Tangy Cucumber Salad over Golden Potatoes
I spent over a decade living up in Ohio’s Amish Country and one of the dishes I learned to love while I was there is this plate full of chaos. Tangy Cucumber Salad served over Golden Potatoes. Something about the warm and soft potatoes with the cool cucumber salad...I'm telling you, seems weird, tastes amazing! I’ve yet to find anyone else, other than the Amish that eat this dish…but If you do, I’m dying to know!
The original recipe, as it was served to me, calls for peeled and boiled potatoes but I like to leave the skind on and oven roast mine for some added crunch and flavor PLUS, it’s way easier! Obviously, Amish cucumber salad, isn't vegan but I make mine with mayo from JUST Egg and sour cream from Tofutti. Even you don’t want to go totally dairy free, this is a great veggie option on a busy weekday night!
What you are going to need to buy:
Potatoes - (We could go on and on about the kind of spuds to use, but honestly, we say, use what you like! For this recipe we like to use smaller, golden baby potatoes!)
Olive Oil
Cucumber(s)
Radishes
Yellow or White Onion
Mayo
Sour Cream
White Sugar
Vinegar
Lemon Juice
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Onion and Garlic Powder (or whatever you like to season your spuds with!)
Fresh Herbs, dill works great, but so would parsley or thyme.
What you are going to need to do:
The Spuds:
It’s hard to even really justify calling this a recipe because it’s just so easy and super flexible but since a lot of people I know have never tired it, I wanted to share it on the blog!
Preheat your oven to 375 Start by roasting your potatoes. Another reason why I like the little golden baby potatoes is because they are so easy to prepare and roast up really quick! (Think like 15 minutes or so.
I simply chop my little spuds in half, drizzle with a little olive oil, and season with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder. Roast for about 15 minutes, (or until fork tender and beginning to brown) turning once, halfway through to go get good color on both sides.
A note about measurements: How many potatoes? How many cucumbers? How much sugar? What is a splash of vinegar? Listen, friends…one of the reasons that this recipe is so great is because it’s scalable. I made it last night for just one little read head but I have served it as a side dish at garden parties for 6-10. It just depends on how many people you are serving and if it’s going to be a side or more of a main dish! Really…Don’t stress out about it too much. It’d hard to mess up!
The Salad:
Using a mandolin or a very sharp knife, carefully slice your cucumber into thin medallions. I like mine pretty thin, but feel free to make yours how you like!
Follow suite with the Radishes and Onion.
In a bowl, mix equal parts mayo and sour cream, a splash of vinegar, lemon juice, and a pinch of sugar. The idea is a dressing that will coat the veggies. It should be a little thicker…think ranch dressing consistency because the cucumbers have a lot of water in them and will thin out the mixture when tossed together.
This is, honestly, a bit of trial and error, depending on how tangy or sweet you prefer. Add you salt, black pepper, and a handful of herbs at the end. Taste, taste, taste. There is no wrong way to do this but be conservative in the beginning because you can always add more lemon juice and sugar, but you can’t take it away!
Toss the veggies with the dressing and let salad sit in the fridge to get good and cold while the potatoes finish roasting.
Assembly:
Serve the salad, over the warm potatoes and garnish with additional black pepper and herbs.
When I am making this for a crowd, I like to keep the roasted potatoes heaped on a platter and the salad in a separate bowl and allow people to plate the dish themselves so that the salad stays cool and crisp and the potatoes stay warm, right up until its time to eat!