Potatoe Salad

[Idahorn2]

Lookin' for an old fashioned recipe. Mrs Idahorn2 doesn't like it (so we never have it) and I was never that fond of my Mother's mashed potatoe version. Going on a short river trip later this month (the Mrs is out of town at a deposition) and I'm going to smoke a brisket and put it up in some Food Saver bags. Thought I'd add some ranch beans and doughball white bread. Maybe some of that condiment that cannot be named on the side.

I have in mind something with quartered red taters, some mayo, onion, dill pickles, boiled egg maybe, and some mustard as well as salt and pepper. I just don't know the proportions; or if I'm leaving something essential out of it.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[DeadHeadHorn]

Your name is "Idahorn" and you can't spell potato properly?

 

[Idahorn2]

As it happens, I can spell potatoe in at least two ways, and my copy of the O.E.D. says the way it is spelled above is acceptable, if secondary.

Now, do you have a recipe?

 

[Sucklebuster]

Idahorn,

(Here is base recipe if you like to experiment)

Prepare about 3 ½ lbs of potatoes, add a cup and a half of mayo, from there everything is bonus, pick the ones you like: chopped dills, 1 med onion chopped, 1/4 to 1/2 cup jalapeños (I REALLY like these) + pour some of the juice from the jar, 3 stalks chopped celery, 3 green onions, 2 chopped eggs…others option abound.

Then for seasoning – 1+ tablespoons mustard, salt (lots of salt) and pepper to taste, cumin works great on tater salad and paprika on top.

Variations:
- Cook 6 slices of bacon, set to side. Sauté onions, celery and green onions in 2 tablespoons of bacon grease. Add to salad.

- Mix it and then serve warm.

Here is a detailed recipe if you would rather use it:The Link

Good luck, sounds like a fun trip.

SuckleBuster

 

[Idahorn2]

Thanks Sucklebuster, that sounds like it starts off classic and can be really kicked up. All but one guy on the trip likes hot stuff. Japs never would have come to mind, but that is a great idea; maybe just a few.

 

[mayberryrfd]

Ida,

One of the things I like to do is mix the mayo and mustard together before adding. I don't measure out my ingredients so I can't help you there but I do know what color yellow I like my salad to be and that is what I go for when I mix those two ingredients together-then fold into the potatoes.

You can put anything in it. I like mine very plain with eggs, relish, salt, pepper. My mom adds diced celery, onions, green peppers, and pimiento to my list. Then she also adds a little pickle juice.

 

[bularry]

I am going from memory, so my proportions may be a bit off, but here is a great roasted potato salad I like to make in the summer.

cube in bite size pieces 2-3 lbs of red potatoes.

toss them in a bowl with 8-12 peeled garlic cloves, salt and pepper and enough olive oil to coat.

spread the potatoes and garlic on a baking sheet and bake at 325 until tneder.

in a blender, mix one cup mayo, 1 tbs of mustard (use whole grain cajun mustard), juice of 1/2 lemon and a lot of cilantro, at least 1/2 cup or more. blend together.

put potatoes and garlic in a bowl. Add thinly sliced purple onion, sliced boiled eggs ( amount to taste preference) and then toss with the dressing.

damn good and pretty easy.

 

[DallasCowpoke]

Dijon Dill Potato Salad

3 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 stalks celery
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup mayonnaise
1 small red onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup tightly packed chopped fresh dill
1 to 2 tablespoons vinegar
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon grainy or regular Dijon mustard

(This is one of those recipes that I have in my collection, that I don't keep directions with. And quite frankly, if you need them, you really shouldn't be in the kitchen in the first place.)

CPU

 

[DeadHeadHorn]

Re: spelling, Dan Quayle agrees

And I don't have a set recipe for potato salad, but I do like to whip up some chipotle mayo and add it to the potatoes just after they've been cubed, boiled, and cooled a tad (I think you still want them to be warm so that the mayo sticks better or something).

I keep mine pretty simple though - chop some onions (I like sweet yellow onions that have been sweated), garlic, dill, potatoes, and said chipotle mayo. I tried my best to rip off Salt Lick's potato salad and that's what I came up with.

One concern - if you're going to be storing it and eating it a day or two later on the river trip, mayo might present a food poisoning threat. I assume you'll be keeping it cool in an icechest?

 

[shorty]

I do ot have a set recipe either. I cube 2-3 pounds of potatoes and cook them in water until they are tender. Drain and put back in the hot empty pan (this will dry the potatoes of some of their moisture). 4-6 hardboiled eggsdiced, 1/2 cup diced onion, 1/4 c. finely diced celery, large drained jar of diced pimentos, 1/2 cup diced dill pickles, a cup or more of mayo until creamy, and 2-3 tablespoons of mustard. Mix ingredients well. The cubed potatoes will maintain most of their shape but there will be some creamy potatoes mixed with your dressing that is a very pleasant texture. I do not like mashed potato potato salad either nor do I like the texture of the boiled, peeled, and cubed potatoes.

Variations include using half mayo and half olive oil, half mayo and half sour cream, half mayo and half cream cheese, and half mayo and half plain yogurt. I have seen recipes that add roasted diced pecans (mmmmm). One recipe called for green olives in place of dill pickles. That sounds good too. Add some crisp crumpled bacon to give it a smoky flavor.

