This no-mayo Potato Salad recipe is easy to prepare and is delicious with great flavor and a little heat from Calabrian Chili peppers. If you don’t like heat I doubt you will make this recipe. I thought fennel, fresh marjoram and toasted pine nuts rounded out the salad in a vinaigrette. I do note I started with about 3 pounds of potatoes but after I peeled and trimmed off the spots I bet I had maybe 1/2 a pound less. I do also recommend to let the salad sit at least half a day before trying it out as the flavors will change and to pull it out of the refrigerator and warm to at least room temperature to serve.

Ingredients for about 8 servings

3 lbs potatoes – peeled, cut in halves, in a pot of cold water with a Tablespoon of salt

1/4 large sweet onion – to boil with potatoes to infuse flavor and toss out when potatoes are boiled.

1 garlic clove – to boil with potatoes to infuse flavor and discard when potatoes are boiled

1 hot pepper – to boil with potatoes to infuse flavor and discard when potatoes are boiled

1/3 cup sweet onion – very thinly sliced

1 baby fennel with some of the fronds – remove core – slice very thin. (bigger fennel will need a peel) Save some of the fronds

2 Calabrian Chili Peppers – stem removed and chop very fine

1 teaspoon of oil from Calabrian Chili Peppers

2 sprigs fresh marjoram

1/4 cup toasted pinenuts (I put in a 350 degree F oven and they took a little over 5 minutes to get color)

4 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

4 Tablespoons lemon juice – fresh squeezed

4 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 Tablespoon dijon mustard

1 garlic clove – ground to paste

1 Tablespoon course sea salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

Set your oven to 350 degrees and set a timer for 5 minutes and put your pine nuts in the oven. They will be done in 5-10 minutes. After that they burn.

Get your potatoes in a pot with the hot pepper, 1/4 onion, 1 T salt and one clove of garlic. Put the pot on to boil (a little under high so it doesn’t boil over). Depending on the size of your potatoes they should take between 10-15 minutes. You want them to be fork tender. When done drain and set to the side. (Throw out the onion, pepper and garlic clove..they were used only to infuse flavor and they are garbage now)

While your potatoes are cooking you can prepare the vinaigrette. In a small bowl add olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, sugar, dijon, garlic (ground to paste), 1 T sea salt, 1/2 t black pepper. Mix well.

By now your potatoes are done and should be cool enough to handle. You want the potatoes in   bigger than bite size pieces because they will break some as you stir them. When the potatoes are the size you want put them in a large bowl. Pour the dressing over the warm potatoes and let it soak in.

Top the bowl with the onion, fennel, use about 1/3 of the fronds ( just pull them off in small pieces) Calabrian peppers, Calabrian oil, marjoram. Gently toss.

I suggest to put away the potato for at least a half day or over night because the flavors will change. If you wait till overnight the salad develops a slight creamiest from the potatoes.

When ready to use either serve warm or room temperature and add top with fresh roasted pine nuts. It’s Delicious! If you can do a little spicy you will love it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I whipped up these Asian Inspired Meatballs that came out really FORKING delicious but I didn’t publish the recipe because they were not the correct texture for a meatball. My husband brilliantly said the meatballs would be really great stuffed into wonton wrappers so that is what I did. It’s really easy to stuff a meatball into wonton wrappers. You just wet with water both sides of the wonton wrapper, insert meatball, apply top wrapper, Just clench your hand and everything is wrapped up tight. You can serve the Wontons a variety of ways. As a dumpling in soup, you can make them like potstickers or serve with a variety of dipping sauces. The brown sauce I whipped up pictured in the left hand bottom corner was really FORKING Delicious….I didn’t write down exactly how I made it but I know I used basically all the same flavoring I put into the meatballs…but with a few adjustments……I know I went heavier with the hoisin sauce and I think I went heavier with the garlic…..but it was pretty close to what I put in the meatballs.

Ingredients for about 8 servings

1 lb beef (mine was fresh ground sirloin, chuck, brisket and rib in about equal amounts)

1/2 cup onion – chopped fine

1 carrot shredded

3 Tablespoons soy sauce

2 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 Tablespoon shaohsing rice wine

1 Tablespoon garlic that was ground to a paste

2 Tablespoons gochujang

1 teaspoon red chili flakes

1 Tablespoon ginger – fresh grated

1 Tablespoon honey

1 Tablespoon dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon hoisen sauce

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

3 XL eggs – slightly beaten

1 cup millet – cooked (next time I’ll try rice…..)

1 Tablespoon (scant) sea salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 cup panko

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

non-stick spray – canola or vegetable

a package of wonton wrappers

1 Tablespoon salt to boil wontons in.

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray baking sheets with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl mix together all the ingredients.

Use a small scoop and make your meatballs.

If you have the same size scoop as mine you might get around 41 balls.

Leave in oven until done.

In my oven they got done in 15 minutes.

When the meatballs are done let them cool on the counter. When cool portion the meatballs. Freeze some if you want to and leave out what you want.

You need two wonton wrappers per meatball.

Get a small dish of water and quickly dip the top side of the wrapper.

Place meatball in the middle of the wrapper.

Get another wrapper and wet one side of the wrapper and place over the meatball.

Put it in your hand and squeeze it shut.

Get a pot of boiling water on and add a little salt.

Boil them about a minute or two and serve with assorted sauces or in a broth based soup.

Forking DELICIOUS….!

 

 

 

 

 

I got a bunch of serrano chiles and I already got a big jar of them that I pickled that are tasty. I searched the web to come up with another idea. I read from the Brokeass Gourmet that the serrano chiles get sweet when you fry them in olive oil. The brokeass Gourmet said something like you can keep eating them like shishito peppers but the serranos are even more delicious so I thought I’d give it a try since I got a bunch of serranos here.

Ingredients for about 20 servings

1 lb serrano chiles – with a small slit in the bottom tip of each chili

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

sea salt to finish (I used Pink Australian Flake Salt)

Directions

In a big heavy bottomed fry pan add the oil and put on medium heat. When the oil is hot add the peppers and cook till blistered and charred. Serve right away!

My peppers came out hot and spicy! I think the blistered serranos would be delicious on a sandwich or tacos, maybe in a potato salad…..

Thank You Brokeass Gourmet for a different way to do serrano chilies. Although mine are too spicy for me to just eat however they still came out delicious! I froze most of mine so I can use them as needed.

The Forking Truth is that for most people the serranos are too hot to just eat.

Maybe different times of the year the peppers are mild enough to just eat????