The World's Greatest Potato Salad
Take some number of boiling potatoes, you decide, peel them, cut them in half and boil until they are just cooked, not a second more. Dice them into neat little cubes -- appearance is important here.
Pour over the potato cubes while they're still warm a tart dressing made of good olive oil and wine vinegar, equal parts of each, salt and freshly ground pepper. Don't use balsamic vinegar; there shouldn't be a hint of sweetness in this potato salad. And don't soak them in it.
I like a little onion in it but not much, so I cut an onion in half and scrape some onion juice into it. There should not be any pieces of raw onion. Chill.
Peel celery stalks, cut them into very thin crescents, and add the amount that seems right to you. Neatly chop lots of green olives stuffed with pimiento and add those as well.
Just before serving, add just enough good-quality mayonnaise such as Hellmann's (actually is there any other good-quality store-bought mayonnaise?) to coat the neat little potato cubes lightly. Taste for seasonings and add more salt, pepper or vinegar if necessary. Do not add pickles. Do not add chopped egg. Do not add mustard.
Serve on a platter lined with leaves of boston lettuce.
Comments
Actually, there is a better store-bought mayonnaise than Hellman's. Once you try Duke's -- if you can find it -- you'll never use anything else. I found out about it when I lived in the south; only a few stores carry it around here, but I think most Giants have it.
Posted by: Jackie Fox | May 30, 2007 9:14 AM
Elizabeth -
Your recipe reveals how you fall on the divide, but some recipes insist on cooking the potatoes first then cutting and peeling them. I always thought that meant a lot of over cooked and undercooked potato. Do you know what the reasoning is for cooking the potatoes whole?
-Michael
(I don't. I've tried them every which way, and this is the way that works best for me. Elizabeth)
Posted by: Michael Craven | May 30, 2007 9:17 AM
Interesting 2 stage approach to dressing the salad - I may have to try it myself.
The best store-bought mayo - Japanese Kewpie mayo, available at Han ah Reum and Asia Foods, and I once saw it at the Giant in Cedarcroft/Rodgers Forge/whatever that neighborhood is on the York Road side. It's more eggy than Hellman's and tastes a bit closer to fresh mayo to my tastebuds. I also like Nayonnaise, a soy-based product.
Posted by: Kathy | May 30, 2007 10:46 AM
My mother's potato salad was similar to yours, but instead of mayo she used Durkee's dressing, which definitely added a lot of tang. I don't think she peeled the celery, and she added finely minced onion, not just the juice. No olives, but yes, always slices of a hard-boiled egg on top.
Posted by: Darlene | May 30, 2007 8:16 PM
The theory behind cooking the potatoes whole is that they get more flavor from the skin. Nonetheless, I peel them before cooking, just because I find peeling cooked potatoes to be a colossal pain.
Posted by: Hal Laurent | May 30, 2007 10:26 PM