Summer is nearly here. I can feel it in the air.... temperate mornings with just the right amount of crispness, makes it so easy to step outside in shorts knowing that the day will heat up. And with the warmer weather comes a bevy of holidays just begging to be celebrated with an outdoor barbecue or picnic: Memorial Day, Father's Day, 4th of July, and Labor Day.
To kick off the official start to the summer season, like many Agourans, I will be partaking in the obligatory Memorial Day BBQ. Alongside some fantastic, artery clogging hamburgers (grandma's secret recipe), I will be serving BBQ Potato Salad.
Now you should know, I've never really been a fan of butchering what is already a near perfect food. Potatoes rock, and they need little embellishment to make them better. I cringe every time I go to the market and see the container of pasty white chunks "they" are trying to pass off as potato salad. I suspect you know what I'm talking about. Sitting in the deli section, floating in a viscus, vinegary mass, grainy, with soggy bits of stuff that's supposed to be celery. There is barely a recognizable potato piece in sight, and it has a shelf life that nearly out lasts that of a Twinkie. Yuck!
You are so much better off making your own. Best of all, it is so easy to make a really great tasting potato salad that will guarantee an invitation to next year's Memorial Day extravaganza.
The following is one of my favorite potato salad recipes. It features standard potato salad fare (potatoes, mayo and salt) with a few unexpected ingredients that combine for a savory and great tasting dish. You can prepare this ahead of time as it tastes even better the next day. And of course, like all good recipes, you can alter the ingredients to suit your taste (like add more mayonnaise or barbecue).
Barbecue Potato Salad
Ingredients:
Boil peeled white and sweet potatoes until just tender. Drain and cool. Cook bacon, drain and cool. When the potatoes are cool to handle, cube into 1 inch pieces and place in a large bowl. Add diced bell pepper, red onion and bacon. Add salt and garlic to taste. To the potato mixture, add mayonnaise and barbecue sauce and combine well (don't over do it, you are making potato salad not mashed potatoes).
To kick off the official start to the summer season, like many Agourans, I will be partaking in the obligatory Memorial Day BBQ. Alongside some fantastic, artery clogging hamburgers (grandma's secret recipe), I will be serving BBQ Potato Salad.
Now you should know, I've never really been a fan of butchering what is already a near perfect food. Potatoes rock, and they need little embellishment to make them better. I cringe every time I go to the market and see the container of pasty white chunks "they" are trying to pass off as potato salad. I suspect you know what I'm talking about. Sitting in the deli section, floating in a viscus, vinegary mass, grainy, with soggy bits of stuff that's supposed to be celery. There is barely a recognizable potato piece in sight, and it has a shelf life that nearly out lasts that of a Twinkie. Yuck!
You are so much better off making your own. Best of all, it is so easy to make a really great tasting potato salad that will guarantee an invitation to next year's Memorial Day extravaganza.
The following is one of my favorite potato salad recipes. It features standard potato salad fare (potatoes, mayo and salt) with a few unexpected ingredients that combine for a savory and great tasting dish. You can prepare this ahead of time as it tastes even better the next day. And of course, like all good recipes, you can alter the ingredients to suit your taste (like add more mayonnaise or barbecue).
Ingredients:
- 6 white potatoes
- 2 sweet potatoes
- 1 cup diced red bell pepper
- 1 cup diced red onion
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 barbecue sauce
- 4 pieces of bacon, cooked and chopped
- dash of garlic salt
- fresh ground sea salt to taste
Boil peeled white and sweet potatoes until just tender. Drain and cool. Cook bacon, drain and cool. When the potatoes are cool to handle, cube into 1 inch pieces and place in a large bowl. Add diced bell pepper, red onion and bacon. Add salt and garlic to taste. To the potato mixture, add mayonnaise and barbecue sauce and combine well (don't over do it, you are making potato salad not mashed potatoes).