APRIL/MAY 2019 • COOK’S COUNTRY 9Illu
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AFTER A FULL day of cooking and
tasting food at work, I usually have just
a salad for dinner. But since greens and
vinaigrette can take you only so far,
lately I’ve been looking to broaden my
horizons by trying various salads that
are still heavy on the vegetables but a
bit more substantial. Why not create a
hearty salad in the test kitchen that I’d
be happy to eat for dinner at home?
Vegetables don’t get much heartier
than potatoes, so I knew I’d use spuds
for my salad. I got to thinking about
other ingredients that I don’t usually
add to my leafy greens and decided
to give green beans a shot. And for a
fresh, uncooked component that would
add substance and sass, I chose halved
grape tomatoes. Now, how to bring it
all together?
While cooking my way through a
few salads made with these ingredi-
ents, I figured out an easy, efficient
way to cook the potatoes and beans.
I started by boiling the potatoes in
salted water until they were just tender
and then added 1-inch lengths ofgreen beans to the same water. By the
time the beans were done cooking, the
potatoes were, too.
For a straightforward dressing, I
whisked together the classic, simple
combo of extra-virgin olive oil, white
wine vinegar, salt, and pepper. Briny
capers added punch, a sliced shallot
contributed sweetness, and minced
anchovies lent depth and salty com-
plexity. Briefly marinating the halved
tomatoes in the dressing while the
potatoes and beans cooked improved
their flavor tremendously.
Fresh herbs added some pizzazz:
After testing what seemed like an en-
tire garden’s worth, I landed on whole
parsley leaves—their big size translated
into more potent flavor—and chopped
fresh dill. The final touch was to pour
some of the dressing (just the seasoned
oil and vinegar, without the tomatoes)
over the potatoes and green beans
immediately after draining them; the
hot vegetables greedily soaked up the
vinaigrette and tasted deeply seasoned
in the finished salad.An easy vinaigrette and loads of fresh parsley and dill tie this hearty salad together.Potato,
Green
Bean,
and
Tomato
Salad
POTATO, GREEN BEAN,
AND TOMATO SALAD
Serves 4
Make sure to scrub the potatoes well.
High-quality extra-virgin olive oil
makes a big difference here. You can
substitute cherry tomatoes for the
grape tomatoes, if desired. For the best
results, use a rubber spatula to combine
the ingredients in steps 3 and 4.1½ pounds Yukon Gold potatoes,
unpeeled, cut into ¾-inch chunks
¾ teaspoon table salt, plus salt for
cooking vegetables
1 pound green beans, trimmed and
cut into 1-inch pieces
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¼ cup white wine vinegar
¾ teaspoon pepper
6 ounces grape tomatoes, halved
¼ cup capers
1 shallot, sliced thin
2 anchovy fillets, rinsed and minced
(optional)
½ cup fresh parsley leaves
¼ cup chopped fresh dill- Place potatoes and 2 teaspoons
salt in large saucepan and cover
with water by 1 inch. Bring to boil
over high heat. Reduce heat to me-
dium-low and simmer until potatoes
are almost tender, about 7 minutes.
Add green beans and continue to cook
until both vegetables are tender, about
7 minutes longer. - Meanwhile, whisk oil, vinegar,
pepper, and salt together in large bowl;
measure out ¼ cup dressing and set
aside. Add tomatoes, capers, shallot,
and anchovies, if using, to bowl with
remaining dressing and toss to coat;
set aside. - Drain potatoes and green beans
thoroughly in colander, then spread
out on rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle
reserved dressing over potatoes and
green beans and, using rubber spatula,
gently toss to combine. Let cool slight-
ly, about 15 minutes. - Add parsley, dill, and potato mixture
to bowl with tomato mixture and toss
to combine. Season with salt and pep-
per to taste. Serve.
You say tomato, I say
potato. And green beans.
by Ashley MooreSalad,
simplified:
The green
beans cook
in the same
saucepan as
the potatoes.