A New Love for Potato Salad

One of my favorite assignments in culinary school was making potato salad. I wasn’t a big fan of this salad for a long time until I made this one. Wow! I was in heaven. It was so good! I think it was because everything was made from scratch.

Recipe & Kitchen Equipment

You’re in for a treat today! Three recipes will be shared in this one post. Yay!

Yields: 4 servings

• ½ pound of waxy potatoes
• 1 ½ fluid ounces of a basic vinaigrette
  • Vinaigrette recipe
    • 3 fluid ounces of red wine vinegar
    • 9 fluid ounce canola oil
    • 0.5 ounce dijon mustard
    • Kosher salt, to taste
    • Pepper, to taste
• Pinch of Kosher salt
• Pinch of white pepper
• 1 ½ ounce celery, small dice
• ½ ounce onion, fine chopped
• ¼ cup mayonnaise
  • Mayo recipe
    • 2 egg yolks
    • ½ teaspoon dry mustard
    • 1 ½ teaspoons white wine vinegar
    • 1 ½ teaspoons cold water
    • ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
    • 14 fluid ounce canola oil
    • Lemon juice, to taste
    • Cayenne pepper, to taste
      
• Mixing bowls/spoons/cups for mise en place ingredients
• Food scale
• Mixing bowl
• Whisk
• Saucepan
• Cutting board
• Chef knife
• Colander
• Paper towels
• Container (for storing)
• Bottle (for storing)

Cooking Instructions

Vinaigrette recipe:

1. Sanitize kitchen (sink, countertops, stovetop/oven, cupboard handles, phone, computer).
2. Mise en place ingredients.
3. Mix well with the vinegar, dijon, mustard, salt, and pepper.
4. Whisk in the oil gradually.
5. Store at room temperature.

Mayonnaise recipe:

1. Mise en place ingredients.
2. In a medium bowl, beat/whisk yolks until they become frothy and ribbon-like.
3. Add dry mustard, salt, vinegar, and cold water and beat/whisk together.
4. Add the oil, one drop at a time, until the mixture thickens and the emulsion forms.
5. Once the emulsion formulates, add the oil in a steady stream until desired thickness.
6. If the emulsion becomes too thick, add a few drops of water or lemon juice to thin it.
7. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper.
8. Refrigerate.

Potato salad recipe:

1. Scrub the potatoes.
2. Rinse the celery.
3. Cut onions and celery.
4. Mise en place ingredients.
5. Fill the saucepan with water.
6. Bring to a boil, then to a simmer.
7. Add potatoes and simmer until tender. Do not overcook.
8. Drain potatoes and leave in a colander to cool.
9. Use a paper towel to drain excess water.
10. Combine the vinaigrette, salt, and pepper in a bowl and add the potatoes.
11. Marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
12. If the potatoes do not absorb any vinaigrette, drain them off.
13. Add the onions and celery and mix gently.
14. Add the mayonnaise and mix gently until combined.
15. Keep refrigerated until ready to be served.

Emulsions in Culinary Arts

I made two emulsions: a vinaigrette, which is temporary, and mayonnaise, which is permanent.

The basic definition of an emulsion is a uniform mixture of two unmixable substances, such as oil and vinegar (Gisslen, 2018).

A temporary emulsion is when two liquids, oil, and vinegar, separate after being shaken together (Gisslen, 2018).

On the other hand, a permanent emulsion is when the two liquids don’t separate, such as mayonnaise. What holds the oil and vinegar together is a strong emulsifier. In this case, egg yolks (Gisslen, 2018).

Happy cooking,

FS x

References

Gisslen, W. (2018). Professional cooking (9th ed.). Wiley.