The Best Vinegary Potato Salad Around: Forget the Mayo

In my book, coleslaw has to have a bite — an audible crunch and just enough acid to bring out the mustardy notes of mild mannered cabbage. Some would argue the creamy, floppy coleslaws have their time and place, but, for me, the true potential is most often masked by too much mayonnaise. This truth was revealed to me by way of a pulled pork sandwich from Pat Martin of Martin's Bar-B-Que Joint in Nashville, Tennessee that was drenched in tangy, spicy Carolina Vinegar bbq sauce. On the side, was served a small pile of undressed shredded cabbage which I deposited between the buns and took a bite. The apple cider vinegar and red pepper-flecked sauce permeated the “coleslaw,” giving a crispness and brightening up the barbecue. I’ve not gone back to mayo since.

Apparently, what Americans call “coleslaw” originated with the Dutch“koolsla”, a combination of the words “kool” (cabbage) and “sla” (salad). Having never been to Holland, I’ll have to rely on how the internet describes koolsla: chopped cabbage marinated in a mixture of vinegar, salt, sugar, spices, and melted butter, bound with an emulsification of egg and cream. That last part sounds a lot like mayonnaise to me. Some time in the late 18th century, the Pennsylvania Dutch introduced more apple cider vinegar to the mixture, making the whole thing less mayonnaise-y.

I polled my Instagram hiveminds for theirvinegar-based coleslaw opinions, and quickly Chris Crawford, vinegar maker extraordinaire of Tart Vinegar, who was recently profiled in the New Yorker, offered her take on the matter with a vinegar-based coleslaw recipe. “Bacon, cut up, and then cook with shallots. Then when cool, emulsify with vinegar and any more oil if needed. Add flowering thyme and pepper. You can even add it warm to cabbage [rather than letting it cool first].” The bacon adds fat and smoke balanced out by the vinegar, but what was most curious was Crawford’s postscript, “it’s also great as a potato salad base”. 

Both coleslaw and potato salad have the reputation of  perfunctory picnic fare, but having eaten my fair share of wiener schnitzel in Vienna, I know the latter can be so much more. Served alongside every oversized (they literally hang off the plate) wiener schnitzel is a bowl of erdäpfelsalat, Austrian-style potato salad. The potatoes are first cooked in vegetable stock, then tossed with champagne vinegar and mustard; it’s the right amount of sharpness to bring out the inherent sweetness of cooked potato. I asked Austria-native Markus Glocker, chef at Koloman in New York City, for his go-to recipe for this iteration of potato salad (recipe to follow). His tips were to use a well-seasoned stock, “poured hot over the potato to make sure you get a beautiful velvety consistency.” And also, “do not let the potatoes get cold before marinating the salad.” That’s when the magic happens, says Glocker, adding: “this potato salad brings umami flavors in full swing without adding any fat or dairy elements — full body flavor without heavy ingredients.” The bracing bite of vinegar, and heat from the mustard, is the perfect accompaniment to any wonderfully wavy cutlet. Glocker suggests that once the potato salad is finished, you should not refrigerate it before serving — it’s best at room temp.

My friend Konstantin Filippou, one of Vienna’s foremost chefs, grew up in Styria, in southern Austria,  near the capitol, Graz. The region is also referred to  as Termenland because of its many thermal hot springs. There, the “spa food” is mainly salad-based, and often saturated with a Styrian specialty called Kernöl or Kürbiskernöl, a dark forest-green pumpkin seed oil. It’s a fixture of potato salad there. The need for acidity to complement this oil is apparent; the salads are often generously doused in apple vinegar. 

At O Boufés, Filippou’s natural wine bar in Vienna, he makes a warm variation on cabbage salad, called warmer krautsalat, which is soaked in a syrupy mixture of cooked onions deglazed with apple vinegar (recipe follows). The cabbage retains its crunch but tastes like it’s been marinating for ages. It’s my go-to barbecue side.

*Below, two good reasons to leave mayonnaise out of your picnic salads.

RECIPES

Fingerling Potato Salad

By Markus Glocker of Kolomon, NYC

Serves 4

Prep time, 20 minutes

Cook time, 15 minutes

½ pound fingerling potatoes

1 bunch chives

1 ½ tablespoons vegetable stock or chicken stock

1 shallot

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon champagne vinegar

Salt and black pepper to taste

Garnish: mache salad (optional)

Wash the fingerling potatoes to remove any dirt. Place them in a medium-sized pot and add a generous pinch of salt. Pour enough cold water into the pot to cover the potatoes by about 1 inch. Place the pot on the stove and heat it on high until the water comes to a boil.

Once the water is boiling, let the potatoes cook for about 14 to 16 minutes, or until they are tender enough to be easily pierced with a fork.When the potatoes are done cooking, drain them thoroughly to remove excess water. While the potatoes are still warm, carefully peel their skin using your fingers and a paring knife. Slice the peeled potatoes into rounds about 1/4 inch thick. Transfer the sliced potatoes to a medium-sized bowl.

For the shallot and vinegar mixture:

Peel the shallot and finely mince it until you have 2 tablespoons of minced shallot (you might have some extra minced shallot). Place the minced shallot in a bowl and add the champagne vinegar to it.

Assembly:

In the same pot that was used to cook the potatoes, combine the Dijon mustard, stock, and the shallot-vinegar mixture you prepared earlier. Season the mixture with salt and pepper to taste. Cook the mixture on medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, for about 1 to 2 minutes, until it is well combined and heated through. Transfer this mixture from the pot to the bowl with the sliced potatoes. Add half of the chopped chives to the potato mixture. Stir everything together thoroughly to ensure all the ingredients are combined evenly. Taste the potato salad and adjust the seasoning with additional salt and pepper if needed. Allow the potato salad to marinate for at least 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to let the flavors meld.

Warmer Krautsalat 

By Konstatin Filippou, Vienna, Austria 

Makes about 1 quart

1 large cabbage, about 2 pounds

1 tablespoon salt

½ cut pancetta, cut into small dice, reserving the rind of the pancetta to marinate with the cabbage (can sub thick smoked bacon)

2 tablespoons ground cumin

2 bay leaves

4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon sugar

1 large white onion, cut into thin strips

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

Freshly ground black pepper

Cut the cabbage in quarters, removing the core. Slice the cabbage into 1⁄4-inch (6-mm) pieces widthwise, which will produce strips approximately 3 inches (7.5 cm) long. Put the cabbage in a large bowl or pot and add the salt. Add the pancetta rind, cumin, and bay leaves and let the cabbage marinate, covered, for 24 hours.

After it has finished marinating, press the cabbage through a sieve, or squeeze in cheesecloth to get out all the liquid from the cabbage. Pick out the pancetta rind and bay leaves and discard.

In a saute ́ pan over medium heat, fry the diced pancetta until crispy, 4 to 5 minutes, and deglaze with half of the vinegar. Pour the cooked pancetta and vinegar over the cabbage, along with the sugar. Set aside, reserving the fat in the pan. In the same pan, sauté the onion and garlic until translucent. Deglaze with the remaining vinegar, then pour in a little water, about 2 tablespoons, and briefly boil for about 1 minute, until the liquid is reduced by half.

Pour the liquid over the cabbage mixture and season with black pepper and, if desired, salt. Serve immediately. This dish goes well with crispy pork belly or just warm bread.