 

[shorty]

When you make it, a ration of 2:1 of onion:celery is best. If you add the same amount of celery as onion it is too much celery. However much onion you use, put in 1/2 the amount of celery.

 

[1990txgirl]

Mine isn't old-fashioned (traditional), but easy and tasty. We had a family cookout over the weekend and it was a big hit. I also don't use measurements, but here's my best guess:

2-3 lbs. red potatoes, 1 1/2 in. cubes
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
4-6 hard boiled eggs (whites only), 3/4 in. dice
1/2 c. flat leaf parsley (a handful), coarsely chopped
1/3 c. chopped green onion
2-4 T. mayonnaise
1 T. Dijon mustard
Sea salt
Freshly ground pepper

1) Cook potatoes, be careful not to over cook. Start with the potatoes in a pot of cold water; after it boils, cook for appox. 15 minutes.
2) Sweat onions (I think this is crucial; it really softens the bite); I like to caramelize them slightly.
3) Mix it all together! Salt and pepper to taste.

The amount of mayo and Dijon is really to taste, depending on how moist or mustardy you prefer your potato salad. This is a basic recipe; you can do a lot to dress it up.

Have fun on your trip!

 

[pigboy1]

Make any classic Potato Salad, mustard, mayo, or both....but add some Italian Olive Salad (Muffalata Mix) to the salad. Use as much as your taste for olives allows and I garon-damn-tee it's the best Potato Salad you will ever eat. Put it in Gumbo Ya Ya and you will slap yo'self before Mama even gets to the table!

 

[Idahorn2]

Thanks a lot folks, your suggestions are very helpful.

 

[DRAG69]

I don't have the exact recipe but I saw Emeril make this once and I tried it and it was easy and tasty.....

Boil small new potatoes and cut in half...

Chop some garlic and some shallots and cilantro.

Put the cooked potatoes in a large bowl.
Drizzle with a small amount of extra virgin olive oil.
Add garlic, shallots and cilantro.
Mix in some mayo.
Salt and peper to tatse.

That is it.

It is simple and very good.

 

[Idahorn2]

DeadHead,

Thanks for your suggestion on keeping the mayo type stuff cool. This is only a four day trip and my 14' raft carries two 100 quart coolers; there will be plenty of room for a little Q and some ice as well as some beers and all our other foodstuffs.

We are not tubing the Guadalupe; its a snow-melt river in Northeastern Oregon called the Grande Ronde. Pretty canyon, but no real whitewater. Not to demean the Guadalupe, one of my first raft trips was in '70 in a 7' Dayton Sportyak on the cold stretch below the dam and that sort of thing led directly to what we are doing on 23-26 June.

 

[spystud13]

Ida, I know nothing about rafting (although I wish I did)... How much food and/or beer will you be taking on this trip?

 

[Idahorn2]

Not sure exactly how many folks are coming along, but it looks like around ten in three boats. If we were to meet, you would immediately realize that I do not miss very many meals; we always have three squares a day.

We haven't finalized the menus for the whole trip, but our first will likely be the brisket Saturday night. I figure about 7 lb of brisket should be enough, even if we have leftovers for breakfast. Potatoe salad, ranch beans and maybe a dessert.

With my new Food Saver vacuum sealer toy, I'd like to get adventurous for breakfast. Camps are usually divided between those who like a big protein thing like ham and eggs and those who want bagels and granola or something like that. I will propose Spam fried rice, made in advance and sealed up in the bags. For ten, I would use three or four cans of Spam and two dozen eggs as well as up to three bunches of scallions. With some soy sauce and Sri Racha, this stuff will keep me rowing all day. If I can't talk them into trying the Spam, I'll use ham chunks. A couple of us have stainless French Presses, so there will be enough coffee.

Lunches are cold cut sandwiches although I have cribbed some menus from a company, PRO, Inc., that outfits (but doesn't guide) Grande Canyon trips for private boaters. Not real sure what a Tabouli salad is, but that is one of their lunches. I will look around for a recipe. If we stick to sandwiches, I'll get a few loaves of Oroweat Jewish rye, some Boars Head salami, and three/four containers of chive and onion cream cheese. Ham and mayo for those with more pedestrian tastes. Pringles and some fruit--which also was available for breakfast. TreeTop makes some really good fruit juices that are not too sweet and come in little plastic bottles- we'll get a case or two at Costco.

Not sure what dinner will be Sunday night, maybe School Lunch Beef Stew, sausage marinara and spaghetti, King Ranch Chicken, Carne Guisada, or frito pie. I don't get to make all the meals, but Big and Little Idahornski make a fabulous King Ranch Chicken.

Monday breakfast is still open. I think I will propose grilled sausages (I have a little bitty Weber propane grill I got for tailgating) in flour tortillas. I may get shot down on this. Monday lunch: second verse, same as the first.

