Roast Potato Salad

In Bhutan I had roast potatoes and chips both hot and cold, as a hot dinner or in a buffet or picnic lunch. Do you know they tasted really good.
To roast potatoes. Make sure you get a variety of potatoes that are good for roasting. Small new potatoes can be good with these just wash clean. Put some olive oil on a metal oven tray and get this hot about gas 7 or 220C. Put on the potatoes make sure they get oil on their skin and sprinkle with salt. You can also add some sliced onions and a sprinkle of dried herbs. They take about 30 minutes. This depends on the size of the potato so just squeeze them lightly to test the texture.
If you use large potatoes peel and cut them into chunks. Put them into a pan and boil for about 10 minutes or until the potatoes start to go soft. Remove and drain. Toss about in the pan so the edges become rough. Put these potatoes onto a tray of hot oil or goose fat is good.( get the oil hot as you are boiling the potatoes, oven at gas 7-8 and 270C) . Make sure the potatoes get oil on all surfaces and cook high up in a hot oven for 20 minutes plus or until they are really brown and crisp.
Variations
Sprinkle with parmesan cheese as they come out of the oven.
Sprinkle with fresh herbs,salt and pepper
Add some onions to roast.
Cook parsnips in the same way.
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Stir Fry Noodles with Vegetables

This is again a salad from Bhutan that you can eat hot at a meal or cold as a picnic lunch. Fry some chopped garlic in a pan or wok use olive oil, sesame oil or your favourite type of vegetable oil that will go to a high temperature. Add some sliced onions, sliced green peppers and sliced cabbage or Chinese leaves. At the same time cook some noodles in boiling water, drain when soft and add to the vegetables. Season with salt, pepper, soy sauce, chilli sauce or whatever you like the flavour of. If you add nuts such as cashews or bean sprouts this will make it a meal in itself.

Mushroom Salad with Cheese

This is another salad recipe idea from Bhutan to eat hot or cold. It is fried onions, then sliced mushrooms added. Then add chopped fresh tomatoes, salt, pepper and cook gently until tender. Top off with grated cheese. If you want it hot add green chillies at the start and boil them . The People in Bhutan love boiled green chillies

Mixed Vegetable Salad

This vegetable salad recipe is another example of food from Bhutan. They serve this hot for a dinner and cold as a salad in a packed lunch. It contains diagonally sliced carrots, green beans sliced, chopped cauliflower and sliced red onions. Heat oil in a wok or large frying pan. Add some oil about 2 tablespoons and add the chopped vegetables. Fry quickly for about 5 minutes and then put on a lid and turn down the heat and let them sweat until they are tender or at the texture you like. Season with salt, pepper and add soy sauce if you like it

Beef and Spicy Vegetable Salad or Buffet

This is a dish that was served in a buffet in Bhutan at Christmas 2006 for a hot meal and it was served on a regular basis for our picnic lunch by the roadside on our bird watching tour of Bhutan. Bhutan is a Himalayan Kingdom in the North East of India adjacent to Tibet. The beef is cut very thin and stir fried so that it is any texture from soft to very crisp and hard. Any texture is great . It is stir fried with hot spices, garlic chopped and lots of it, green chilli, sliced red onions and chopped fresh tomatoes. I would also add soy sauce and ground black pepper. Paprika would give some colour and cayenne pepper would add more heat. I tried to get the recipe but there were no books available. If anyone knows the recipe please pass on in the comments.

Puy Lentil Salsa for Tuna

This is made from PUY lentils. I boiled enough for 2 and let them cool. I added diced red onions, finely chopped red pepper and chopped tarragon. I made a dressing with ;
2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons of olive oil
salt and pepper
Mix the ingredients together and mix in with the Puy lentils and vegetables.
This is good to serve with freshly grilled or quick fried tuna in sesame oil.
You could use another type of fresh herbs such as basil or coriander.

Onion , Tomato and Lemon Salsa

This salsa contains chopped red onion, chopped spring onion, chopped fresh coriander,and diced red pepper.
The dressing is made from;
2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon of cider vinegar,salt and pepper.
I served this with new potatoes, broccoli and fresh fried Jamaican talapia fish. It was so good. Try out your own combinations of this.

Coriander and Basil

These two fantastic herbs make a difference to any salad. Basil goes well with Italian salads and Coriander with Thai and Asian cuisine. Add them as a garnish or chop into salads and salsa.
Use these herbs with salad recipes to give colour, vitamins and what a flavour.

Tuna Salad

This is the final salad we had on the fishing trip. It was tinned tuna with chopped green peppers, chopped tomatoes and chopped cucumber. This was topped off with a dressing of chopped fresh garlic,salt, pepper and a light vinegar. It was amazing what the chef did on that small boat on Lake Naser, Egypt.

Aubergine or Eggplant salad

This Egyptian salad is made from diced egg plant fried in oil and then mixed with chopped tomatoes, green peppers and topped off with the juice of fresh oranges. It is so refreshing. We had this on our fishing trip on Lake Naser.

Green pepper salad

This Egyptian salad was finely chopped garlic, green peppers, tomato and salad onions all topped off with a dressing of fresh garlic, oil, vinegar and seasoning.

Egyptian Croutons salad

This salad is made of finely chopped tomato, green peppers, cucumber, spring onions and croutons made from small pieces of bread fried in oil, herbs and finely chopped garlic. It was a good combination.