Ingredients

  • 1 bunch asparagus
  • 400g kestral potatoes
  • pinch of salt and pepper
  • 50ml olive oil
  • 2 shallots, thinly sliced on angle
  • 100g spinach leaves

Dressing ingredients

  • 1 egg yolk
  • 25 ml white wine vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon mustard
  • 2 garlic cloves, roasted in oven or on barbecue until soft
  • 100 ml olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Author of this recipe

Louise FitzRoy

Louise FitzRoy

Food blogger / food writer

I love everything there is to love about cooking. The fresh ingredients, the tantalising smells and the creativeness of concocting a dish using food you’ve never heard of before. Besides yoga,... Read more

Kestral potatoes are known and are perfect for mashing, roasting, boiling and frying, they are a highly versatile variety with a delicious slightly-sweet flavour. Their even, oval shape and shallow eyes allows for easy preparation. Try this delicious salad and story of a South Australian potato grower using Kestrel potatoes.

Total votes: 621

Preparation

First, prepare aioli by combining egg yolk, vinegar, mustard and roasted garlic in food processor. Gradually add oil in a steady stream to the mix and season with salt and pepper. Blanch the asparagus, drain and set aside. Slice potatoes to five millimetres in thickness and season with salt, pepper and olive oil. Barbecue potatoes for about three minutes on each side until cooked. Add to a bowl with the shallots, asparagus, spinach leaves and aioli. Mix to dress.

Tips from the author

It’s in the early hours of the morning, South Australian potatoes are harvested and sent directly to a washing facility at Mount Barker for cleaning and processing. After being carefully washed to remove the soil, the potatoes are sorted using state-of-the-art infrared digital technology that assesses their colour, size, weight and skin appearance. For the South Australian Potato Company, harvesting, washing, grading, packaging and dispatching is all in a day’s work.

The company’s Julian Carbone says deliveries are made to Adelaide and Melbourne within 24 hours of harvesting and Sydney and Brisbane within 48 hours.

“The company was founded in 1971 and is a local grower and wholesaler of premium potatoes,” he says.

With an international customer base, 150 staff and the capacity to process more than 250 tonnes of potato a day, this locally based, family-owned business in the Southern Mallee region has grown to become a key player in the Australian fresh potato market.

“The potatoes grown are specifically selected for their taste, skin appearance, yield, water usage and cooking versatility,” says Julian.

While new varieties are always being trialed at the 30,000-acre farm, there are five varieties produced on a commercial scale: Coliban, Desiree, Kestrel, Ruby Lou and White Lady.

 

This delicious salad is shared from my From Paddock to Plate book on page 194.

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