Monday dinner will probably be grilled ribeyes with Bearnaise sauce. Creamed spinach, roasted or cheesy potatoes of some sort, and a Caesar salad. (For Salmon River trips, the US Forest Service requires that we have a "fire pan" for cooking with charcoal and for campfires.) We make a cherry-chocolate dump cake for those who like dessert. A Devil's Food cake mix package, 3/4 cup shredded coconut, two cans of cherry pie filling and 20 oz of Cherry Coke. I stir together the cake mix and coconut in a 12" Dutch Oven, then pour on the cherry pie filling and then the Coke. No stirring. Several hot briquets under the D.O. and some more on the lid. I put in the coconut so I can tell the ladies that weevils got into the cake mix. All the women on this trip have already heard this, but I'll do it anyhow.

Tuesday breakfast will probably be the last meal on the river, so we will make it quick and dirty. Coffee, granola bars, fruit, that kind of thing. I will probably stash away for myself some cold Jimmy Dean sausage and leftover biscuits in a Food Saver bag.

We are equipped to do all this with 4 different aluminum Dutch Ovens, two and four burner heavy duty propane stoves, two fire pans, big water jugs, several tables (one of which doubles as a raft bench) and all the sundry implements and clean up gear.

Naturally we will have some beer and whisky; Big Idahornski has a hand-cranked blender so we are likely to have some Margaritas. For ten people and three nights, maybe three cases of beer, or the equivalent, as a minimum. It is better to bring some home than not have enough. I am wondering how one or two of the new Heineken small kegs would go. I don't drink beer on the river (but this one is so easy I could.) and rarely more than two or three when we take out. I move to the more efficient Makers pretty quickly.

This is not a big trip. In August, we are planning to do the Lower Salmon River, about an eighty mile stretch in 6-7 days. Much bigger water and some really big rapids.

 

[spystud13]

Damn, you eat better on the water than I do on land! These are my two favorite quotes:

In reply to:

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[Idahorn2]

After 6 days on the Salmon, or 18+ through the Grand Canyon, you would get pretty tired of the sausage wraps. If I ever get a permit for the Grand Canyon, I would take along at least a fifth of rum, just for the variety.

Our meals may be slightly more refined (Bearnaise, creamed spinach) than some, but this really is how it is done. I know lots of river outfitters and guides, current and former, and they do it up right for their paying guests. We try to do it even a little better for ourselves.

You don't have to carry the stuff on your back, so why not? Once you have the gear (and there is quite a bit of it) it is just a matter of planning the meals, buying the food, and getting it done. Hell, if you weren't rafting, you would still be eating something.

Still, the food is not the main thing. If I could get a Grand Canyon trip on which no food other than MRE's would be available, I would go in a heartbeat. Taking on the water is the big attraction. I would want a bigger boat, though. The outfitting company mentioned above has a tongue-in-cheek food list based on the provisions John Wesley Powell used when he did the Colorado through the Grand Canyon in 1869: bacon, flour, dried apples, coffee. Such a cuisine would not be easy, but I would go for it if it meant a chance at the Colorado

 

[THEU]

Ida, I might be one of the very few who greatly enjoy your spelling of potatoe seeing as I use such spellings as colour, neighbour, realise... etc. I will say I am also proud of so many posters on this board. I find 'traditional' potatoe salad to HAVE TO HAVE mustard. I can't stand to eat the stuff without it. Not a traditional potatoe salad. The only type I can eat without musard also has no mayo. I don't have a recipe of a German type, which would use a vinagrette rather than mayo based, but you might consider this type for going on a river trip. I know you will be where it is cool and seems like you have a viable way to keep that mayo nice and cool. I really do get a bit panicky about mayo spoiling though. Does anyone on here know if Miracle Whip is better at keeping than real Mayo is? I grew up here in Texas so my mom was a Miracle Whip person. We never had real mayo in the house. Just food for thought.

 

[DeadHeadHorn]

Damn, sounds like a helluva trip. I like getting a little gourmet when you're out in the wilderness.

Have a great time.

 

[Idahorn2]

Please do not concern yourselves with keeping stuff cold. We always dump ice at the take out on 6+ day trips. Now if we were doing 18+ days on the Colorado, trips often have mac and cheese with tuna on the last day. With dry ice, I have been on 6 day trips where we had hard ice cream on the last night. Of course, I have also screwed up the dry ice which left us with vanilla milk shake to make Bananas Foster on the second night.

The PRO, Inc., people have an elaborate system for keeping stuff cold. The start by freezing ice in layers (so there is no hump in the middle and very few air bubbles) and dropping the ice's temperature down well below zero. Then they pack it in coolers with the frozen foods, then freeze the coolers themselves. Extra care is taken to insulate the coolers en route to the river and keep them covered while on the river. If it means rocks for my bourbon the last night, it is money well spent.

One of my extra duties in the Army was as a Mess Officer. I learned a few things about food poisoning, including that the concerns about mayo are overstated, but, like not eating pinkish pork, it is best to just stay away from it. The thing that really stuck with me, though, is never feed the troops Polar bear liver. Toxic levels of Vitamin A. Really.

We have heard there are some little gourmets in NE Oregon, so I plan to bait a set of traps every night just upstream from our camp. S&P, flour, egg wash, bread crumbs, and hot oil and you have a tasty breakfast.