Dukkah, asparagus & hot smoked salmon potato salad – loaded with pomegranate, hazelnut dukkah, fresh parsley and mint, and chunks of avocado. Jump to Recipe
I’ve spent the weekend making layers and layers of tender buttermilk chocolate cake (eleven, to be precise), dressed up in the fudgiest, smoothest, darkest chocolate frosting I’ve ever made, thanks to Thalia (and yes, it’s worth all those superlatives). So much cake that by Saturday evening I would have been happy not to see any again for a week, with chocolate-coated dishes piling up in the hot kitchen, over-heated by our poorly insulated oven, and that sickly sweet mouth-feel from taste testing for much of the day. But then I woke up this morning – to a clean kitchen – and realised that’s a complete lie. Give me a 24 hour break and I’ll be right back on the chocolate wagon.
I’m lucky my family puts up with the constant clatter and whir of the stand mixer, the lack of available surfaces in the kitchen, and (for my brothers), seeing masses of cake pass through the house without having access to any of it. Though the boys did get to scrape out the bowl a couple of times – it was the least I could do. This week I’m also starting the Christmas mince tarts for the season – packed with sultanas, dried apricots, prunes, mixed peel and chunks of dark chocolate, all laced with spices and a deluge of brandy. If anyone is in Auckland and wants to put in an order for fruit mince tarts or Christmas party cakes, send me a message!
To me, summer in New Zealand is synonymous with outdoor dinners and barbecues. Our Christmas is a lighter affair too, with barbecued lamb and spatchcocked chicken, Ottolenghi-style salads and icy cold desserts and pavlovas having a firm place on the table. I’ve never been a huge potato salad fan: it used to bring to mind flashes of pot-luck offerings of sun-warmed mushy potatoes, coated in heavy store-bought mayonaise and topped with a couple of green-tinged hardboiled eggs. BLEUGH. It was the summer potluck salad option I would always bypass – along with maybe the mayo-coated coleslaw. Instead, this summer I’ll be making this vietnamese green mango slaw, and today’s dukkah, asparagus & hot smoked salmon potato salad.
The counter point to the heights of December decadence, it uses crisp fresh spring asparagus and just-tender new potatoes. It’s studded with bright jewels and bursts of pomegranate and loaded with parsley, mint and zesty lemon. Chunks of creamy avocado meld with the burnished orange streams of egg yolk, and the hazelnut dukkah provides both crunch and extra flavour. It’s worth making your own dukkah – this recipe makes about 1 and a half cups, and you can use it in countless ways. Lately I’ve sprinkled it on eggs of all kinds, smashed butternut & feta toast, homemade hummus, smoky baba ganoush, and every kind of grilled vegetable, to name a few.
A twist on a classic, loaded with pomegranate, hazelnut dukkah, fresh parsley and mint, and chunks of avocado.
- 1 kg new potatoes
- 2-3 bunches asparagus , or a mix of asparagus and beans, halved
- 1/2 a pomegranate
- 1 cup parsley , roughly chopped
- 1 cup mint , roughly chopped
- zest + juice of a large lemon
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons hazelnut dukkah (see recipe below, or storebought) + extra to top with
- 300 g hot smoked salmon
- 1 avocado
- 1-2 eggs per person , soft boiled - boil in a small pot for 5 minutes, then transfer directly into a cold water bath to prevent further cooking. Shell right before use.
- salt and pepper
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Bring a pot of water to boil. Halve the potatoes and boil until fork-tender - this took 15 minutes for mine, but depends on the size of your potatoes.
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When done, rinse under cold water and chop into bite size pieces. Set aside.
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Meanwhile, heat a medium pan with a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the asparagus/beans and a generous grind of salt and pepper. Sautee over a medium-high heat until crisp-tender and charred lightly in spots - about 5 minutes, depending on asparagus thickness.
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Deseed the pomegranate.
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Roughly chop the parsley and mint.
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Chop the avocado into chunks.
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Soft boil the eggs - bring a small pot of water to the boil. Boil the eggs (1-2 per person) for 5 minutes (time this!) then transfer directly to a bowl of cold water to prevent further cooking. Peel just before serving.
