potato salad from isgouhi's mom (Armenian potato salad!)
What defines potato salad? Contains potatoes? Served like a salad? Can be cold or warm?
I guess this one fits the description. The dr bob first impression was: tabouleh, lose the
tomatoes, substitute potatoes for bulgur. But of course the real story is a bit more
complicated.
Isgouhi remembers her mom Nartouhi making this when she was a kid in Aleppo, Syria. Origin
unknown. Not much to report here.
ingredients
- 2 lbs potatoes
- 1 1/2 lemon, juice of
- a bunch of green onions
- 1/2 c chopped parsley
- 1/2 c chopped mint (if fresh available)
- 1/2 t mint (if fresh not available)
- 1/2 t cumin
- 1/2 t allspice
- 1/4 t black pepper
- 1/2 t Aleppo red pepper
- 3 cloves garlic, pressed
- 2 T olive oil
instructions
- Pressure cook or boil the potatoes whole with skins. This makes them
easier to peel. Should be firm, not mushy.
- Cool and peel them. Cut into 1/2 - 3/4 inch chunks.
- Sprinkle the lemon juice of 1 lemon evenly over the potatoes and gently
turn over with a spatula. This helps absorb the juice before adding oil
which is a surface blocker.
- Add the chopped green onions and fresh parsley and fresh mint.
- This can be done ahead of time and paused. When ready proceed.
- Mix together in another bowl the remaining ingredients, then mix all together.
- Taste and adjust the lemon and spices. This part is hard to duplicate, since only
Isgouhi (and Ani) knows what it should taste like.
notes
- Note that the T (Tablespoon)
and t (teaspoon) measurements are Isgouhi's version: flat tableware usually heaped full to count as
one unit.
- Aleppo had a reputation as a center of good Middle Eastern cuisine [Aleppo],
when I first wrote this. After Syria blew apart starting in 2012, Aleppo was
road kill on the highway of global power play. So sad.
- Apparently this is a dish widely known in the Armenian community, with
the usual variations:
websearch,
video.
- In fact this is also a Lebanese potato salad and Arab style potato salad
(batata salata, salatat batata) widespread in the Eastern Mediterranean,
even Greece (salata pataton).
- Nartouhi was a new born baby in the Musa Dagh Armenian villages in 1915
when the residents took to the mountains separating them from the
Mediterranean coast to avoid being forced on the death marches. Fearing the
Turkish army would hear a baby crying on the mountainside and give away
their position, her dad wanted to leave her behind, but fortunately her mom
did the right thing. And Isgouhi and Ani in turn were able to arrive in
successive generations.
- Another version of this came along a few years
later, with green pepper added, forgetful bob.
- Illustrations available.