I’m happy when asparagus season overlaps with sugar snap pea season, resulting in this summery dish – Baby Potato Salad with Asparagus and Sugar Snap Peas, with fresh mint and dill. Unfortunately this year I didn’t get the peas in the ground as early as I should have. The asparagus is starting to slow down, but the pea vines haven’t yet begun to flower, so I had to purchase peas from the grocery store, which is risky. Sometimes they’re leathery without a whit of sweetness, but I got lucky this time. The salad is incredibly fresh despite not being 100% harvested from our garden – it’s still our asparagus, our mint, and our dill.

Memorial Day weekend kicked off of grilling season. Frequently it’s chicken, burgers, and steaks on the grill, but we grill plenty of veg as well. For me the sides steal the show all summer long, and this is where it starts.

Print Recipe

Asparagus, Sugar Snap Pea, and Baby Potato Salad

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound sugar snap peas
• 1/2 pound asparagus
• 2 shallots
• 6 radishes
• 3/4 cup mint leaves
• sprigs fresh dill
• 1 pound baby potatoes
• Preserved Lemon Vinaigrette (see note)

Instructions

• Prep the veg – Trim and peel the asparagus, if necessary, and cut into 2 or 3-inch lengths. Destem the sugar snap peas. Blanch the asparagus and the peas into boiling water and cook until just crisp-tender, then scoop them out of the water and plunge them in an ice water bath. Set aside, reserving a few asparagus tips for garnish, and leave the pot with the hot water on the stove (you'll use the same pot to cook the potatoes). Mince the shallots and slice the radishes very thinly. Chop the mint and the dill.
• Cook the potatoes – Prick the potatoes and add them to the pot of hot water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, and cook until the potatoes are the consistency you like for potato salad. Drain the potatoes and add them to a large bowl with the minced shallots. Toss the potatoes and shallots with a generous glug of Preserved Lemon Vinaigrette.
• Assemble the salad – After the potatoes have cooled a bit (but not completely), add the peas, asparagus, and mint, and gently toss to combine. You don't want the potatoes to so warm that they further cook the peas and asparagus, but you do want them to be warm enough to slightly wilt the mint leaves. Then scatter the radish slices and dill on top, and garnish with asparagus tips.

This is the perfect side dish. Yes, it’s crunchy and fresh, but it also includes the creamy baby potato yumminess. I’ll be in the kitchen making the Baby Potato Salad with Asparagus and Sugar Snap Peas (don’t forget the radishes, the dill, and the mint!) while Ron fires up the grill and sears a couple of steaks or some swordfish. It’s so easy. So much better than going out to eat!