American-Style Potato Salad
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
The Potato Base. Halve 3 pounds of “boiling” potatoes and slice 3/16 inch thick. Boil in lightly salted water for 3 to 5 minutes, just until tender. Drain out cooking water, then cover the pan and let sit 3 to 4 minutes, to firm up. In a large mixing bowl, gently fold the slices with salt, pepper, 1/2 cup minced onions, and 3/4 cup chicken broth; let sit for a few minutes, then very gently fold and let sit twice more.
Step 2
The Finish. Fold in a finely chopped dill pickle, 3 or 4 chopped hard-boiled eggs, 3 or 4 finely diced tender celery ribs, and 4 or 5 strips of crumbled crisp bacon. Let salad cool, then fold in enough mayonnaise just to enrobe the potatoes. Correct seasoning, and garnish if you wish with hard-boiled eggs and parsley.
Variations
Step 3
FRENCH POTATO SALAD. Prepare the potato base as described, and, while still warm, fold in olive oil, chopped parsley, and seasonings to taste. Let cool.
Step 4
WARM POTATO SALAD WITH SAUSAGES. Prepare the French potato salad above, and serve warm with generous slices of delicious warm sausage.
Processor Mayonnaise
Step 5
Break 1 whole egg into the container of a food processor, add 2 egg yolks, and process 30 to 45 seconds, or until thick and lemon-colored. With the machine running, add 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice and/or wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon Dijon-type mustard, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and several grinds of white pepper. Still with the machine running, and by very small dribbles at first, start adding up to 2 cups of olive oil and/or vegetable oil. After about 1/2 cup has gone in, add the oil a little faster, until you have a thick mayonnaise. Taste carefully, processing in lemon or vinegar and seasonings as needed.
Step 6
Storage. Refrigerate in a covered container; the sauce will keep for about a week. Note that a chilled sauce can sometimes turn or thin out when stirred up—best to transfer it by spoonfuls into a warmed mixing bowl, whisking as you add each to the bowl.
Step 7
Troubleshooting. If the sauce separates or thins out, let it sit for several minutes, until the oil has risen over the clotted residue. Spoon as much of the oil as you quite easily can into a separate bowl. Dip a tablespoon of the residue into a clean bowl. By hand or with a portable mixer, whisk it vigorously with 1/2 tablespoon of Dijon-type mustard until creamed and thickened. Then by half teaspoons at first, whisk in additional residue, letting the sauce cream and thicken after each addition. Finally, continue with the oil, adding it by dribbles. (Note that using the same techniques you can also accomplish this in the electric blender.)
