Fingerling Potato Salad with Creamy Green Onion Dressing
Austrian potato salad is lighter than its distant American cousin in that it uses no mayo. Rather than simply boiling the tubers in salted water, Austrians simmer their potatoes in a mixture of water, broth, garlic, salt and parsley, which imparts a subtle hint of flavor to the finished dish. Nice culinary technique! Cooked potatoes are cooled to room temperature before slicing to reduce breakage. The dressing is light—peanut oil, champagne vinegar, shallots, mustard, white sugar, salt and freshly ground pepper— which all work together in harmony to create its iconic oniony-sweet-tart flavor.
This dish uses the culinary techniques of top Austrian chefs for the potato prep, but for the dressing, I prefer a creamy green onion and toasted brown coriander seed dressing. The acid is white balsamic vinegar, which adds just enough sweetness to both temper and complement the green onion. While any white balsamic vinegar will do, lemongrass or Sicilian lemon are my recommendations. These kinds of vinegar have a light yellow color that keeps the dressing a vibrant green while adding a kiss of citrus (do not use a red balsamic!). Garnish with minced chives or flat-leaf-parsley.
For best results, use small, waxy potatoes in this dish—organic fingerlings work best. Do not rush—dressing warm potatoes with the green onion dressing will make the potatoes soggy and break. Shoot for potatoes that are “almost done” (8 to 9 minutes cooking time), then immediately drain and allow to come to room temperature before refrigerating overnight. This technique ensures a clean disk shape in the finished dish. Pairs great with grilled fish!
Fingerling Potato Salad with Creamy Green Onion Dressing
Serves: 4 as a side
Green Onion Dressing
Ingredients
1 bunch of green onions, roots removed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1/3 cup mayo
1/3 cup labneh or Greek yogurt
3 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar, lemongrass or Sicilian lemon flavor recommended
1 teaspoon whole brown coriander seeds, lightly toasted
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
Place all ingredients into a high-efficiency blender or Ninja Bullet and process till puréed. Remove and place into the refrigerator until ready to use.
Potato Prep
Ingredients
1 pound organic fingerling potatoes
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 sprigs of flat-leaf parsley
Garnish
Minced Chives
Little Gem lettuce
Preparation
Place potatoes into a medium pot and add enough water to cover by 2-inches. Add remainder of ingredients and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce to a simmer for 8 to10 minutes, or until almost done—a sharp knife point (or toothpick) stuck into a potato will be soft with a bit of yield.
Remove from heat, drain and allow to cool to room temperature. Place in a large Ziplock bag and place in the refrigerator overnight.
Twenty minutes before serving, slice cooled potatoes to ¼-inch thickness and place into a bowl.
Gently fold or toss cooled potatoes with green onion dressing until coated. Mound potato salad into a serving plate lined with separated Little Gem lettuce leaves, and garnish with minced flat-leaf parsley or minced chives. This dish is great with grilled fish.
