Potato Dishes Episode 3: Persian Salad Olivieh

Potato dishes episode 3. Today we're making an Iranian classic, somewhat borrowed from Russia, Persian Olivier Salad. It's good for the soul, great for the mouth and also an easy way to develop a noble double chin, perfect for holidays and family gatherings. We start by boiling 500 grams or 3 to 4 medium-ish potatoes in salted water. This will take about 20 to 30 minutes give or take. While the spuds are cooking we deal with a vegan element of this dish, chicken. Grab a piece of foil. Olive oil goes onto it, followed by 2 to 3 of Costco's finest chicken thighs, depending on how vegan you feel on the day. I use boneless skinless but use whatever you want. Next we slice 50 grams or half a small onion and add it to the chicken. Crush 3 to 4 garlic cloves and get them in there too. Season with salt and a generous grinding of fresh pepper. Mix it all to get to know each other a bit better, then wrap it up and into a 160 degrees celsius or 320 degrees fahrenheit preheated oven it goes for 20 minutes. Meanwhile get 3 eggs into boiling water and set a timer for 10 minutes. Check on the potatoes. We should be fully cooked and offer no resistance when poked with a skewer. Remove them from the water and while warm, peel them by pulling off the skin. Immediately break them up with the back of a fork, keeping some texture. Work swiftly and light. Do not turn it into mash. Get it into a bowl of your choice and deal with the chicken. While warm you lightly shred the thighs but don't go too fine as you'll lose valuable texture if you do. The leftover cooking juices can be kept for later. Drink it with your morning vegan protein shake or simply add it to the salad. At this point you have a bowl of warm potatoes and chicken which need to cool down but not get cold. Perfect time to add 150 grams or 3 fifths of a cup of defrosted frozen peas or naturally sweet tin peas. Next we chop up 150 grams or one cup of cornichons, nice and fine. Add that into the mix and deal with the eggs which should be hard boiled and cooled down before you peel them. Grate them on a granny style box grater straight into the bowl. Add 200 grams or three quarters of a cup of mayonnaise. If it's not homemade then at least Hellmann's which in no way pays me to say that. To make it healthy we add 55 grams or four tablespoons of olive oil and season it with salt and pepper. Always remember to season as you go to avoid having unevenly seasoned food. Give that all a mix to combine and add a bit more mayo or chicken cooking juices if it seems a bit dry. The texture should be light and fluffy even for a heavy dish, a bit like my personality. Try and arrange it nicely like they do in Persian restaurants with a few more cornichons, green olives and the last bit of olive oil. Eat with flatbread called lavash or without. Most importantly enjoy and go live a happy life.