Ren Behan - Author Wild Honey and Rye

Food Writer

Potato Salad

My Mum’s Polish Potato Salad

I made my mum’s Polish potato salad the other day. It was one of my favourite salads growing up and it’s perfect for a barbecue party or a pot luck party. The key is to chop the potatoes and eggs (once cooked) as well as the pickles into little tiny cubes, the smaller the better.

It looked so pretty and it is so tasty. Do you know what Mama said? “Looks nice, but I serve it in a bowl and you forgot the dill.”

So, if you make it, don’t forget the dill!

 

Recipe: My Mum’s Polish Potato Salad

 

Ingredients:

500g maincrop or new potatoes, washed and peeled

2 free range eggs

2 sweet pickled cucumber spears, finely chopped

3 spring onions, finely chopped

100g mayonnaise

50g sour cream

2 tablespoons liquid from the cucumber spears

Salt and pepper to season

Fresh dill, to decorate

 

Method:

  1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Chop the potatoes and half and put them in the pan and boil for seven minutes. After seven minutes, add the two eggs and boil in the same pan for a further ten minutes. Check the potatoes are cooked and drain the potatoes and eggs under cold water. The eggs will be hard boiled.  
  2. Chop the potatoes into small cubes. Peel the hard boiled eggs and chop them into small pieces. Put the potatoes and eggs into a large bowl. Add the finely chopped sweet pickled cucumbers and most of the spring onions – save a sprinkle to use as a garnish.
  3. In a separate, smaller bowl, add the mayonnaise and sour cream and add a couple of tablespoons of the liquid from the sweet pickled cucumber spears to loosen. Whisk together well and pour over the potatoes.
  4. Mix everything together well. Season with salt and pepper and decorate with fresh dill and the rest of the spring onions. You can serve the salad immediately, but it tastes better the next day – leave it to cool down completely before refrigerating.

 

Simple and in Season Blog Event

I’m linking this up to Simple and in Season hosting this month by Katie Bryson at Feeding Boys and a Firefighter – maincrop potatoes and spring onions are both in season now.

Are you a dill or pickled cucumber fan?!

Polish Potato Salad

Once again I am totally overwhelmed by all the entries into Simple and in Season – June – the monthly blogging event here at Fabulicious Food! showcasing some of the very best seasonal produce. Some of the recipes linked-up used British local produce and some were shared from much further afield, including Dubai and the States.

I will be announcing a winner shortly and producing what I am sure will be a spectacular round-up.
In the meantime, here is my entry – a lovely comforting Polish Potato Salad made with a freshly picked selection of British new potatoes from an organic vegetable box delivered to me by Andrew at Riverford Organic – thank you Andrew! 
I am new to the veg box delivery scheme and I’ve found it to be a wonderful way to incorporate fresh, seasonal produce into our diet.  Fruit and vegetable box schemes support local farmers and as often as possible, the produce is sourced locally. You can check on Riverford Organic’s website to see whether they deliver to you and to see which farm your produce will mostly come from.  
My box came with a handy booklet of recipes, though this one is a salad made to my Mother’s recipe.  Receiving a fruit or veg box does encourage you to become quite creative in the kitchen!
We also enjoyed a lovely fresh carrot soup, salads and fajitas using the mushrooms and onions in the box. We’re working our way through the rest so I’m sure there will be more recipes to come.
The secret to this salad is to chop everything, including your peeled potatoes, into very small cubes. The egg can even be mashed with a fork. You end up with a really tasty accompaniment to an outdoor picnic or lunch. I served mine with my mum’s Polish meatballs – the best! I promise to share the recipe for those too…soon.
Polish Potato Salad
(My Mother’s Recipe)

Serves 2

Ingredients:

6-7 peeled and cooked potatoes (new or waxy potatoes work best)
1 hard boiled egg, peeled and mashed with a fork
1 pickled gherkin, very finely chopped
1 tablespoon dill (fresh is best but dry works ok too)
2 tablespoons mayonnaise (I use a Polish brand called Winiary but any is fine)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Method:

1. Add your chopped potatoes, egg, gherkin and dill into a bowl.

2. Add in the mayonnaise and mustard.

3. Stir well. The salad is best refrigerated for a short while before eating.