Nigel Slater's Recipes for Fried New Potatoes and Arugula Mayonnaise, and Broad Beans with Radish
There was roast chicken, the lemony juices still warm dripping onto the plate; the rustle of sautéed potatoes with glazed cucumber and a smear of peppery mayonnaise with chopped arugula. A seemingly effortless summer lunch, hiding the fact that I had made the mayonnaise by hand - there's no more perfect complement to a summer lunch - and scrubbed every potato, some of which was barely bigger than a broad bean.
The second salad, served on a pass-through platter, was a broad bean, radish and pecorino salad, a salad so the essence of early summer and dressed with appropriate simplicity. I won't complicate those early summer lunches, but rather take care of peeling the beans and rubbing the potatoes or whisking an egg yolk and oil dressing until shines and stands tall. Summer tasks as old as the hills.
These first lunches of the season are celebrations, where the wise cook knows how to respect the ingredients and keep it simple, not cluttering up his recipes with unnecessary additions, but to let the young crops do the talking - beans and radishes, cucumbers, new potatoes and soft leafy herbs.
Fried new potatoes, cucumber and arugula mayonnaiseWhen mayonnaise has to play the main role, I make it myself. I like that it has a slight olive note, so I mainly use vegetable oil, adding only a little olive oil. Made entirely with the olive, I find the flavor too strong and gritty, especially if it's to contain chopped watercress or arugula.
The contrast of hot and cold fried, salt-dusted potatoes and chilled cucumber here are as good as they get, but they're also pretty good when served with slices of chicken, roasted and left to rest until tender. 'they're just warm. For 2-3 people
new potatoes 500gpeanut or vegetable oil for frying cucumber 250ganeth 1 small bunch
For the mayonnaise: egg yolks 2 Dijon mustard 2 tsp white wine vinegar 2 tbsp sunflower or vegetable oil 200 ml olive oil 100 ml arugula 25 juice glemon 1 tbsp, to taste
Rub, but do not peel potatoes. Put them in a steamer basket over a pot of boiling water and cover tightly with a lid. Let the potatoes steam until tender at the tip of a knife, test after 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and cut each potato into 3 or 4 thick pieces, depending on their size, and put them in a large mixing bowl.
Prepare the mayonnaise: put the egg yolks in a large bowl, add the mustard, a pinch of salt and the white wine vinegar and whisk briefly to combine. Introduce the vegetable oil, first drop by drop, whisking between each addition, then pour in the rest in a slow, steady stream, whisking continuously. When you have used up the vegetable oil, start adding the olive oil, tasting as you go.
Finely chop the arugula, then stir it into mayonnaise with a few drops of oil lemon juice to taste. Cover and set aside.
Fry the potatoes: Heat the oil in a shallow pan, add the sliced potatoes and cook for 7-10 minutes at medium heat until golden brown and starting to crisp on the underside. Flip the potatoes with kitchen tongs or a palette knife and lightly brown the other side. Salt them, then remove them from the pan. While cooking, peel the cucumber with a vegetable peeler and cut it in half lengthwise. Scrape out the moist pit and seeds with a teaspoon, then cut the cucumber into finger thick slices.
Thinly chop the dill. Gently toss the potatoes, cucumber and dill, then divide between 2 or 3 plates and top each with a small mound of arugula mayonnaise.
Broad beans with radish and pecorino
There was roast chicken, the lemony juices still warm dripping onto the plate; the rustle of sautéed potatoes with glazed cucumber and a smear of peppery mayonnaise with chopped arugula. A seemingly effortless summer lunch, hiding the fact that I had made the mayonnaise by hand - there's no more perfect complement to a summer lunch - and scrubbed every potato, some of which was barely bigger than a broad bean.
The second salad, served on a pass-through platter, was a broad bean, radish and pecorino salad, a salad so the essence of early summer and dressed with appropriate simplicity. I won't complicate those early summer lunches, but rather take care of peeling the beans and rubbing the potatoes or whisking an egg yolk and oil dressing until shines and stands tall. Summer tasks as old as the hills.
These first lunches of the season are celebrations, where the wise cook knows how to respect the ingredients and keep it simple, not cluttering up his recipes with unnecessary additions, but to let the young crops do the talking - beans and radishes, cucumbers, new potatoes and soft leafy herbs.
Fried new potatoes, cucumber and arugula mayonnaiseWhen mayonnaise has to play the main role, I make it myself. I like that it has a slight olive note, so I mainly use vegetable oil, adding only a little olive oil. Made entirely with the olive, I find the flavor too strong and gritty, especially if it's to contain chopped watercress or arugula.
The contrast of hot and cold fried, salt-dusted potatoes and chilled cucumber here are as good as they get, but they're also pretty good when served with slices of chicken, roasted and left to rest until tender. 'they're just warm. For 2-3 people
new potatoes 500gpeanut or vegetable oil for frying cucumber 250ganeth 1 small bunch
For the mayonnaise: egg yolks 2 Dijon mustard 2 tsp white wine vinegar 2 tbsp sunflower or vegetable oil 200 ml olive oil 100 ml arugula 25 juice glemon 1 tbsp, to taste
Rub, but do not peel potatoes. Put them in a steamer basket over a pot of boiling water and cover tightly with a lid. Let the potatoes steam until tender at the tip of a knife, test after 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and cut each potato into 3 or 4 thick pieces, depending on their size, and put them in a large mixing bowl.
Prepare the mayonnaise: put the egg yolks in a large bowl, add the mustard, a pinch of salt and the white wine vinegar and whisk briefly to combine. Introduce the vegetable oil, first drop by drop, whisking between each addition, then pour in the rest in a slow, steady stream, whisking continuously. When you have used up the vegetable oil, start adding the olive oil, tasting as you go.
Finely chop the arugula, then stir it into mayonnaise with a few drops of oil lemon juice to taste. Cover and set aside.
Fry the potatoes: Heat the oil in a shallow pan, add the sliced potatoes and cook for 7-10 minutes at medium heat until golden brown and starting to crisp on the underside. Flip the potatoes with kitchen tongs or a palette knife and lightly brown the other side. Salt them, then remove them from the pan. While cooking, peel the cucumber with a vegetable peeler and cut it in half lengthwise. Scrape out the moist pit and seeds with a teaspoon, then cut the cucumber into finger thick slices.
Thinly chop the dill. Gently toss the potatoes, cucumber and dill, then divide between 2 or 3 plates and top each with a small mound of arugula mayonnaise.
Broad beans with radish and pecorinoWhat's Your Reaction?
