I'm starting to get that seasonal craving and nostalgia for cold soups and picnic foods. It started with the gazpacho and moved on to pasta salad (which was super delicious the next day, fyi). My desire for a not-so-traditional potato salad has hit much earlier this year than in years prior...but it happened with full force this week.
As someone who doesn't love the diced-or-mashed-into-oblivion-gooped-up-with-mayo version of this dish, I keep trying to think of ways to utilize other binders like creme fraiche or yogurt. The notion came to me to do a remixed version. Gyros and Mediterranean flavors are some of my favorites and a tzatziki-like Greek yogurt base for potato salad seemed like a natural fit. The tangy coating and crunchy veggies are a nice compliment to the potatoes. The heat from the chili can be adjusted to your liking. I am allergic to fresh dill so I used parsley in my batch - dill, mint or any combination of herbs would be delicious here.
Tzatziki Style Potato Salad - serves 4 to 6 as a side
- 2 pounds baby new potatoes - scrubbed and cut into even sized chunks
- 1 7 ounce container of Greek-style plain yogurt such as Fage
- 1 medium cucumber - seeded, peeled and cut into chunks
- 1/2 medium red onion - thinly sliced
- 1 small thai red chili - seeded and finely diced. substitute 1/4 tsp red chili flakes if you'd rather.
- zest of 1/2 a lemon
- 1/4 cup roughly chopped mint, dill or parsley
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- In a large pot, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Salt the water and add the potatoes. Cook until fork tender, about 10 minutes in my case. Cook time will depend on the size of your chunks. While the potatoes are cooking, mix all other ingredients except the salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl. When the potatoes are fork tender, drain thoroughly and allow to cool. Gently fold into yogurt mixture. Salt and pepper to taste. This is another one of those things that tastes better as it sits so I would allow it to percolate for around an hour before you serve