Monday, May 31, 2010

28 Cooks' Memorial Day Remix - Potato Salad with Chili-Cumin Vinaigrette

I was digging through my archives for this potato salad recipe, since it's one of my favorites. I saw the date posted and realized I made this last year for Memorial Day, so I thought I'd share the recipe again, although this time with an updated picture.

Following is the original post:

Everyone loves a picnic - the fresh air, the smell of the barbeque, and the variety of potluck dishes on the table. Usually, you'll find at least one or two mayonnaise-based salads, a macaroni salad, and some sort of potato salad. I'm not crazy about mayo, so I'm always interested in any potato salad without it.

I knew what I wanted to try with this salad, but it wasn't until I tasted the final product that I knew I had hit it. The toasted cumin in the dressing, alongside the fresh cilantro and dried thai chilies, provide a perfect summery dressing with a bit of a twang. Also, since it's mayo-less and uses olive oil as the base, this is very low in calories and fat, which makes it almost guilt-free.


*On the heat scale, it's only about a 2 out of 5*

Potato Salad with Chili-Cumin Vinaigrette

Potato Salad with Chile-Cumin Vinaigrette

5 cups red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1" pieces
1 tsp salt
2 green onions
3 tbsp red onion, diced

Vinaigrette
1 tsp cumin seeds
4 dried thai chiles
1/2 c fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 jalapeno
1 tsp minced onion
1 clove garlic, minced
6 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
1/4 c olive oil
1/2 tsp sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Place potato pieces into a large saucepan and cover with water. Add 1 tsp of salt. Bring water to a boil, and boil about 8 minutes. Potatoes should be tender when pierced with a skewer. Drain pot, and place potatoes into large bowl. Add green and red onion.
Vinaigrette - place cumin seeds in a small skillet. Over high heat, toast 2 minutes, until seeds are fragrant and brown. Allow to cool, and grind in a mortar and pestle. In food processor, combine cumin, chilies, cilantro, jalapeno, onion, garlic, and rice vinegar. Process until all ingredients are well minced. With motor running, slowly add olive oil until dressing is emulsified.
Pour vinaigrette over potatoes and stir to coat. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

18 comments:

Fiber said...

I should have said that it's the good kind of fat. =)

Anonymous said...

Potato salad sounds a lovely variant. I have seldom met a potato salad I didn't like and this one has some of my favorite flavors.

Harmonia said...

BOY did I ever need more veg camping suggestions this past week! Keep 'em coming!

Anonymous said...

There are lots of flavors going on at one time in this dish. Your mouth won't get bored. Loved it!

Kristin said...

Wonderful recipe! I was short on cilantro but made it up with basil. I'd say it enhanced the flavor a bit without doing much damage.
Mine was definitely spicier than 2/5 (more like a 4) - but I scaled down by half everything except the jalapeno. So, in case you were wondering how to make it hotter... ;)

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leslie @ definitely not martha said...

That looks delightful! I made a potato salad as well, but much more traditional. Yours is waaaaay cooler. Much more up my alley.

wellunderstood said...

this looks delicous, but another option i often use is yogurt cheese (strained yogurt) instead of mayo. it is creamy like mayo, but the flavor is tangier and fresher. though certainly on the more traditional side, it's divine with shallot, horseradish, and a big handful of chopped dill.

Deborah Dowd said...

Your "mutant" potato salad sounds great! It is a good idea to break out of the routine of mayo and mustard-based potato salads!

kellypea said...

Found this on tastespotting in a BBQ search. YUM. My husband hates mayo with a passion and this combo of flavors just might be the ticket for my Oscars BBQ tomorrow! Thanks :)

Anonymous said...

The recipe calls for dried Thai chilis. Where would I find this and how do I know it's a Thai chili? I've seen various red chilis and just want to be sure I buy the right kind since I'm sure they vary gratly in terms of heat level. Thanks!

Adventures in Domestic Cooking said...

Sounds and looks fantastic!
=)

Jessica said...

Sounds a bit nacky, but its also sounds amazing. maybe try aaddding a bit of amarula cream to it, always brings Africa to your meal which is the most important ingredient :)
Jessica | amarulasa@gmail.com

Kristy said...

Ok, I'm excited to try this recipe! I'm working on planning our company picnic and I wanted to make a potato salad to enjoy!

sherry said...

i am always looking for new recipes for potato dishes, this really looks wonderful.. thanks for sharing

Mary Bergfeld said...

What a great take on a classic. This is my first visit to your blog and I've spent some time trying to catch-up with some of your earlier posts. I really love your recipes and will be back to see what else you've been making. I hope you are having a wonderful day. Blessings...Mary

Anonymous said...

Add one thing more... Mayyonise and trust me.. you are going to eat your fingers. :)