German Potato Salad
Tags: Food & Entertainment
At a party recently, there was discussion about German potato salad and how to make it. I found this version in my archives. How authentic is it?
German Potato Salad
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cucumber, peeled, quartered, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 cup white vinegar
½ teaspoon dried dill weed
Salt and pepper
3 pounds small red potatoes , scrubbed and sliced 1/4 inch thick
8 slices bacon, chopped
1 onion, minced
¼ cup olive oil spray
¼ cup coarse-grain mustard
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
PREP CUCUMBER Stir sugar, cucumber, ½ cup vinegar, dill, and ½ teaspoon salt together in bowl; set aside while preparing potatoes.
COOK POTATOES Bring potatoes, remaining vinegar, 1 tablespoon salt, and 8 cups water to boil in large pot. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until potatoes are just tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain potatoes and return to pot.
MAKE DRESSING Fry bacon in large skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until brown and crisp, 8 minutes. With slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel-lined plate; pour off and discard all but 2 tablespoons bacon grease. Add onion and oil to skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat until onion is softened and beginning to brown, about 4 minutes. Drain cucumbers and reserve juice. Whisk cucumber juice, mustard, and 1 teaspoon pepper into skillet; bring to simmer. Pour dressing over warm potatoes, stir to combine, and let sit until slightly cooled and potatoes have absorbed dressing, about 10 minutes.
ASSEMBLE SALAD Stir parsley, drained cucumbers, and bacon into potatoes to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to serving bowl and serve. (Salad can be refrigerated in airtight container for 1 day. Bring to room temperature before serving.)
NOTES : Grey Poupon Country Dijon and Grey Poupon Harvest Coarse Ground are the favorite mustards to use here. Hickory Smoked Bacon is the winner for its balanced, smoky flavor.
* Mild, waxy red potatoes are the best choice here, as they hold their shape after being boiled. Cut them into thin slices before cooking.
* Add vinegar to the potato cooking water. In addition to seasoning the potatoes, the vinegar slows down the dissolving of pectin—the glue that holds the cells in vegetables together—in hot water, letting the potato slices stay firmer longer and making it hard to overcook them.
* To ramp up the flavor even more, make a quick, 20-minute homemade pickle. Slice and marinate a cucumber in a mixture of vinegar, sugar, salt, and dried dill. The tang, crunch, and vibrancy of the pickle beautifully offsets the tender potato slices. * For the base of the dressing, add 8 slices of bacon. Add olive oil to the reserved bacon fat to cut the fat’s heaviness before sautéing onions until softened and lightly browned.
* Add the tangy cucumber marinade to the onion/olive oil/bacon fat mixture for the dressing’s acid component, and add whole-grain mustard to achieve the salad’s characteristic sweet-sour flavor.
* Fold in the chopped, reserved bacon and dress the potatoes and while they are still warm. The warm potatoes will easily absorb the acidic liquid and bacon flavor and will taste seasoned through to the middle.
At a party recently, there was discussion about German potato salad and how to make it. I found this version in my archives. How authentic is it?
German Potato Salad
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cucumber, peeled, quartered, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 cup white vinegar
½ teaspoon dried dill weed
Salt and pepper
3 pounds small red potatoes , scrubbed and sliced 1/4 inch thick
8 slices bacon, chopped
1 onion, minced
¼ cup olive oil spray
¼ cup coarse-grain mustard
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
PREP CUCUMBER Stir sugar, cucumber, ½ cup vinegar, dill, and ½ teaspoon salt together in bowl; set aside while preparing potatoes.
COOK POTATOES Bring potatoes, remaining vinegar, 1 tablespoon salt, and 8 cups water to boil in large pot. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until potatoes are just tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain potatoes and return to pot.
MAKE DRESSING Fry bacon in large skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until brown and crisp, 8 minutes. With slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel-lined plate; pour off and discard all but 2 tablespoons bacon grease. Add onion and oil to skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat until onion is softened and beginning to brown, about 4 minutes. Drain cucumbers and reserve juice. Whisk cucumber juice, mustard, and 1 teaspoon pepper into skillet; bring to simmer. Pour dressing over warm potatoes, stir to combine, and let sit until slightly cooled and potatoes have absorbed dressing, about 10 minutes.
ASSEMBLE SALAD Stir parsley, drained cucumbers, and bacon into potatoes to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to serving bowl and serve. (Salad can be refrigerated in airtight container for 1 day. Bring to room temperature before serving.)
NOTES : Grey Poupon Country Dijon and Grey Poupon Harvest Coarse Ground are the favorite mustards to use here. Hickory Smoked Bacon is the winner for its balanced, smoky flavor.
* Mild, waxy red potatoes are the best choice here, as they hold their shape after being boiled. Cut them into thin slices before cooking.
* Add vinegar to the potato cooking water. In addition to seasoning the potatoes, the vinegar slows down the dissolving of pectin—the glue that holds the cells in vegetables together—in hot water, letting the potato slices stay firmer longer and making it hard to overcook them.
* To ramp up the flavor even more, make a quick, 20-minute homemade pickle. Slice and marinate a cucumber in a mixture of vinegar, sugar, salt, and dried dill. The tang, crunch, and vibrancy of the pickle beautifully offsets the tender potato slices. * For the base of the dressing, add 8 slices of bacon. Add olive oil to the reserved bacon fat to cut the fat’s heaviness before sautéing onions until softened and lightly browned.
* Add the tangy cucumber marinade to the onion/olive oil/bacon fat mixture for the dressing’s acid component, and add whole-grain mustard to achieve the salad’s characteristic sweet-sour flavor.
* Fold in the chopped, reserved bacon and dress the potatoes and while they are still warm. The warm potatoes will easily absorb the acidic liquid and bacon flavor and will taste seasoned through to the middle.