PSP: Potato Salad Perfection

Yes, I’m going to be obnoxiously braggy about this one. I’m sorry, but I can’t help it. Well, I could help myself, but I don’t really want to. I love my potato salad. I just do. I try other potato salads, but I always come back to mine.

I object to the mustard base potato salad so popular here in Houston. I don’t really care to have bits of onions in it, because it reminds me of salads gone wrong after a day of hanging out by the beach. Don’t bother trying to make it healthy for me with bunches of carrots or celery. And please don’t be stingy with the eggs OR the mayo.

My salad is a combination of my mom’s and one of her best friend’s recipes. After my sis-n-law brought me Piment d’Espellete, I’ve incorporated it into my recipe, but it isn’t necessary. It’s creamy. It’s eggy. It showcases the potato’s sweetness. It’s just good. Grab some potatoes and go to work. You’ll see what I mean.

Mi Ensalada de Papas
Yield: approx 6 cups
5 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 medium carrot, halved
1 tbsp sea salt
4 eggs, at room temperature
1 cp mayo (use the real thing)
2 tsp Dijon or Creole mustard
1-1/2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp heavy cream or milk
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp Piment d’Espellete or Smoked Paprika
Sea salt, if necessary

After you’ve peeled the potatoes, cut them into quarters. The cubes should be as uniform as possible, that way they all cook at the same rate. However, don’t cut them too small or the potato will just break apart. Place the cubed potatoes in a medium pan with the carrot and fill with enough water to pass the potatoes by about 1-2 inches. Add the salt and bring to a medium boil, cooking the potatoes for about 12 minutes or until fork tender. Drain completely and allow it to cool.

While the potatoes cook, boil the eggs. Put the eggs in a small saucepan and fill with water. Allow the water to boil for about 3 minutes, turn off the heat and let the eggs sit in the hot water for another few minutes (about 8 minutes). Drain the water and fill the pot with cold water, let them sit in the cold water for about 2-3 minutes. You’ll end up with perfect, beautiful eggs. Peel and chop the eggs, set aside.

Combine the mayo, mustard, sugar, cream, piment/paprika, black pepper in the bowl you’ll mix the salad. Make sure you mix all the ingredients very well. I usually break a piece of one of the potatoes and put a little dab of the mayo mixture on it to taste the flavors. I then adjust the salt as necessary. Set this aside.

Chop the potatoes and carrot into bite-size pieces and add them to the bowl with the mayo. Add the eggs and mix in all the ingredients, making sure the mayo is well distributed. If it seems a bit dry, mix another couple of tablespoons of mayo with cream, pepper and a pinch of sugar. That’s it.

You now have a perfect batch of potato salad. Enjoy!

Cookingly yours,
Anamaris