Soups, salads and sandwiches: this golden trio is the theme of Matty Matheson’s latest cookbook, which is suitably titled Soups, Salads, Sandwiches. Matheson, a Canadian chef and star of hit TV show The Bear, wants this to be a book you can “open to any chapter and cook from every day. Imagine wanting to make a sandwich and being able to make a different sandwich for more than 50 days straight … so sick,” he writes.
Matheson’s soups, sandwiches and salads are globally influenced and range from the fancy to the homestyle. For soups, there’s the likes of caramelised maple parsnip soup with Jerusalem artichoke chips and ricotta, Rhode Island clam chowder and crab congee, while the sandwich options range from grilled cheese and croque madame to a BLT; sabich with cucumber, tomato and pickled hot peppers; and a muffuletta. The salad contingent includes a Sichuan chilli oil smashed cucumber salad with soy-cured egg, a sashimi salad and this warm potato salad.
“This recipe is me working through awakened childhood trauma because I remember when my mom made lame potato salad as a kid,” Matheson writes. “I can still smell it. This is a hero dish and will blow the socks off anyone who eats it. Congratulations to everyone in therapy, like I am, conquering the traumas of their past.”
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Matty Matheson’s warm potato salad
Serves 6
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Ingredients
900g fingerling potatoes
¼ cup unsalted butter
½ cup bacon lardons
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp whole-grain Dijon mustard
½ cup small-diced red onion
¼ cup thinly sliced spring onions
2 tbsp chopped parsley
2 tbsp chopped chives
1 tbsp chopped dill
Kosher salt (sea salt or coarse non-iodised salt) and freshly cracked black pepper, to season
¼ cup pickled red onion
Olive oil, for drizzling
Maldon salt (or other sea salt flakes), to serve
Creamy dip
¼ cup cream cheese
2 tbsp whole-grain Dijon mustard, plus 1 tsp for garnish
Method
Place the potatoes in a large pot of cold, salted water. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are fork-tender, 15–20 minutes. Drain the potatoes and let them cool slightly.
While the potatoes are simmering, let’s mix our creamy dip. In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese and 2 tbsp of the mustard. Set aside.
Place the cooled potatoes on a cutting board and, using the back of a clean pot, gently press them. In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the smashed potatoes and cook until golden brown, 5–10 minutes a side. Line a plate with paper towels. Transfer the seared potatoes along with any remaining butter in the pan to a large bowl.
Let’s cook the bacon off in a cast-iron skillet set over low heat, until it’s cooked to your desired crispiness. Set aside a paper-towel-lined plate. To the same bowl, add the vinegar, mustard, bacon, red onion, spring onions, parsley, chives, dill and kosher salt and pepper to taste. Gently toss everything together until the potatoes are well coated with the dressing; allow any of the larger potatoes to break naturally into smaller pieces. Adjust the seasoning with more salt and pepper. Then add a huge dollop of the creamy dip and make a small indent at the top with the back of your spoon to add the remaining teaspoon of mustard and pickled red onion. Drizzle with olive oil and finish with Maldon salt.
Images and text from Soups, Salads, Sandwiches by Matty Matheson, photography by Quentin Bacon. Murdoch Books RRP $49.99.
