Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Offer these salads of summer and guests won’t miss the burgers

- PG tested — Adapted from “A Burger to Believe In” by Chris Kronner with Paolo Lucchesi ( Ten Speed Press, May 2018, $ 30)

SUMMER POTATO SALAD

The original recipe calls for smoking the cooked potatoes “until they taste smoky” before tossing them in the dressing. I skipped that step ( don’t have a smoker) and still was happy with the result.

For dressing

½ cup yellow mustard seeds

3 tablespoon­s fennel seeds

1 cup malt vinegar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon sugar

3 tablespoon­s peanut oil

For salad

Kosher salt 1 cup fresh English peas

20 fingerling potatoes, unpeeled ( about 2 pounds)

2 cups snap peas, trimmed and cut into bitesized pieces

2 summer squashes, cut into ⅛- inch slices Juice from ½ lemon

Make dressing: Combine mustard and fennel seeds in small bowl or jar that can hold a little more than 1 cup of liquid. Pour vinegar into a small pot and bring to simmer over high heat. Add salt and sugar, remove from heat and stir until dissolved. Pour vinegar mixture over seeds and let soak for at least 1 hour, and up to 12 hours. Add peanut oil and stir to combine. Store in refrigerat­or indefinite­ly.

Make salad: Bring large pot of water to boil over high heat and add a generous amount of salt. Prepare an ice bath, also salty like the sea.

Drop peas into boiling water and cook until warmed through, 10 to 15 seconds. Using a small strainer, quickly transfer peas to ice bath and let cool completely. Drain in

colander and let dry on paper towels.

Bring same pot of water back to boil and add potatoes. Boil until they are tender and can be pierced with a fork, 20 to 25 minutes. Drain in colander and let cool.

Cut potatoes into bite- size chunks. Combine potatoes, snap peas, squash and English peas in a large bowl, add two- thirds of dressing, and toss to combine. Taste and season with lemon juice, as needed. Add more dressing, if desired. Transfer to bowl or platter. Eat immediatel­y or refrigerat­e, covered, as it will keep for a few hours if you’re traveling to a picnic.

Serves 4.

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