- Hey, guys, summertime is filled with lots of barbecues
and any time you have a barbecue,
you're gonna need a potato salad
but I also know that potato salad lovers
fall into two camps.
One camp loves the mayonnaise potato salad
and the other one not so much.
So I wanted to share with you
two potato salads you can make, one with a vinaigrette
and one with a classic mayonnaise dressing.
Let me show you how to make 'em.
Okay, so first up, let's start with the classics.
So I'm gonna show you how to make my favorite
American style potato salad
which is the kinda salad that I grew up with as a kid.
So we are gonna begin with two and a half pounds of potatoes
and I really like to use the Yukon Gold potatoes
'cause they have a really nice buttery flavor to them
and will hold their shape a bit better when you boil them
and then when they're cool enough to handle,
you can cut them into quarters and pop them in a bowl
and then in a small bowl
we're gonna mix together the dressing.
So I like to use a combination of a third of a cup
of mayonnaise and a third of a cup of sour cream.
That way you get kind of the silky smooth texture
of the mayonnaise
and a little bit of bite from the sour cream
and I find that it's not as heavy that way
and then we're also gonna add
two teaspoons of Dijon mustard, a half a teaspoon of salt
and a half a teaspoon of celery seed,
a tablespoon of chopped parsley,
a quarter cup of diced red onion
and you can mix that all up
just until you get a nice dressing
and then you wanna pour this over your potatoes
and mix it up and I like to transfer it
into the serving bowl that I'm gonna serve it in
and then top with some freshly sliced scallions
and then if you really wanna go for broke,
you could top this with some crumbled bacon
which makes quite a nice finish
to this classic potato salad.
Okay, so now moving on to something a bit more gourmet,
what I like to call my French style potato salad
because we are going to be working with French green beans
and a classic French vinaigrette.
Now, you can use the same potatoes for this recipe
although when they're in season
and for some reason I'm having a hard time finding them now,
fingerling potatoes are really great
because they're long and slender
and you just can cut them in half
and they look really elegant
but you can also use the Yukon Gold potatoes for this recipe
and you can just cut them in half
and then cut them in quarters to get the same effect.
So we're gonna do that today.
So after you cut your potatoes, just pat them dry
and then toss them in a bowl with some olive oil,
a little salt and pepper to taste
and a good pinch of Herbs de Provence
then you're gonna transfer them
on a rimmed line cookie sheet
and just put them cut side down so they all lay flat
and then we're gonna roast these at 400 degrees
for about 25 to 30 minutes
just until they're golden brown and fork tender
then we are gonna be using some French style green beans
which sometimes are also labeled haricots verts.
You'll see that as well in the grocery store.
They're the thin green beans
that work really well in a salad like this.
We're gonna put those in a pot of boiling water.
Just dunk them in for a minute or two and then pull them out
and transfer them to the ice water.
This will just shock them and stop the cooking
and also preserve their nice green color
then once they're cooled down,
you can pat them dry and set them aside
then for the dressing, in a small bowl,
we're gonna add a teaspoon of Dijon mustard,
a teaspoon of whole grain mustard.
I like to mix the two mustards
because you get a nice graininess with the whole grain
and it just adds a nice texture
and it looks pretty on the potato as well.
A tablespoon of white wine vinegar
and then you wanna mix that up
just until all of that's combined
and then you wanna slowly add in
five tablespoons of grape seed oil
and you'll see a beautiful dressing begin to form
and then you're also gonna add a teaspoon of minced chives
and I also like to add a tablespoon of fresh tarragon
which gives you that really beautiful
sort of anise flavor in the background
and you can mix that all up
then you're gonna place your potatoes and your green beans
in a large bowl and if you wanted to,
you could also add some minced shallot.
That would also be a nice thing to add
and then pour your dressing on top and give it a toss.
I also find sometimes if I have chives
growing in the garden,
they make those beautiful purple chive blossoms
which are perfectly edible.
So I'll go in there and grab some of those chive blossoms
and put those on top as well.
That looks really pretty.
And then to pair with these potato salads,
I highly recommend my Franglais burger
or my two handed sticky ribs.
Either one would be great.
Alright, you guys, I'll see you back here next week
for another quick and easy recipe.
Until then, bye.