Grilling of the Potato Variety

Grilling Potatoes, originally uploaded by miss.mallory.

As I mentioned in the previous post I grilled for the first time this year, last weekend. A little cliche now that I reflect on it, grilling memorial day weekend that is. In my house we generally break the grill and the firepit out as soon as the first signs of nice weather arrive, generally sometime in April. This year has been kind of a busy one, so the weather needed to smack us upside the head before we realized that it was time to get outside and grill. We kept it pretty simple for the most part. For the meat we wanted steak/pineapple/onion kabobs and sweet teriyaki chicken. With a menu chock full of deliciously grilled protein you need some starch. Potato salad sounded particularly yummy, and I knew exactly which potato salad recipe I wanted to try first this year. During a particularly slow afternoon a couple of weeks ago, I needed to unwind a little so I curled up on the sofa and turned on the tele. Who else but Bobby Flay was yapping away on my screen. Now, I must admit, I've had a slight disdain for Mr. Flay ever since I laid my eyes on him years ago. I don't know what it is. . . his face, his voice, that inherent cockiness. . . something about him just put me off, enough that I didn't care to watch him really. I wouldn't put him in the 'things Mallory likes' column of life, but for some reason I've been open to watching him grill and cook over the last couple of weeks (maybe I just relished in the fact that he had propane and was able to grill, and that I as of yet had not). So, I opened my mind and my heart and watched him do his thing. Mind you this wasn't his 'regular' grilling show, nor was it his 'throwdown' program, this was some combination of the two. There he was, with some older gentlemen (a fire fighter from Florida if I remember correctly), the camera switching back and forth between the two. But it wasn't a competition. At the end, they sat down and ate together. What really caught my eye, and probably why I continued watching, was this incredibly gorgeous red/orange potato salad. Come to find out it was roasted red pepper and paprika potato salad, paprika and roasted red pepper happen to be two of my very favorite things. I was hooked. So I bided my time, and come grilling weekend I made sure I had everything to whip it up.

The reviews were mixed. I would say it didn't meet my visual expectations, but I'm also not giving up on this recipe quite yet. The one thing that shocked me, something I think might quickly take this recipe from simply okay to simply amazing, was heat. Bobby Flay missing heat? The paprika wasn't enough. It needs a roasted green chile, jalapeno pepper, or even a charred serrano thrown in the mixture. I'm almost a tad shocked bobby flay didn't have some spice in this recipe, you know, a flavor to warm the tongue and the belly, something that just slightly leaves your tastebuds curious and hungry for more. The sauce was also a tad watery, I think this was due to the water that tends to come out of bell peppers after they've been roasted, drying them out on a towel for a few minutes would've likely solved this issue. Like I said, I'm not ready to give up on this potato salad just yet, with a little tweaking I believe it could become one of my favorites. Afterall, it's nearly impossible to go wrong with potatoes, mayo, freshly fire roasted red peppers, and smoked paprika, especially when pairing with freshly grilled meats and veggies. Am I right?

Grilled Potato Salad, originally uploaded by miss.mallory.

Recipe: Bobby Flay's Roasted Pepper Paprika Potato Salad

Ingredients:

2 pounds small Yukon gold potatoes, scrubbed
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup prepared mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 2 red bell peppers, grilled, peeled, seeded and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tablespoon champagne or white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Spanish smoked paprika
• Canola oil
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish

Directions:

Heat the grill to high. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover by 1-inch with cold water. Add 1 tablespoon of salt, bring to boil over high heat and cook until just cooked through, about 10 minutes. Drain, let cool slightly and halve.
While the potatoes are cooking, combine the mayonnaise, mustard, peppers, garlic, vinegar, paprika and salt and pepper in a blender or food processor and process until smooth.
Brush the cut sides of the potatoes with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill cut side down until lightly golden brown, about 2 minutes.Toss the potatoes with the red pepper mayonnaise while still warm, mashing slightly to break them up. Fold in the parsley and season with salt and pepper, if needed.

Roasted Red Pepper & Paprika Sauce, originally uploaded by miss.mallory.