Herby potato salad with bacon and shallots
“There are many, many ways to make potato salad, but I always find myself coming back to this version. The trick is to be plentiful with the herbs and bacon and to add a lot of dressing, as the warm potatoes quickly absorb the liquid. I like to include sour cream to give a tanginess to the dressing, as well as a good tablespoon of dijon mustard and a bit of vinegar for piquancy,” writes Justine Schofield in her latest cookbook Simple Every Day.
Serves: 6
Ingredients:
- 1.2 kg bintje potatoes (or another waxy potato, such as Dutch cream, desiree or kipfler), unpeeled
- 250 g bacon, finely chopped
- 180 g homemade mayonnaise (or a good-quality whole-egg mayonnaise)
- 100 g sour cream
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
- zest of 1 lemon juice of ½ lemon
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 French shallots, finely chopped
- 12 cornichons, sliced into rounds
- large handful of flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
- small handful of chives, finely snipped
- 3 dill fronds, finely chopped
Method:
1. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan of cold salted water. Bring to the boil, then turn down to medium heat and simmer for about 20–30 minutes until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a small knife. (The cooking time will vary depending on what potatoes you use and how large they are.) Drain and set aside until the potatoes are cool enough to handle. Peel off and discard the skins, then cut the potatoes into even cubes.
2. Meanwhile, place the bacon in a large frying pan over low heat and cook, tossing occasionally and slowly bringing the heat up to medium (this ensures the fat renders and the bacon becomes very crispy), for 5 minutes until sizzling, golden and crunchy. Drain on paper towel.
3. Combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, mustard, vinegar, lemon zest and juice, cayenne pepper and a pinch of salt and pepper in a large bowl. Mix in the shallot, cornichon and herbs, reserving a small handful of mixed herbs to serve.
4. Add the still-warm potato to the dressing, along with half the bacon. Toss very well so all the potato is coated, then scatter on the reserved herbs and bacon. Best served at room temperature.
Recipe courtesy of Simple Every Day by Justine Schofield (Plum, $39.99).