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In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, asparagus, pomegranate seeds, chopped parsley and mint, zest and juice of the lemon, olive oil, and hazelnut dukkah.
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Toss to combine.
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Serve with avocado, hot smoked salmon, and soft boiled eggs. Sprinkle extra dukkah on top if desired.
- 75 g hazelnuts
- 100 g almonds , preferably blanched
- 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon sea salt flakes
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme (optional)
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Toast the hazelnuts in a dry pan over a low heat until the skins start flaking off, shaking the pan occasionally to stop them from burning.. Transfer to a clean tea towel and rub together in the tea towel until most of the skins peel off. Return to the pan and toast them until browned. Roughly chop, leaving some of the pieces quite large.
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Toast the almonds in the same pan until as evenly brown as you can get them. Tip on the chopping board and finely chop.
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Toast the coriander and cumin seeds until fragrant (this happens quickly, be careful not to burn them), then transfer to a mortal and pestle or nut grinder and blitz/pound to a coarse powder.
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Combine all the nuts, spices and salt & pepper in a bowl. Leave to cool then transfer to a jar.
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The dukkah will keep for a few weeks.
This salad is gorgeous! And I’m like you – I only need a short break from chocolate cake before I’m ready to dive back in again.
thanks Sara, glad it’s not just me!
Perfect!!
Thanks Hollie!
hahaha, i always think it’s funny that half the world is eating all these beautiful vegetables and summer foods while the other half is freezing to death for winter. jealous of these beautiful greens!
I think the same thing when we start hitting winter, and while we’re in the midst of the cold you guys are pulling out beautiful fruit pies! hope you’re well Michelle! x
Everything I love in life is in this bowl. Seriously, gorgeous. I will make a trip to the market to make this tomorrow. Can’t wait to give it a taste!
PS: Enjoy the warm weather. We are freezing here. 🙂
thank you! would love to know what you think of it.
Haha, that first paragraph about the chocolate cakes reminded me of my husband. He’s a serious choco-holic, and every few weeks he’ll say “I am so done with chocolate” — like he’s had enough, and doesn’t even want to look at chocolate again for a while… but then I almost immediately catch him going back for more! 😛
This potato salad sounds like such a nice, refreshing break from all the sweets. Just like you, I’m not usually a fan of potato salads (same reasons — mushy, mayo-y, blech…) but this sounds absolutely wonderful. Pinning so I remember to make it when the asparagus comes into season here!
hahah that is so me. self control = zero.
I’m glad I’m not the only one who hasn’t been a potato-salad fan – would love to know what you think of this version!
I love our lighter summery southern hemisphere christmas affairs. This salad looks divine – I am catering for a family gathering of roughly 60-70 people this year and panicking slightly about all the different salads to make. This one is now on the list. Thanks Claudia!
oh my gosh I would be absolutely panicking too – 70 people is MASSIVE!! Good luck! would love to hear how it all goes and what you end up making.
Ah, the minute I saw this on IG I knew I had to hop on over to get the recipe. This looks so delicious and nourishing – exactly what I need now.
sometimes you need a little (or a lot!) colourful salad to balance out all the baking! Hope your week is going well x
I’d love to have a lighter Christmas. I’m not a big Christmas fan and all the heavy food, dark and snowy days and endless hours inside are probably the reasons. Maybe I’d just suggest my family to have your salad bowl for Christmas dinner. I’d definitely love that 🙂
Fair enough – I’ve had one white Christmas a few years ago, and the skiing was great, but I missed our warm evenings and lighter food!
Haha I need to come christmas in NZ. That salad looks amazing!!!!
Thank you! You should – summer is the best time to visit NZ.
Wow! I love the looks of this potato salad. Definitely will be trying it. I found your site through Instagram and I’ve just been going through page after page of your gorgeous recipes!
Thanks so much Emily, that is so lovely to hear! Would love to know what you think.
Omggg that egg! Plus this dish in general just looks sooooo good!
I definitely have to alternate fresh veggies/salads with chocolate – and the alternation is always a quick one! Ha. This looks and sounds so lovely and that last picture is just gorgeous!
Damn, I’m just going to live summer vicariously through you.