Potato salad is a must-have for summer barbeques, but most commonly it is bland and milquetoast. I set out to make a version that is both more healthful and tasty and over the years have come up with the recipe below. It is vegetarian but not vegan, although I’m sure vegans can tweak the recipe slightly. Next week when we have green beans again I will post my recipe for Vegetarian Nicoise Salad.
Bring a pot of water to a boil, then add a pinch of salt and 1.5 pounds of potatoes. Bring to a boil, then simmer until you can pierce the spuds easily with a knife. Drain, then rinse with cold water to cool.
Peel a red onion and cut it in half. Thinly slice the half-onion, then finely mince the slices until you have 3 T. Place the minced onions in a bowl and add 1 T. red wine vinegar. Mix to coat the onions completely and let sit for 10 minutes.
Trim 3 stalks of celery and then very thinly slice them. If the stalks are more than a half inch wide, cut the slices in half or mince them. Add the celery to the onion/vinegar mixture and stir to combine.
Pit and slice 6-8 Kalamata olives (2 T. of pitted, slice olives). Add to the bowl along with 1 t. of the olive brine.
Add 1 T. stoneground or Dijon mustard and 1 T. mayonnaise and stir to combine.
When the potatoes are cool, dice them to the size you like (peel the potatoes first if you don’t like the skins). Add the potatoes to the bowl with the other ingredients.
Peel 1 small clove of garlic, then press with a garlic press and add to the mix.
Use a large spoon to mix everything together, then add 1 t. Thai fish sauce plus salt and pepper to taste. Mix again, taste and add salt, pepper, more mayonaise or more mustard to taste.