Bacon 'n' Chive Sweet Tater Salad

Ah, summer. Nothing says it quite like beach days, block parties, and backyard grillin'. At every one of these events you'll undoubtedly see some form of potato salad, that ubiquitous summer side dish, proudly displayed in the Tupperware container that time forgot, nestled next to the corn-on-the-cob and the apple pie. But for us Paleos, what to do? White potatoes are a big no-no, not to mention the canola-oil laden mayo it was no doubt made with. Add even more scary ingredients to it if it was bought at the grocery store deli instead of scratch made... <shudders to imagine>

Well, I'm not counting myself out of the potato salad game, especially if it's got BACON in it. It's summertime, and I reserve the right as an American to eat 'tater salad! Yeah! 'Murica!!! =P



Bacon 'n' Chive Sweet Tater Salad
Makes about 4 servings
- 2 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed, peeled, and diced into 1" cubes
- 1/2 lb thin-cut bacon (~8 strips)
- 1/3 cup mayo (for homemade mayo, check out the recipe below)/
- 1 T Dijon mustard
- 1 T apple cider vinegar
- 1 T chopped chives
- 1 tsp chopped rosemary (optional)

1) Put the cut-up taters in a large pot and fill it with water, just enough to cover them, and add a dash of salt. Set the pot over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Let the taters boil for about 10-12 minutes, or until they're tender but not mushy and falling apart. Keep an eye on 'em, and check after 10 minutes. You want them cooked, enough that a fork goes all the way through them easily, but not too soft.

2) Meanwhile, either a) fry or bake the bacon, let it cool, and crumble it into the taters when it's time, or b) chop the bacon into small bits and pan-fry, let cool, and add to taters when ready.

3) Make the mayo now, if you're going DIY on it. Mix it with the remaining ingredients and put it in the fridge.

4) Once the potatoes are done, strain them and let them sit out for about 10 minutes, or until they stop steaming. Put them in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let them cool in the fridge until they're completely cold, the way tater salad should be. ;)

5) Fold the potatoes, bacon, and mayo goodness together in a large bowl with a spatula, being careful not to break up the taters. We're going for a salad here, not a mash... Though I'll bet they'd be pretty darn good all mashed like this... hmmm... <puts on list of recipes-to-do> 

6) Let it chill in the fridge (pun definitely intended) for at least an hour, but a few hours or overnight is even better. That way the flavors have time to really marry and have little flavor babies. ;)

Homemade Mayo (courtesy of Mark's Daily Apple)
This recipe makes more than you'll need for the salad, but it'll keep in the fridge for at least 3 days in an airtight container. I'm sure you'll come up with plenty of uses for it. =)

- 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon cold water
- 3/4 cup olive oil

To make the mayonnaise, whisk together the egg yolk, vinegar, mustard, salt and water by hand until frothy, about 1 minute. Continue whisking while drizzling the oil in very, very slowly. Once the mayonnaise starts to thicken, you can drizzle the rest of the oil in a bit faster, whisking the whole time. The mayonnaise is done when all the oil has been mixed in and the consistency is fairly thick.

For more deeeeeeelicious, homemade, Paleo/Primal condiments, take a look at these ones over at Mark's Daily Apple. There's also an entire section of the forum dedicated to recipes, so make sure to pop in there, too. Some great stuff happening in the Primal world of cooking... =)

And as always, if you give this a shot and love it, don't quite love it, or made some mods that made it AWESOME, let me know in the comments below! Grok on!!! =)