Puzzled by potato salads? Read on ...
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Potato salad. Potato-macaroni salad. Islanders have strong feelings about these, and many of us eat potato-mac salad in a plate lunch as often as a few times a week.
But maybe you're new to Island-style potato or potato-mac salad. Or maybe you've always been puzzled about which potatoes to use, how to make enough but not too much, what alternatives there are to mayonnaise-based salad.
Here are some answers:
• Potato types: Baking potatoes, often the russet variety, are mealy, soft-textured and fall apart readily; they're best for mashed potatoes but not potato salads. Instead, use the varieties described as boiling, waxy, salad or new. These are thin-skinned, firm-fleshed potatoes, low in starch, potatoes that may have yellow or red skin. Potatoes labeled "new" should be just that — fresh, young potatoes — but often aren't; they will still work for potato salad and also for soups, stews, roasting and barbecues. You can also use yellow Finn or Yukon gold potatoes. The skins of these potatoes are so thin that you can leave the skin on, if desired, for a little more fiber and textural interest.
• Salad types: There are four main types of potato salads — mayonnaise-based, oil-and-vinegar-based, mustard-based and hot salads, the most common of which is German potato salad.
Mayonnaise-based salads are the ones we know best here in Hawai'i. People here strongly favor Best Foods mayonnaise for salads (Hellman's in the East). In the South, salad dressing (Miracle Whip) is often used. These can be plain (potatoes, mayo, salt, pepper, maybe parsley or onion) or "kitchen sink" (add boiled peas, grated carrots, canned tuna or salmon, water chestnuts, capers, pickle relish and all manner of other things).
Oil-and-vinegar-based salads make use of a vinaigrette dressing and often contain chopped onion, lemon juice, wine, capers, anchovies and other tart or salty ingredients.
Mustard-based salads may be bound with mayonnaise or vinaigrette and often use spicy mustards such as Dijon, mustard-seed or flavored mustards — never hot dog mustard.
Hot potato salads are made with crisp, minced bacon, a vinaigrette in which the oil is bacon fat, and sometimes onions and other crunchy vegetables, such as celery or green pepper. It is both rich and tangy. It is generally served hot but can be served at room temperature
And here are some tips for making a good potato salad:
Mention of potato salad goes back 500 years in European cookery. In America, German and French immigrants are credited with bringing the dish with them. (The French invented mayonnaise.) The dish was not common in Britain.
However, the French are just as likely to make a vinaigrette-dressed potato salad as one made with mayonnaise (which would be made from scratch, not bottled).
So I went back to the source of all English-language wisdom on French home cooking, Julia Child, and found this recipe in "Mastering the Art of French Cooking," the classic text published in 1961 and written by Child with Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck.
POMMES DE TERRE A L'HUILE
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Scrub potatoes and boil until just tender when pierced with a knife. Drain. Peel as soon as they've cooled enough to hold. Cut into slices 1/8 inch thick. Place in a mixing bowl. Pour the wine or vermouth and stock or bouillon over the warm potato slices and toss gently. Set aside a few minutes until the potatoes have absorbed the liquid. In a bowl or measuring cup, beat the vinegar or vinegar and lemon juice, mustard and salt until the salt is dissolved. Beat in the oil drop by drop — do not pour. Season to taste and stir in optional shallots or onions. Pour the dressing over the potatoes and toss gently. Serve while still warm. Decorate with herbs.
Makes 6-8.
