# Drop cooked potatoes in boiling water for a minute to warm them up?



## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

I am making a salad with some boiled new potatoes tonight. I am making a "tourist" version of the salad Niçoise: green beans, potatoes, soft boiled egg, canned tuna, tomatoes, green pepper, maybe some romaine, cornichons etc...

I boiled the potatoes yesterday and they spent the night in the fridge. After allowing the potatoes to come back to room temp, I'm debating whether to drop them in boiling water for a minute or so before peeling them - maybe that would help bringing them closer back to that "freshly boiled" taste?

Before I try that, I thought I'd ask if anyone has tried it before, and what your results were?


----------



## indygal (Dec 7, 2010)

I'm not sure I can taste "freshly boiled" in potatoes.   But I will tell you that I always let my potatoes dry out a little for Niçoise, because I want them to soak up some dressing.

I don't have a good palate, though.  I can easily tell something is there -- I'm just not sure what it is.    My niece peeled a banana in the back seat when I was driving and I commented "who has beer"?.  THAT is how bad my nose is.


----------



## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

IndyGal said:


> I don't have a good palate, though. I can easily tell something is there -- I'm just not sure what it is. My niece peeled a banana in the back seat when I was driving and I commented "who has beer"?. THAT is how bad my nose is.


THAT was funny. Thanks for making me spit out my morning coffee all over my computer keyboard. No seriously, it was worth it. I love starting the day with a big laugh. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif

As for the "taste" of freshly boiled potato, maybe it's not so much a "taste" thing, I was just thinking I don't like fridge-cold potatoes and I'm not sure if an hour at room temp would be enough to get rid of it, I'd rather serve them lukewarm as if you boiled them a 1/2 hour ago.

I think I may just steam them for a few minutes see if that works... then again at the same time you're right about your dressing comment, I don't want the potatoes to turn watery...


----------



## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

French Fries said:


> ...I boiled the potatoes yesterday and they spent the night in the fridge...


Hm, did you infuse the potatoes with chicken stock/broth before chilling?

Most descriptions seem to have this step...


----------



## indygal (Dec 7, 2010)

Glad to entertain!   Also, I smell cigarette ashes when eating apples.  I don't mind the smell of cabbage  cooking at all, but cannot stand to smell cooking turkey or swiss chard.  (Only swiss chard, all other greens smell good to me).   My solution?  Load everything up with onions, then that is all you smell.


----------



## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Pete, never heard of infusing the potatoes with stock for a nicoise, but I have to say that sounds weird.

Indy, are you sure you don't have synesthesia? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/eek.gif


----------



## dc sunshine (Feb 26, 2007)

I've seen a few recipes for a warm potato salad using stock, not nicoise though, but with sliced pork sausages of choice.  Potatoes boiled, sausages cooked, onions browned.  Put potatoes and sausage slices together, pour hot stock over.  Serve warm after seasoning to taste.

But,  this is done on the same day, so it is really just an aside to this thread.  Having said that, you could pre-boil then heat in water next day for few minutes or even in hot stock.  This does taste nice.  I'll sometimes use chicken stock for potatoes,  give it a go and see how it works


----------



## chefross (May 5, 2010)

There are no potatoes in Nicoise Salad, so to me this is a moot point.


----------



## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

Chefross said:


> There are no potatoes in Nicoise Salad, so to me this is a moot point.


Interesting...

Julia Child's Recipe for Salade Niçoise

Epicurious recipe


----------



## chefross (May 5, 2010)

PeteMcCracken said:


> Interesting...
> 
> Julia Child's Recipe for Salade Niçoise
> 
> Epicurious recipe


Just remember that while Julia is a gourmand and a highly acclaimed cook it doesn't mean that she knows cuisines from all the countries and their districts.

Try looking up Nicoise France and the salad that it is named after, before you jump to conclusions please.


----------



## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Chefross said:


> There are no potatoes in Nicoise Salad, so to me this is a moot point.


Aaaahhh but Chefross, if you'd read my original post carefully you'd noticed I'm not making a traditional Niçoise salad, but a "Tourist" version. The tourist version usually has cooked potatoes and green beans. Right back atcha. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/tongue.gif I was born and raised in France, I grew up with most of those dishes, so I have a good idea of what goes into them!

And FWIW I've never seen any English resource list the correct ingredients for a traditional Niçoise salad.


----------



## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

Chefross said:


> Just remember that while Julia is a gourmand and a highly acclaimed cook it doesn't mean that she knows cuisines from all the countries and their districts.
> 
> Try looking up Nicoise France and the salad that it is named after, before you jump to conclusions please.


Good advice, perhaps you have suggestions that are better than Google search for Niçoise France ? This is obviously not a good start as all of the recipes on the first screen specify potatoes, though admittedly none claim to be "authentic".

