I’ll admit it: mayonnaise is one of my least favorite ingredients. While I can appreciate its role in certain dishes, I’ve never been someone who craves a mayo-heavy salad. That said, I’ve always loved the flavors of Salad Olivieh, the Persian take on the classic Olivier salad, with its combination of potatoes, pickles, peas, eggs, and fresh herbs. So I set out to create a version that captured everything I love about those nostalgic flavors without relying on mayonnaise. The result is these Salad Olivieh-Inspired Smashed Potatoes. Crispy golden potatoes are topped with a bright, herby mixture of pickles, peas, parsley, and tarragon tossed in a lemony mustard dressing, then finished with jammy eggs. It’s fresh, crunchy, tangy, and everything I want in a potato dish.
Salad Olivieh-Inspired Smashed Potatoes
Equipment
- immersion blender or small blender
Ingredients
Dressing
- 2 green onions white parts only, green stems reserved
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ cup olive oil
- kosher salt
Potatoes and salad
- 2 lb small yellow potatoes about 1-2-in in diameter
- olive oil
- kosher salt
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup frozen peas defrosted for 60-90 seconds in the microwave
- ½ cup persian pickles diced
- reserved green onion stems thinly sliced
- ½ cup parsley chopped
- ¼ cup tarragon chopped
- flake salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and liberally coat 2 baking sheets with olive oil.
- Place the potatoes and 1 teaspoon of the salt in a large pot and fill it with enough water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are soft and fork-tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Drain the potatoes and let them cool slightly. Place each potato onto the oiled baking sheet and use the back of a measuring cup to smash them down until they’re about ¼-inch thick. Drizzle with the olive oil, and sprinkle with salt. Roast 25 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp around the edges, rotating the pans halfway.
- Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in a small sauce pan. Add eggs and cook for 7-8 minutes. Place eggs directly into an ice bath and cool. Peel and slice eggs into quarters.
- In a measure cup or the base of a small blender add the white base of the green onion, lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil and a pinch of salt. Blend until emulsified and set aside.
- In a bowl, add frozen peas, diced pickles, green onion stems, parsley and tarragon. Pour in half of the dressing and toss to coat.
- Assemble your salad in layers. Place a few of the smashed potatoes on a platter, top with pickle mixture, add a few eggs and repeat until all your ingredients are used up. Drizzle with reserved dressing, top with flake salt and serve at room temperature.