I made this Tarragon Potato Salad with my daughter in mind. She learned to make a Tarragon Chicken dish at a cooking camp that our whole family enjoys on repeat. Up until now, she has not been a fan of any potato salad she has eaten. I began to think that it had to do with the mayonnaise and/or sour cream base. Therefore, I made this Tarragon Potato Salad with a creme fraiche and dijon mustard base. Sure enough, she was more than happy to gobble this one up! She didn’t like the idea of me naming it after her though. Boohoo! Lol!
What Type of Potato?
I use Honey Gold baby potatoes for this Tarragon Potato Salad. They have great texture and flavor along with a very thin skin, which I don’t feel the need to remove. Their small size makes them easy to cut into evenly sized ½ inch pieces. This makes them quick to roast in the oven and easy to take a bite of. If you can’t stand skins, I would go with a larger potato that is easier to peel. I like the somewhat waxy skinned white, yellow or gold potatoes best for potato salad.
Roast the Potatoes
There was a time when I boiled potatoes for potato salad. That time has now passed and I doubt will ever return. Roasting well-seasoned potatoes creates a buttery textured potato with another layer of flavor that you just can’t get from a boiled potato. And the roasted potatoes don’t fall apart and become mushy when combined with the other ingredients in the salad. It takes about the same amount of time to roast as it does to boil them too. Just about 15 minutes.
For this recipe, I coat the cut potatoes with olive oil first, then sprinkle on the salt, pepper, garlic powder and Herbs de Provence. This allows the seasonings to stick to the potatoes better and more evenly. I line a baking sheet with foil and grease it well with more oil so that the potatoes will get lightly browned on the bottom and top. This also prevents them from sticking to the pan.
Mix the Salad
Once the potatoes come out of the oven, transfer them to a large mixing bowl and add in the remaining ingredients. Tarragon Potato Salad is best served at room temp or a little warm, so you don’t have to wait for the potatoes to cool completely or chill in the fridge before mixing the salad.
Making Ahead & Storing Tarragon Potato Salad
If you would like to make this potato salad up to a day ahead, it can be stored covered in the fridge. Allow it to return to room temp prior to serving or warm it a little (not a lot) in the microwave prior to serving. The creme fraiche reacts to cold temps much like butter on the potatoes and will become stiff in the fridge, at room temp it will soften and have a wonderful consistency for the potato salad. The same is true for leftovers. They will hold for 2-3 days in the fridge and still taste fantastic when eaten at room temp.
Goes Well With…
Tarragon Potato Salad will go really well with and grilled or roasted meats like: Sweet and Spicy Chicken, Cumin and Lime Marinated Flank Steak, Smothered BBQ Chicken, Oven Pulled Pork with Apple Slaw, Drunken Braised Brisket, Perfect Thyme Chicken, Honey Dijon Roast Chicken, Lemon Basil Chicken. It would also be great with Broiled Salmon with Creamy Basil Sauce and Easy Garlic Baked Shrimp. Also check out my Ultimate Bacon Potato Salad!
Tarragon Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs potatoes - Honey Gold baby potatoes
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 8 oz creme fraiche
- 3 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoon fresh tarragon - finely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with foil and grease with cooking oil of your choice.
- Rinse and cut the potatoes to ½ inch pieces as evenly sized as possible. Place in a large bowl and coat with olive oil.
- Sprinkle garlic powder, Herbs de Provence, salt and pepper onto the potatoes and stir well to coat them evenly with seasonings.
- Spread the seasoned potatoes out in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until fork tender. Remove from the oven and transfer the potatoes to a large mixing bowl.
- Let the potatoes cool for a few minutes, then add in the remaining ingredients and stir with a large spatula to combine well. Serve warm or at room temp.
- Note: If you would like to make this potato salad up to a day ahead, it can be stored covered in the fridge. Allow to return to room temp prior to serving. The creme fraiche reacts to cold temps much like butter on the potatoes and will become stiff in the fridge, at room temp it will soften and have a wonderful consistency for the potato salad.
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