“This is a cracker of a potato salad, thanks to the crisp, crunchy cracked skins, and its zero-waste credentials,” says Alice Zaslavsky. “Chat potatoes are best, because they’re an early pick; still firm enough to hold their shape, but will soften through the middles for a totally textural experience. The dressing is a delicious way to use up your herbs, even if they’re a bit wilty. Whatever you have in the soft herb department is welcome. If you’ve only got big green olives instead of Kalamata, they’ll do the trick as well. Make this planty by using a crumbly vegan cheese (or a marinated one) instead.”
Ingredients
1kg chat potatoes
1 teaspoon salt flakes
Parsley and soft herb stems, reserved from the dressing (see below)
2 garlic cloves
¼ cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil
125g kalamata olives, pitted
Soft herb dressing
1 cup tightly packed parsley leaves
½ cup tightly packed soft herbs such as dill, mint, chives, basil or small tarragon leaves
1 cup tightly packed baby spinach leaves
1 cup (250 ml) just-boiled water from the potatoes
1 garlic clove
½ cup (125 ml) extra virgin olive oil
1 heaped tablespoon seeded mustard
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Final bits and bobs
100g crumbly feta
1 red onion, finely sliced
Method
Put chat potatoes in a saucepan along with salt, the herb stems and garlic cloves, cover with cold water, bring to the boil, then simmer for 15–20 minutes or until fork-tender. Fish out the potatoes, reserving the just-boiled water along with the garlic cloves and herb stems.
Preheat the oven to 220°C or 200°C fan-forced, with the baking tray inside. Toss the potatoes with oil and a good pinch of salt flakes, not minding if the skins get a little chuffed up (this’ll only make them crisper!). Tip onto the hot tray along with the olives and use the base of a jar to give each potato a firm squish to flatten them a little, creating cracks, without pressing so hard that they break up. Roast for 25–30 minutes for the potatoes to frizzle on their cracked skins and the olives to blister.
To make the soft herb dressing, put the herb leaves in a heatproof colander and pour the reserved potato water over the top, reuniting the herb stems and cooked garlic with the rest of the herbs. Transfer the contents of the drained colander, along with the fresh garlic into a small blender with the olive oil, mustard and vinegar. Blitz until super smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
Toss through the hot crack potatoes and pitted olives, letting them sit for a beat to absorb the dressing. Transfer to a salad bowl or platter and crumble with feta and a tumble of the finely sliced onion before serving warm.
Salad for Days by Alice Zaslavsky (Murdoch Books, RRP $45) is out now and available to buy, among other places, from excellent independent Victorian bookstores such as Readings, Hill of Content and Paperback Bookshop.