Turn the page for the recipes→Putoutthe
bunting,fillthe
paddlingpool,
it’sthattimeof
yearagain:
potatosaladtime.Inthepast
decadeorso,saladshavepulled
focus.Nolongera bitontheside,
nowtheyareexuberantconcoctions
ofleaves,microleaves,juicycitrus,
roastedvegetables,toastednutsand
seeds,shaved,dollopedandgrated
cheeses,tornherbs,extra-virgin,
single-estateoils,specialvinegars,
thefermented,thepickledandthe
cured.ThankyoudearYotam
Ottolenghiandallyourfoot
soldiersintherecentsaladwars
forsavingusfromourhalf-a-
cucumber-and-an-unripe-tomato
selves.Wesaluteyou.Butjustfor
a moment,youcanstanddown.
I amtiredandI amhotandso
farit hasbeenonehellofa year.
Passthepotatoesandpassthe
mayonnaisebecausesometimes
pale,undemandingfoodis a soft,
uncomplicatedplacetoland.Like
thesliced-white-breadsandwich
youeatstandingupatthecounter
whileyoursourdough(whichnot
onlydemandsyousitatthetableto
eatit,butalsothatyougenuflect
first,please)is rising,theheart
wantswhatit wants.Andinmy
case,thatsometimesmeansthe
basicpleasureofjarredmayoplus
carbs.I knowthere’sa certain
snobberyaboutsuchthings–
they’reundoubtedlyunsophisticated
- buttheycanbesoverygood.
Oneofthereasonspotatosalad
hasstoodthetestoftimeis thatit
goessowellwithmanyofourother
favouritesummerfoods.It’sa great
friendtobarbecuesandroasts,it
playsnicelywithothersalads,you
canscaleit upandscaleit down,
andif anythingit’sbetterthenext
day.Youcantweakit tosuityour
moodandwhatyouhaveinthe
fridge,too(seetherecipesoverleaf).
In less complicated times, it was
alwaysthedishyoucouldloadinto
Tupperwareandtakealongto
a friend’spicnicorparty.Between
themonthsofMayandAugust,
whenI askif I canbringsomething
mypotatosaladis invariably the
dishmyfriendsrequest.
I havealwaysbeenslightly
addictedtoAmericanJunior
Leaguecookbooks,andthoselocal
recipebookscompiledtoraise
fundsforthechurchrooforschool
sportshall.I scourEbayforthem
lateatnightandmypassio
themis sowellknown,on
occasionmy friend Fi drovssLondontoleavesomeof
stashonmydoorstep.
hesebookscontaina
potatosaladrecipe,thatstarofthe
tailgateparty,MemorialDaypicnic
andFourthofJulybarbecue.I’ve
triedmanyofthem,including
onethatdemandedI firstmake
somethingcalledAuntLouella’s
BoiledSaladDressing.I laboured
foragesoversomethingthattasted
verysweet,quitesharp,notquite
right,beforeI realisedwhatI’d
madewassub-parsaladcream.
InthetrailblazingAmerican
SilverPalateCookbookbySheila
LukinsandJuleeRosso,theywrote,
‘Howmanypotatosaladsshould
a cookbookhave?Westoppedwith
three,notbecauseweranout
ofideas,butbecauseweranoutof
room.’Theygoontogiverecipes
forthethreemainstyles:whatthey
describeasa Frenchpotatosalad,
whereboiledpotatoesaretossedin
a warmpandressingwithbacon,
shallots, red onions and parsley; aclassicAmericanpotatosaladwith
Hellmann’smayonnaise,cucumber,
eggsandcelery;anda
Scandinavian-stylepotatosalad,
withsourcream,redonionanddill.
Whatwenowthinkofasthe
classicAmericanpotatosaladmost
likelyhaditsoriginsinthesalad
recipesbroughtoverbyGerman
andEastEuropeanmigrantstothe
USAinthe19thcentury– potatoes
dressedinvinegarandoilwitha
littleonionandbaconorothermeat
ascalledGermansalad.The
ditionofmayonnaisebecame
pularlater,intheearly20th
ntury.AnotherGerman,one
r RichardHellmann,emigrated
omPrussiatoNewYorkin
04 andopeneda delisellinghis
memademayoin1905.The rest
cool,creamyhistory.
Myownpotatosaladadheresto
y beliefthattwogoodthingsare
betterthanonegoodthing,soyes
pleasetobothvinaigretteand
mayonnaise.I dressthestill-warm
potatoesina sharp,mustardy
vinaigretteandleavethemtocool
completelybeforecrackingonwith
therest.I usewaxypotatoessuch
asanya,charlotteordesiree,as
theyholdtheirshapebetterand
soakupthedressingwell.Then
I tossthespudswithdicedcelery,
cucumberandgherkins,sliced
springonions,peas,boiledeggs
andparsley,beforefoldingit allin
a comboofmayoandthickyogurt
spikedwitha littlemoremustard.
SometimesI addcapersorvary
theherbs.If I’mmakingit theday
beforeI addtheherbsandonion
whenI giveit a laststir,aboutan
hourbeforeserving.Tome,it’sthe
essenceoftheseason:easy,simple,
purecontentmentandpleasure,to
beenjoyedinbig,heapedspoonfuls
onsummerplates.Andwithany
luckthere’llbeenoughleftforme
toenjoyonlate-nightsolitary
foragesthroughthefridge, when it
often tastes best of all.IamtiredandI am
hotandit’sbeenone
hellofa year.Passthe
potatoesandpass
the mayonnaise...FOOD WRITER AND POTATO SALAD ENTHUSIAST DEBORA ROBERTSON SALUTES AN UNSUNG HERO OF SUMMER
eat well every day.