New York Salt Potatoes

Yesterday I had one of those days. You know those days. Nothing outright horrible happens, but these little piddling annoyances (doctor’s appointments, work stuff, blah blah blah) pile up throughout the day, and you’re gritting your teeth harder and harder and just when you think you can put today in the rearview, you’re driving home and your car overheats. At that moment you’re so Charlie Brown that you just can’t even with anything else.

So yeah, I closed out Hump Day a little salty. Okay, maybe a lot salty. Case in point: my neighborhood hosts a LOT of ghost tours. More than once a week I come home to a throng of people sitting on my front steps, enthralled with some tall tale about my haunted house being woven by a colonial-attired tour guide holding a lantern and standing directly in front of my door . Normally, I politely wait until the story is over and the group starts to move – after all, they shelled out like eleven bucks to be scared out of their wits. Far be it from me to interrupt, let alone reveal that my “haunted house” was actually built in the early 1900s, not the 18th century. Last night, I parked, took a big whiff of my burning engine, and then stomped through the crowd gathered on my stoop with barely an “excuse me,” nearly kicking over the lantern in my rude haste. See? SALTY.

Of course, I was barely inside before I started feeling guilty and poked my head back out to apologize for interrupting. And then I felt like I was even failing at being in a bad mood, which made it even worse. But then I remembered that I had a draft blog post about food that was even saltier than my mood, and that felt kind of serendipitous, which made me happy again. And just like that – equilibrium achieved. See how easy it is when you’re simple like me?

This dish has three of my favorite things in it: salt, potatoes, and SCIENCE. That’s pretty much all there is to it. And the science part is key. Otherwise it’s just like…uh, this is potatoes and salt. What kind of wool are you trying to pull over my eyes? But stay with me. Salty water has a higher boiling point than just plain old H2O. What that means for our taters is that they cook hotter, and their starchy insides get cooked through with a thoroughness that regular water can’t match. So the insides are insanely creamy and luscious, and as a bonus, the salt forms a crust on the potato skins that adds just a little bit of crunch. Tossed with some fresh herbs and melted butter, you have a crazy simple dish that just might turn a rough day on its rear.

This is one of those cool dishes that came to be through pure serendipity – back in the late 19th century, Irish salt miners in central New York would bring potatoes in for lunch, and cook them in the  salty brine trays where the harvested salt was drying. I’d imagine these seemed less delicious for those workers who had to eat them every day, but I’m definitely indebted to them for putting these in the culinary lexicon, because man, while salty moods + annoying days = BOO, salt + potatoes + science = YAY. I take this as yet more evidence of the undeniable fact that carbs make everything better.

New York Salt Potatoes

 

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Cook time

20 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Baby potatoes are cooked in heavily salted water and tossed with butter and fresh herbs.

Category: Side Dish

Ingredients

• 3 lbs baby red potatoes, UNPEELED
• 2 quarts water
• 1½ cups kosher or fine sea salt
• 6 Tbsp butter, cut into 1 Tbsp pieces
• Fresh herbs (I use chopped parsley, thyme, and chives)
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Scrub potatoes and set aside.
2. Combine salt and water in a large pot. Stir to dissolve some of the salt - the rest will settle to the bottom. Add potatoes, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower heat and simmer, uncovered, until potatoes are easily pierced with a knife, about 20 minutes. Drain and let dry for a few minutes to allow the salt to crystallize a bit.
3. Return to the pot. Add butter, herbs and pepper and toss to melt butter and combine. Serve immediately.

Notes

To veganize, use Earth Balance buttery sticks or other vegan butter in place of the real butter.

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