I am not French, though my maternal grandfather traces back to the 16th Century in France.

I do not read/write French, though both my son and daughter do, can you recommend any written references that will permit me to become better educated?


----------



## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

French Fries said:


> ...And FWIW I've never seen any English resource list the correct ingredients for a traditional Niçoise salad.


I'm always interested in learning, perhaps you can point me to a better resource? Though I do not read French, my son and daughter are both fluent and can assist me.


----------



## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

PeteMcCracken said:


> I'm always interested in learning, perhaps you can point me to a better resource? Though I do not read French, my son and daughter are both fluent and can assist me.


Traditional ingredients in the Salad Niçoise are tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, young artichokes, cebettes (some form of onion chive), fevettes (small, young fava beans), green bell peppers and onions. Then anchovies and canned tuna (NEVER fresh tuna or seared tuna in a traditional Niçoise!! ). You can use basilic leaves too.

Aside from eggs, anchovies and tuna, nothing is cooked.

Once you have those bases, there are no authentic recipes. The people from Nice take advantage of all those ingredients whenever they're ripe and available, use what they have and according to their and their family's taste.

FWIW in most French restaurants, that's not what you would be served if you asked for a Niçoise salad. You would be instead served a tourist version with cooked potatoes and green beans, and no artichoke, cebettes, fevettes or green bell peppers. That's the version I was making when I started this thread.


----------



## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

Thank you for the guidance.



French Fries said:


> Traditional ingredients in the Salad Niçoise are tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, young artichokes, cebettes (some form of onion chive), fevettes (small, young fava beans), green bell peppers and onions. Then anchovies and canned tuna (NEVER fresh tuna or seared tuna in a traditional Niçoise!! ). You can use basilic leaves too.
> 
> Aside from eggs, anchovies and tuna, nothing is cooked.
> 
> ...


----------



## indygal (Dec 7, 2010)

Odd, I've never seen a recipe for it without them.   c'est la vie.


----------



## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Made "tourist" Nicoise salad again yesterday and today, so today I had to reheat the potatoes, which were cooked yesterday. Dropped them in boiling water for 3-4 mn and they came out perfect, as if I just cooked them, nicely warm!


----------



## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

Glad to know it worked out, the tip is very useful for me too.


Chefross said:


> There are no potatoes in Nicoise Salad, so to me this is a moot point.


I don't know how I missed this thread when it first came about but what a horrible comment to make. The OP was asking a question about potatoes, not the validity of potatoes in the dish. To deem a question invalid simply because you don't agree with the recipe is..... there's no word for how awful that is.


----------



## cheflayne (Aug 21, 2004)

> Just remember that while Julia is a gourmand and a highly acclaimed cook it doesn't mean that she knows cuisines from all the countries and their districts. Try looking up Nicoise France and the salad that it is named after, before you jump to conclusions please


Apparently Escoffier and Pellaprat were laboring under the same mistaken train of thought as Julia Childs because their versions include potato.


----------



## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Jeeze you guys,

This thread sent me into French recipe research. There are a lot of great ways to make Salade Nicoise which are sufficiently authentic for the most tradition bound and xenophobic French cook. I found comments like this one, from a passionate food blog, everywhere:


> _Il existe une multitude de variantes possible pour la célèbre salade Niçoise. Certains la confectionnent avec des poivrons, des radis, des coeurs d'artichaud...d'autres avec des pommes de terre ou même du riz! _


Not sayin', just sayin' is all.

BDL

PS. Chef Ross - Nice recovery. I salute you.

PPS. Sorry. I can't stop myself.


----------



## amazingrace (Jul 28, 2006)

To reheat boiled potatoes without getting them waterlogged, put them into a steamer basket _over_ about two cups of water, put on the lid and steam them. Or put them into a plastic bag and nuke them until the bag swells (but don't let it pop open)...essentially the same as steaming.


----------



## zoui21 (Nov 4, 2011)

amazingrace said:


> ...Or put them into a plastic bag and nuke them until the bag swells (but don't let it pop open)...essentially the same as steaming.


Oh man, one of my biggest cooking peeves=microwaves, I got it from my mom because she would never let me even heat any food up in the microwave. I limit my microwave usage to the occasional canned soup (yep, canned) and pizza bagels when I can get my hands on some.

..sorry for the random fact. Feel free to carry on about the history of the Niçoise


----------



## amazingrace (Jul 28, 2006)

so, your mom had a microwave that she wouldn't let anyone use?  what was the point of having it all?  well, anyway, it was just a suggestion,  and if you notice another option was also offered


----------



## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

I love my microwave, love it!


----------

