potato salad with homemade tartar sauce, mustard and fresh dill

 

further explorations into the zen of making potato salad 

I never know where my love of mustard and dill will take me but playing together in a potato salad is a nice selection on the road of top ten hits headed to mealtime.  It's summertime and that's a time for potato salads and homemade pickles but showing up together in a salad -now we are talking about good stuff.  Dijon mustard and fresh dill in a creamy tartar sauce combined with warm lemony virgin olive oil coated  red potatoes cut with the likes of fragrant pickle brine, lemon juice and apple cider vinegar -waking up all those acidic taste zones.  I'm happy with my potato salad concoction and will serve it with just about anything we grill these days, like tonight's butcher made chicken and beef kabobs- yes bring on a bowl of potato salad straight from the fridge-all the work is done ahead in the morning while the house is still cool.  I may have to slice up a cold watermelon, throw together a grilled corn arugula salad -but all that goes quick and dinner is served.

Ingredients and Recipe for Potato Salad with Homemade Tartar Sauce, Mustard and Fresh Dill

Serves 6

2 & 1/2 pounds medium small red potatoes

2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/2 lemon, juiced, divided

2/3 cup avocado mayonnaise 

1/3 cup minced bread and butter pickles, plus 2 tablespoons pickle brine

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar 

2 tablespoons capers, drained and minced

1 teaspoonful dijon mustard

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to a taste

1/2 cup fresh dill, minced

Fill a large pot with salted water and bring to a boil.  Add the potatoes and cook until tender when pierced with a sharp knife, about 15-20 minutes.  Drain and transfer potatoes to a cutting board, when cool enough to handle peel and slice the potatoes.  Drizzle with 2-3 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon lemon juice.  Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Meanwhile, make the tartar sauce.  In a large bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, minced pickles, pickle brine, apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, minced capers, mustard, sea salt and black pepper.

Stir the olive oil coated potatoes into the tartar sauce along with the fresh minced dill.  Chill and check seasoning before serving.