This summer potato salad with tahini dressing is my first recipe for the New Year! I hope everyone has had a wonderful Christmas/Holiday break, I basically spent 2 week just relaxing at home, feasting with family and friends and making plans for the new year. We were tempted to go away for the break but sometimes it’s just great to stay put and relax at home. Definitely way more relaxing than running around! So this is the first recipe for this year and it’s kind of a mix between eastern european flavours and middle east. The dill, red onion, potatoes and beans are a typical eastern euro flavour combo…and cold potato salads…I grew up on those! I’ve made a traditional dressing from the middle east which is just lemon juice, yoghurt and tahini (and olive oil of course!). This salad is great, enjoy it as a side dish with any meat or other vegetables. This recipe was created to showcase Kestrel Potatoes from Harris Farm Markets, and I’ve added some information below about these potatoes, as well as more information about tahini dressings! Give it a go and let me know if you like!
Kestrel potatoes
Kestrel potatoes have a purple blush on their skin and come in various sizes. They are great for boiling and roasting and have a wonderful flavor. When used for boiling their skin comes off easily, making them a great and easy potato to cook with. The kestrel potatoes that i’ve cooked with come from South Australia and you can find them in stores such as Harris Farm Markets.
Lemon yoghurt tahini dressing
You can serve this lemon yoghurt tahini dressing with other meals. Some good serving suggestions include:
- Over the top of garlic roasted sweet potato wedges
- Roasted kestrel potatoes
- Roast chicken or grilled chicken breast
- Lamb cutlets with raw herbs
- Roasted cherry tomatoes and capsicums
Tahini Yoghurt dressing variations
Add any of these for an extra punch of flavour!
- Crushed raw garlic or caramelised sweet garlic
- Fresh basil
- Fresh oregano
- Cayenne peppper
- Sumac
- Chipotle
RECIPE FOR SUMMER POTATO SALAD WITH TAHINI DRESSING
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Serves: 6
Ingredients
6 x large Kestrel potatoes
1 x can of red kidney beans
1 x bunch of dill
1 x red onion
5 x stems of shallots (white and green part, ends removed)
1 x Lemon (juice and zest)
¾ cup yoghurt (Harris Farm brand)
¼ cup of tahini (hulled, mix the sesame paste with the oil if separates in the jar)
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
olive oil
salt
pepper
Method
- Place the potatoes with their skin still on into a large pot of water (see note below). Fill the pot with water about ¾ full or just enough so the potatoes are completely covered. Cover the pot with a lid and bring to the boil. After approx. 10 minutes or once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 30 or more minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through. The potatoes are cooked once the skin has cracked slightly and has a soft consistent texture in the centre of the potato. Use a fork to pierce through to the centre of the potato to see if it’s completely cooked. Once cooked, let the potatoes cool down. Once the potatoes have cooled down, peel the skin off, then cut each potato into quarters or smaller and place into the fridge. Move on to prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Rinse the canned red kidney beans. Roughly chop the dill, finely dice the red onion, and roughly chop the shallots. Place these prepped ingredients into a large mixing bowl.
- To prepare the lemon yoghurt tahini dressing place the lemon juice and zest, the yoghurt, tahini as well as a large drizzle of olive oil (approx. 3 tbsp) and a pinch of salt, into a food processor. Process until smooth and creamy and has a similar thickness and texture to what mayonnaise has (see note). Set aside.
- Once the potatoes are cold, place them into the large mixing bowl along with the red kidney beans, dill, red onion, shallots. Add the apple cider vinegar, a drizzle of olive oil, a large pinch of salt and black pepper. Mix through well. Transfer into a salad bowl or plate and drizzle the lemon yoghurt tahini dressing over the top, or mix through completely coating all the ingredients.
Enjoy!
Cooking Notes
- Boiling the potatoes with skin will ensure no excess water enters the potatoes, keeping and maintaining more flavor and nutrients as well.
- The lemon yoghurt tahini dressing should be a creamy consistency, not too thick and similar to the consistency of mayonnaise but it should be a little bit runny – see pictures above for reference.