This potato and green bean salad is another French classic and a reminder of how delicious a few simple ingredients can be. It's perfect for a light lunch, first course, picnic, or summer party. The vinaigrette brings everything together beautifully, and it tastes even better as it sits!
It's also worth noting that you'll find vinaigrette throughout French cuisine. No jars, no preservatives or complicated recipes — just a few fabulous fresh ingredients, and it’s never boring!
Yellow or russet potatoes and green beans (about half and half)
Vinaigrette dressing (olive oil, vinegar, Dijon mustard, minced garlic)
Fresh parsley for garnish
Optional — a few anchovies for a subtle layer of added flavor (and nutrients)
You don't need exact quantities of the ingredients. Simply boil some potatoes and then your green beans. Whipping up a vinaigrette takes just a few minutes, and you'll find a use for any leftover dressing.
Make the vinaigrette. You can find the vinaigrette dressing recipe above. It's simply about three parts extra virgin olive oil to one part vinegar (like sherry vinegar), 1 1/2 tsp of Dijon mustard, 1-2 cloves of freshly minced garlic, and some salt and pepper. Make the vinaigrette in the bowl you'll use for the potatoes and green beans or directly in a jar to store any leftovers.
Place potatoes with the skin on in a pot of cold salted water. Bring to a boil and cook until just tender, about 10-12 minutes. If they are too soft, they will be a bit mushy in the salad — not ideal, but they will still taste great. Drain and let cool.
When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, use a knife to peel away the skin if desired — it will fall off easily.
Cook the green beans. While the potatoes cook, bring a separate pot of water to a boil (or wait until the potatoes are done — take them out and use the same water for the green beans). Add the green beans to the boiling water and cook until tender. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.
Chop the potatoes and green beans and place them in a bowl — or the bowl with the vinaigrette.
Toss the potatoes and green beans with the vinaigrette to coat well. Taste and add more vinaigrette as desired. Refrigerate if not serving immediately. For even better flavor, you can prepare it a few hours (or even a day) in advance.
Optional:
Serve garnished with fresh parsley if desired.
Vinaigrette for the week in a jar
You can make your vinaigrette and boil your beans and potatoes ahead of time. Even getting one part of the recipe done ahead of time makes everything easier later — put your potatoes on to boil a day or two before and store them in the fridge. Then peel them (or not) and chop when it's time to make your salad.
