The Cowgirl Chef: No-mayo potato salads are perfect for summer
Whether you need to bring a potato salad to a potluck or make one for a picnic, it’s a good idea to keep mayonnaise out of the picture — and out of your summer potato salads.
It’s easier than you might think.
First, forget about everything you know about potato salads — mainly, that they have to be coated in something that’s goopy and thick and white (they don’t). Then it’s just a matter of imagining the possibilities: Potatoes are vegetables that go with just about anything you want to pair them with.
Right now there are lots of different potatoes in season, so you can use whatever you’d like, as long as it’s something that’s waxy and will hold its shape, such as a new potato, fingerling, red potato, or even some of the purple varieties.
Know that potatoes will cook more quickly if you cut them into chunks, but make sure to slice them in similar-size pieces so they’ll cook evenly, and watch them closely so they don’t get too soft.
Potatoes are like sponges and will absorb whatever you put on them, so plan accordingly, and if you’re dressing them in advance, be sure to hold back a little bit of the dressing (or whatever you’re tossing them with) so you can add more right before serving.
Potato salads can be served warm, cold, or room temperature, and many of the same ways you’d put together a pasta salad work for a potato salad, too.
Like pasta, a potato is a carb, so it plays a similar role in the bowl. If you have a favorite pasta salad, try to reimagine it as a potato salad instead. That’s how I came up with the Italian potato salad that follows. It would work just as easily with pasta.
Many of these potato salads work just as well cold as they do warm, so when trying to figure out which one you want to make, just think about what you’re serving it with.
My crispy potato salad with caramelized onion and bacon would be fantastic served warm with any sort of grilled meat or roasted chicken, but I ate the leftovers the next day straight from the fridge and realized it was just as good cold — so it would be a great picnic side or something to take to work for lunch. I am not a big leftovers person, but I wished I’d made more of this.
Another great thing about potato salads is they can feed a crowd. Unlike some recipes that can be finicky when you try to size them up, potato salads love going big — so super-size your salads if you want.
It’ll just be more love to go around, and hopefully, some for you to snack on the next day, too.
Ellise Pierce is the Cowgirl Chef and author of “Cowgirl Chef: Texas Cooking With a French Accent” (Running Press, $25). www.cowgirlchef.com, @cowgirlchef.
Smoked salmon potato salad with buttermilk herb dressing
Makes 4 to 6 servings
- 1 pound waxy potatoes, such as red, new or fingerling
- Sea salt
- 2.5 ounces smoked salmon
- Buttermilk herb dressing (recipe follows)
- Chopped dill and chives, optional, for garnish
1. Scrub the potatoes, slice them into 1/4-inch coins and put them in your largest skillet. Cover with water, salt well, and turn the heat to high. When it boils, reduce the heat to a simmer and let them cook just until you can put a fork in them — you don’t want them to fall apart. When they’re done, gently pour them into a colander to drain and cool.
2. Tear or chop the salmon into bite-size pieces and put in a large bowl with the potatoes. Add some of the dressing, and gently toss (I do this with my hands so the potatoes don’t break). Serve on small plates and garnish with additional chopped dill and chives.
Buttermilk herb dressing
Makes 1 1/2 cups
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
- Sea salt and cracked pepper
Put everything in a bowl and whisk until combined. Chill for at least an hour before using.
Nutritional analysis per serving, based on 4, using half the buttermilk herb dressing: 167 calories, 5 grams fat, 23 grams carbohydrates, 7 grams protein, 19 milligrams cholesterol, 243 milligrams sodium, 2 grams dietary fiber, 29 percent of calories from fat.
Nutritional analysis per serving, based on 4, without dressing: 110 calories, 1 gram fat, 20 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams protein, 4 milligrams cholesterol, 175 milligrams sodium, 2 grams dietary fiber, 7 percent of calories from fat.
Nutritional analysis per 1-tablespoon dressing: 24 calories, 2 grams fat, 1 gram carbohydrates, trace protein, 5 milligrams cholesterol, 18 milligrams sodium, trace dietary fiber, 72 percent of calories from fat.
Sweet potato salad with feta and cilantro
Makes 4 servings
- 2 pounds sweet potatoes, cut into 2-inch chunks
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Sea salt and cracked pepper, to taste
- Lime-cilantro oil (recipe follows)
- 2 tablespoons feta, crumbled
- 1/4 cup pistachios, toasted and roughly chopped
1. Scrub the sweet potatoes, slice them into 2-inch chunks, and boil them in salty water. When the water comes to a boil, reduce to a simmer and let the sweet potatoes cook until you can barely pierce them with a fork, which should take about 20 minutes. Drain.
2. Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Put cooled potatoes on a cookie sheet and drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss so they are evenly coated.
3. Put them in the hot oven to crisp on one side, then after about 10 minutes, flip them to the other side to brown. Take them out of the oven, put into a bowl and toss with the lime-cilantro vinaigrette (you might not need all of it). Sprinkle with feta crumbles and pistachios, and serve right away.
Note: This salad also good cold or at room temperature.
Lime-cilantro oil
Makes about 1/2 cup
- 1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped
- 1 cloves garlic, minced
- Zest of one lime
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- Sea salt and pepper
Put first 4 ingredients in a jam jar, and shake. Salt and pepper to taste. Let sit for at least an hour before using. Will keep for a week in the fridge.
Nutritional analysis per serving with oil dressing: 453 calories, 30 grams fat, 43 grams carbohydrates, 5 grams protein, 4 milligrams cholesterol, 104 milligrams sodium, 6 grams dietary fiber, 59 percent of calories from fat.
Nutritional analysis per serving without oil dressing: 291 calories, 12 grams fat, 42 grams carbohydrates, 5 grams protein, 4 milligrams cholesterol, 103 milligrams sodium, 6 grams dietary fiber, 37 percent of calories from fat.
Nutritional analysis per 1-tablespoon oil dressing: 81 calories, 9 grams fat, trace carbohydrates, trace protein, no cholesterol, 1 milligram sodium, trace dietary fiber, 98 percent of calories from fat.
Italian potato salad
Makes 4 to 6 servings
- 1 pound waxy potatoes, such as red, new or fingerling
- 10 thin slices spicy Italian sausage
- 2 1/2 ounces arugula
- 6 basil leaves
- 1 tablespoon store-bought pesto
- Sea salt and cracked pepper
1. Scrub the potatoes, slice them into 2-inch chunks, and boil them in salty water. When they boil, reduce to a simmer and let them cook until you can pierce them with a fork, which should take about 20 minutes. Drain and let cool.
2. Slice the Italian sausage slices into bite-size pieces. Put them in a bowl along with the potatoes, arugula, basil, pesto and salt and pepper to taste. Toss and serve right away.
Note: You can assemble this in advance and add the arugula and basil and toss again right before serving — that way the arugula and basil won’t wilt.
Nutritional analysis per serving, based on 4: 160 calories, 6 grams fat, 21 grams carbohydrates, 5 grams protein, 12 milligrams cholesterol, 168 milligrams sodium, 2 grams dietary fiber, 35 percent of calories from fat.
Crispy potato salad with bacon and caramelized onions
Makes 4 servings
For the caramelized onions:
- 3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 yellow onions, sliced into rings
- Sea salt and cracked pepper, to taste
For the vinaigrette:
1 shallot, minced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons sherry-wine vinegar
Sea salt and cracked pepper, to taste
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
For the crispy potatoes:
- 1 pound waxy potatoes, such as red, new or fingerling
- 4 slices bacon, cooked until crispy
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
1. To make the caramelized onions: Put the olive oil and sliced onions into a large skillet over medium-low heat. Salt and pepper them and slowly cook them for 45 minutes or so, until the onions are caramel-colored and sweet. (You can do this ahead of time — and I suggest making extra. Caramelized onions are great on sandwiches or stirred into pasta.)
2. To make the vinaigrette: Put the chopped shallot, mustard, sherry vinegar and sea salt and pepper to taste in jam jar and shake to combine. Add the olive oil and shake again. Taste for seasonings. You can also make the vinaigrette ahead of time and keep it in the fridge.
3. Scrub the potatoes, slice them into 2-inch chunks, and boil them in salty water. When they boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and let them cook just until you can pierce them with a fork, which should take about 20 minutes. Drain.
4. Crumble bacon.
5. Put 4 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet and add the drained potatoes. Cook over medium-high heat until they’re crispy on all sides, then put the potatoes into a bowl and toss with the bacon crumbles, caramelized onions and vinaigrette. Taste for seasonings and serve warm.
Nutritional analysis per serving: 540 calories, 45 grams fat, 31 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams protein, 5 milligrams cholesterol, 157 milligrams sodium, 4 grams dietary fiber, 74 percent of calories from fat.
This story was originally published June 15, 2015 at 4:37 PM with the headline "The Cowgirl Chef: No-mayo potato salads are perfect for summer."