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Charred Potato, Onion, & Green Bean Salad

We stumbled our way into developing this wonderful recipe. We knew we wanted to create a grilled potato salad, but the whole thing evolved in a delightful direction that we didn’t see coming. Grilling the potatoes, onions, and green beans gives them a pleasant smokiness that works beautifully with a sweet and salty dressing that is inspired by nuoc cham, a Vietnamese condiment made of fish sauce, garlic, sugar, chili, and lime. We mixed things up a bit, relying on honey rather than sugar and using some of our fresh lemons in place of lime juice.  It’s best to toss the salad while the vegetables are still warm from the grill.

Ingredients

  • DRESSING
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (1 medium lemon)
  • 2 tablespoons fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons raw honey
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic (1 large clove)
  • SALAD
  • 1 ½ pounds fingerling potatoes (uniform in size), halved lengthwise
  • 12 ounces green beans, sliced on an angle into 2-inch pieces
  • ¼ cup plus extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 ¼ teaspoons fine sea salt
  • 5 green onions, cut in 2-inch pieces (about 1 cup)
  • 1 medium red onion, cut into ½-inch-thick wedges
  • 1 cup torn fresh basil leaves

Instructions

  1. Prepare the dressing: In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice, fish sauce, olive oil, honey, and garlic. Whisk to combine and set aside.
  2. Preheat a stove top grill pan over medium-high heat.
  3. Prepare an ice bath by filling a large bowl with ice and cold water. Place the potatoes in a medium pot and cover with 3 inches of water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cook until the potatoes are fork tender but still firm, about 8 minutes. Add the green beans to the pot. Cook until the green beans are just barely tender and still bright green, about 2 minutes. Drain in a colander, and then transfer to the ice bath.
  4. Once the potatoes and green beans are cool, drain them in a colander and transfer them to a medium bowl. Add the olive oil and 2 teaspoons of the salt. Gently toss to coat evenly.
  5. Arrange the potatoes on the grill. Cook until they are charred with noticeable grill marks and the skins are slightly crisp, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a clean medium bowl. Arrange the green beans on the grill. Cook, moving frequently, until they char, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the green beans to the bowl with the potatoes.
  6. Place the green onion in the bowl used to season the potatoes and green beans. Add the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt and toss to coat. Arrange the green onions on the grill. Cook until charred, 1 minute. Add them to the bowl with the potatoes and green beans.
  7. Arrange the red onion wedges on the grill, being careful to keep the wedges intact. Grill until charred, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer the red onion to the bowl with the other vegetables.
  8. Pour the dressing over the vegetables, add half of the basil, and toss to coat evenly. Spread the vegetables out on a serving platter and garnish with the remaining basil. Serve immediately.