Crispy chilli, ginger and peanut potatoes are your new favourite side dish
Goodbye potato salad, you were nice while you lasted
Just kidding, I love potato salad. Even the crap one from Tesco that’s got a weird vinegary taste. However, sometime’s it’s nice to put down the jar of mayonnaise and do something different with your lovely bag of spuds.
The dressing for these potatoes is inspired by a recipe in Ixta Belfrage’s Mezcla. For her mackerel udon recipe (which is delicious, by the way) she makes an infused oil to dress the noodles, tinned mackerel and pickly cucumber with. It’s fragrant, spicy and has loads of gorgeous crispy ginger. I’ve done something similar with the dressing for my potatoes, but instead of using star anise and cinnamon, I’ve used lemongrass, shallot, coriander seeds and green chilli for a Thai vibe.
Make sure you keep an eye on the oil during the infusion process, as the aromatics catch easily and no-one wants to chow down on burnt ginger.
Crispy chilli, ginger and peanut potatoes
Serves 2
300g new potatoes
1 tbsp olive oil
5 tbsp vegetable or sunflower oil
1 stick lemongrass, sliced in half
40g fresh ginger, cut into thin matchsticks
2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1 green chilli, thinly sliced (deseeded if you want less heat)
1/2 a teaspoon coriander seeds
1/2 a teaspoon cumin seeds
20g raw peanuts
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp honey
3/4 teaspoon fish sauce
2 limes
Handful of fresh coriander
Preheat your oven to 200C. Put the potatoes in a pan and cover with water. Add salt, then set on a high heat until simmering, then boil the potatoes for 12-15 minutes until tender.
Drain the potatoes and tip into a baking tray. Using something flat (the back of a spoon, a masher, the bottom of a tin or jar are all good options) smash the potatoes a little so their skin breaks and the fluffy insides start to spill out. Drizzle over the olive oil and add a pinch of salt. Roast for 15 minutes, flip, then roast for a further 15 minutes.
While the potatoes are roasting, make the dressing. Pour the neutral oil into a small saucepan on a medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the lemongrass, ginger, garlic, shallot, green chilli, coriander and cumin seeds. Fry until the ginger, garlic and shallot are crispy and golden (about 5 minutes). Remove the pan from the heat and strain the oil through a sieve into a bowl. Keep the aromatics on the side for garnishing the potatoes later.
Add the soy sauce, honey, fish sauce and juice of one lime to the bowl and mix to combine.
Toast the peanuts in a small pan until golden, then allow to cool slightly and finely chop.
Transfer your potatoes from the baking tray to whatever dish you’re serving them in, then pour over the dressing and top with the chopped peanuts and fresh coriander. Pick out some of the crispy garlic, ginger and shallot to scatter over the salad too, if you like. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing.
I think this salad would be a great BBQ dish, so here are some other ideas to flesh it out and make it a true summer feast for your pals. You can also make these in your oven or on a griddle pan if it rains.
Lemongrass tofu burgers
I’m giving it to Tesco Real Food on this one. Their recipe for lemongrass tofu banh mi is really good, and I think it would work well on a BBQ too. Just follow the steps for the tofu and serve in a burger bun with pickly bits, salad and garlic mayo.
Grilled veg with peanut sauce
Grilling loads of veggies on the BBQ is the easiest way to get everyone fed (plus they’re tasty) so load up your grill with asparagus spears, broccoli, red peppers or whatever else you like, then mix up 3 tbsp peanut butter, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 teaspoon honey, the juice of one lime and 150ml coconut milk to make the tastiest simple sauce for drizzling or dipping. Adding chopped peanuts and fresh chillies would make this even better.
Thai basil smash
It’s a basil smash, but with Thai basil instead. Muddle a handful of fresh Thai basil in the bottom of a cocktail shaker, add 100ml gin, 50ml lime juice, 25ml sugar syrup and ice, then shake until you can’t feel your hands and strain into two ice-filled tumblers. Garnish with lime and more Thai basil.