put potatoes in a large bowl. Let cool to room temperature
Mix yogurt with paprika, ground cumin, cayenne pepper, coriander and salt. Pour over potatoes. Fold gently to mix, separating any potato pieces that are stuck together. Fold in green onion and peas. Taste and adjust seasoning. Cover and refrigerate for 1 or 2 hours. Remove from refrigerator about 30 minutes before serving.
Toast cumin seeds in a small heavy skillet over medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring often; be careful not to let them burn. Just before serving, sprinkle toasted cumin seeds over salad.
Makes 4 servings.
FRENCH POTATO SALAD WITH WATERCRESS
A generous amount of watercress lends a lively accent to this salad. Buy very fresh watercress and use it within a day or two so its color remains bright green. For a variation popular in France's Perigord region, make the vinaigrette with walnut oil and substitute 2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon for the watercress.
2 tablespoons dry white wine
4 to 5 tablespoons canola oil or extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 pounds Yukon Gold or red-skinned potatoes of uniform size, scrubbed but not peeled
2 tablespoons minced red onion
1 1/2 tablespoons white wine vinegar or herb vinegar
2 teaspoons water
1 1/3 cups snipped watercress leaves
For marinade: Combine wine, 1 tablespoon oil, and a pinch of salt and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk to blend.
Put potatoes in large saucepan, cover with water by about 1/2 inch and add salt. Bring to boil. Cover and simmer over low heat about 25 minutes, or until a knife can pierce center of largest potato easily and potato falls from knife when lifted.
Drain potatoes in colander, rinse briefly and leave just until cool enough to handle. Peel them while still warm. Using thin-bladed knife, halve potatoes lengthwise, put them cut side downward, halve again lengthwise and quickly cut them in 3/8-inch crosswise slices; they will be in medium dice.
Put potatoes in large bowl. Whisk marinade and pour it over potatoes. Toss or fold gently to mix thoroughly. Cool to room temperature. Fold in red onion.
For vinaigrette: Whisk vinegar with salt, pepper and water in a medium bowl. Whisk in 3 tablespoons oil. Taste and adjust seasoning. Fold enough vinaigrette into salad to moisten it.
Just before serving, fold in watercress. Taste and adjust seasoning; add remaining tablespoon oil if desired. Serve salad at room temperature.
Makes 4 servings.
