Potato Salad with Spiced Yogurt Dressing

And an ode to Madhur Jaffrey, iconic author and rapper

Hello and welcome to this blessed Thursday recipe drop for a VERY GOOD POTATO SALAD for all your barbecue, picnic, and miscellaneous summer gathering needs. As a reminder, a new recipe drops every Thursday—they’re currently all free/all the time/for all subscribers, but in a couple of weeks some of them will go behind a paywall and will be accessible to paid subscribers only.

Let’s start with two truths and a lie:

1. I’ve karaoked with Japanese Breakfast (a.k.a. Korean icon Michelle Zauner)

2. I’ve had dinner with Madhur Jaffrey

3. I’ve been to Ina Garten’s Hamptons compound

Honestly, I’m manifesting the third one and I believe it can happen someday, even though I am not a wealthy gay man. But yes, #1 and 2 are TRUE, and honestly it’s hard to pick which experience achieves more *core* status in my core memories.

A few months back, my friend Rachel Gurjar hosted an incredible dinner at her home for Madhur Jaffrey and her husband. The occasion was simply that MJ wanted to experience Rachel’s version of the regional food of Madhya Pradesh, and I was so inspired by MJ’s curiosity about every component of the menu. She wanted to know every little thing about the sourcing, the techniques, and the flavors behind the meal. It was a humble reminder that even if you’ve been publishing cookbooks for half a century like MJ, you can always be learning. I hope to be as inquisitive when I’m 89(!!!!)

Eating Rachel’s absolutely bonkers gulab jamun. (Photo by Leanne Gan)

MJ’s Vegetarian India is among my top 10 cookbooks (I have more than 120, this is a big deal), but it’s actually her book Madhur Jaffrey’s Cookbook: Easy East/West Menus for Family that inspired this decidedly-not-Indian-but-Indian-influenced potato salad. Her “The Best, Lightest Potato Salad” from that book serves as the base for this recipe and features yogurt flavored with a tadka of cumin and mustard seeds sizzled in hot oil, which infuses the dressing with those delicious, deeply savory flavors.

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MJ keeps things very minimalist with just a few spring onion slivers mixed in, but I have a soft spot for a potato salad that’s bright and herbaceous with lots of crunchy mix-ins to keep each bite varied, which is also how I like my tuna salad. This version is brightened up with chopped cilantro, fresh lime juice, and finely chopped hot chilies, as well as a big handful of crunchy vegetables.

My signed copy of Vegetarian India *sob*

The crunchy veg are really an invitation to explore and riff, but some ideas that immediately come to mind are: blanched and thinly sliced asparagus or green beans; raw or cooked corn kernels; halved cherry tomatoes; thinly sliced fennel; diced celery; chopped pickles; a handful of toasted chopped nuts or roasted sunflower or pumpkin seeds; a sprinkling of sev (drool). If you’re a fan of a mono-textured potato salad, you could also of course omit the crunchies.

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Potato Salad with Spiced Yogurt Dressing
Serves 4–6 as a side

Ingredients
2 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into 2” pieces (if you’re using those cute tiny potatoes, keep them whole or halved and reduce cooking time as needed)
Kosher salt
½ cup plain whole-milk or non-dairy yogurt
4 scallions or spring onions, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp. neutral oil (such as vegetable, canola, or grapeseed)
½ tsp. cumin seeds
1 Tbsp. black or brown mustard seeds
½ cup chopped cilantro, plus more for serving
1–2 hot green chilies (such as serrano or jalapeño), seeds and ribs removed, finely chopped (optional)
2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 cup crunchy veg of choice (such as thinly sliced blanched asparagus or green beans, halved cherry tomatoes, raw or cooked corn kernels, or thinly sliced fennel)

Preparation

1. Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with at least an inch of water. Season the water extra-generously with kosher salt (it should make you uncomfortable!) and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once water comes to a boil, reduce heat and simmer potatoes until a small knife slides through one easily, 10–15 minutes. Drain potatoes in a colander and let cool completely. (Stick them in the fridge to speed this up. If making ahead, you can cover and chill the cooled boiled potatoes for up to 3 days.)

2. Place cooled potatoes and yogurt in a large bowl and top with scallions; keep nearby.

3. Heat oil in a small saucepan (or designated tadka spoon, hello) over medium-high heat until very hot. (Drop a cumin seed in the hot oil to test—it should immediately start aggressively sizzling.) Carefully add cumin seeds and mustard seeds to pan. Please exercise caution here, as the mustard seeds will pop like crazy (a good thing) and can pew-pew you with hot oil (a not-good thing). I hold a lid or a plate a couple of inches above the pan to shield myself from the hot popping seeds, but please feel free to find a less chaotic method that works for you. As soon as the popping starts to slow, immediately tip the contents of the pan into bowl with potatoes; season with some salt and gently toss to combine.

4. Add cilantro, chilies, lime juice, and your veg mix-in of choice and toss again. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt or lime juice. Chill until ready to serve.

5. Serve topped with more cilantro.

I’ll see you all tomorrow with a little experimental rubric I’m trying out called Simple Pleasures, which I may or may not keep depending on how we all feel about it. Subscribe if you want that in your inbox.

Love,
Chaey

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P.S. This potato salad would go great with my friend Jessie YuChen’s Hot Honey Wings and some grilled and buttered corn.

P.P.S. You didn’t think I was going to forget to mention Madhur Jaffrey, iconic rapper, did you?