Spicy Warm Potato Salad

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Spicy Warm Potato Salad

 

Serve this salad on its own as a side dish, or as part of a mezze

platter of quickly prepared things such as homemade houmous,

slow-roasted tomatoes, a rocket or other green salad, smoked aubergines

or just a plate of grilled peppers, doused in lemon juice, olive oil and

crushed garlic. Or double the quantities for a more substantial meal.

You need a floury potato such as King Edward, all the better to absorb

the dressing with. Serve warm, with a slab of feta cheese, which you cut

into thin morsels to place on top of each potato slice. Serve with tiny

dabs of harissa.

 

Serves 2

2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into slices about 1cm thick

3 tbsp olive oil, quite green and rough

1 tbsp coriander, chopped

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

pinch of paprika

1-2 tsp cumin seeds

 

To serve:

olive oil for frying

2 or more flour tortillas

feta cheese

harissa (Spicy Chili Paste)

 

1. Boil the potatoes in plenty of salted water until they are very soft:

almost, but not quite, to breaking point. Drain well.

 

2. Put them in a bowl and pour over the olive oil, add the coriander and

season with salt and pepper. Mix very gently.

 

3. Lay the potato slices flat on a plate and pour the olive dressing

they were just mixed in on top. Sprinkle with paprika.

 

4. Toast the cumin seeds for a few seconds in a dry frying pan and let

them be your finishing touch.

 

5. To serve, make a quick imitation of a real Arabic bread – melawah

– that is difficult to find and notoriously difficult to make (or so I

have always been told). Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan and fry

the tortillas for about 30 seconds on either side. Serve with the feta

cheese and harissa.