Meals that are made from a few simple ingredients are invariably some of my favourite dishes of all. A quick scramble around the cupboards and fridge pulling ingredients and ideas together always feels more satisfying; like you’re getting a meal for nothing. My evening meals are always planned in advance so it’s lunchtime where I get my Ready Steady Cook hat on. Sometimes however the scrabbling approach doesn’t yield any particularly tasty sounding results; ham and chocolate spread tostadas anyone? This time however, the combination of ingredients I had resulted in Wild Garlic and Crispy Fried Salami Potato Salad and it was brilliant.
Ingredients
You will need (for two):
- 400g potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
- Handful green beans, topped and tailed, halved
- Small handful wild garlic
- 12 slices Italian salami (I used finocchiona which has fennel in), roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Juice 1 lemon
- Salt and pepper
Method
Start by putting the potatoes into a large pan of salted water. Bring the pan to the boil and cook the potatoes until they are cooked through, cooking time depends on how big you have chopped them. If you have a steamer add the green beans to the steamer over the potatoes for the last few minutes of cooking, or boil separately for a few minutes.
While the potatoes are cooking put the wild garlic (after a thorough rinse) into a pestle and mortar with a pinch of salt. Bash everything up together well until you have a thick paste then add the olive oil, a pinch of pepper and the lemon juice.
Get a frying pan on a medium/high heat and add the salami. Dry fry until crispy, plenty of oil will come out of the salami.
Drain the potatoes when they are cooked (and the green beans if you have cooked them separately) and mix with the beans, salami and wild garlic oil.
The grassy and faint garlic whiff from the wild garlic is so good with the slightly fatty salami. The fennel in the salami works really well but any salami would be delicious; it’s a different flavour to something like bacon. The potato breaks down after it’s cooked so the wild garlic oil nestles in the little nooks and crannies and turns everything a wonderful green. The beans add a little freshness and the lemon finishes it off with its zesty acidity. A meal as good as this from a few leftover ingredients and a bit of a rummage in the hedgerows; perfection. Something else equally as potato filled and garlicky are my wild garlic gnocchi if you fancy trying something veggie!!
If you want to have a go foraging for wild food, take a look at my beginner’s guide.
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I used to eat fried salami on toast when I was a kid-for Breakfast! I think I might need to try this grown up version!
Did you find the wild garlic yourself? How fun! I’ll have to check out your guide! Also, I love fried salami, and putting it on a salad is a great way to serve it!
Love wild garlic! This is a simple yet delicious salad.
This is an original salad… My other half will certainly love this he is a huge fan of potato salad…. Hahaha… Have a great weekend ahead, Caroline and thanks for your message 🙂
Wild garlic is a fab herb to use in cooking. I must say I hardly ever use it but I have in the past. My sister who lives in Slovenia always goes foraging for wild garlic at this time of year. They have woods packed with it. It is also so good for you. I must go out and get some before it’s too late.
You have been so inventive here, thanks for the inspiration your recipe so simple and tasty looks really delicious.
What a fabulous meal Caroline, I love it when food comes together like this, all great ingredients, together amazing.
Ramps (that is what we call wild garlic here) is the only variety of garlic I can eat. I miss it, as it doesn’t grow in the desert! Your dish sounds quite springy and comforting, Caroline!
That’s totally awesome! Just my idea of heaven on a plate. I love potato-based salads, and this one is soooo good.
Mmmm this girl loves herself a MEATY salad – which is EXACTLY what this is! <3 😀
This looks delicious! I love potatoes and this potato salad is right up my alley. PS – I do love ham and chocolate but not together, I have to admit. ; )
I love a hearty salad like this! Use salami a lot, but don’t often combine it with potatoes. Great idea — gotta try that! Thanks. 🙂
Caroline ! really I love this garlic and potato salad!!!
Nice to know you!
I also love throwing meals together. This looks excellent and would be great any time of day, really.
Such a wholesome salad idea, I like that it’s actually more than just a salad, it’d take care of lunch. I’ve hot garlic chives growing in my garden, I wonder if they would do instead of the wild garlic.
Sometimes the best meals comes from looking around the pantry! This looks delicious, especially with that Italian salami!
wild garlic oil? crispy salami?! this sounds ridiculously good. i like potato salad but usually don’t beeline straight for it, but i’d probably get a massive helping of this one (:
This is an exquisite salad recipe! I love all the ingredients so much that I could eat this salad every day!