Ensaladilla Rusa Spanish Potato Salad

The name for potato salad in Spain is ensaladilla rusa, or Russian Salad. Why? It is said that a Russian invented the salad in the late XIX century. We don’t know what the original Russian salad was like, but the Spanish have made their own version and eat it as a tapa or a side dish. Many families even prepare home-made mayonnaise to dress it. A must try potato salad recipe...the great Spanish taste...or Russian ? Find out...mmmm

Ingredients:

* 7 medium potatoes
* 2 roasted red peppers (bottled is fine)
* 1 16 oz can of peas and carrots, drained
* 2 hard-boiled eggs
* 1 6 oz can tuna, drained
* mayonnaise – For home-made, see recipe link below.
* Optional:
* 4-5 spears white asparagus for garnish

Preparation:

This Spanish potato salad recipe makes 6 servings.Scrub the potatoes to clean off any lose dirt and sand. Pour water into a large pot, cover and bring to a boil on high heat.

Place potatoes in the pot and boil them with skins on until they are cooked, but not too soft. Test the doneness by pricking with a fork to make sure they are cooked, but still firm. Don’t overcook the potatoes or when mixing the salad, you’ll end up with mashed potatoes!

Boil the eggs until hard.

If you are preparing home-made mayonnaise, do so while the potatoes are cooking.
Drain the water from the pot and add cold water to the pot, covering the potatoes. Change every few minutes until the potatoes are cool enough to handle with your bare hands.

Refrigerate for a few minutes to cool further.Remove from refrigerator and peel potatoes. Cut into small (approximately 1/2") cubes. Return to refrigerator while you prepare the other ingredients.

Put approximately 1 1/2 cups of mayonnaise into a bowl. Slice 1 of the roasted pepper into strips about 1/3 inch wide, then cut into smaller pieces and add to bowl. Drain tuna thoroughly, then crumble with a fork and add to bowl. Drain carrots and peas and add to bowl. Peel 1 egg, chop and add to bowl. Mix all ingredients together.

Add the mayonnaise mixture to the potatoes and mix thoroughly. If necessary, add more mayonnaise. Smooth top of potato salad, preparing for decoration.

Slice remaining red pepper into thin strips and arrange on top of salad. Drain the white asparagus and slice hard-boiled eggs carefully. Use both to decorate the salad.