Mustard Grilled Potatoes

I was looking for a different way to prepare potatoes on the grill (we typically do rosemary potatoes). This recipe intrigued me with the suggestion to parboil the potatoes first.  The original recipe calls for rosemary to season the dish, but since I was trying to get away from rosemary, I switched out the seasoning with Mural of Flavor from Penzeys.

The first time I made these, I boiled them for too long and had sliced them too thin. The results, while delicious enough to try the recipe again, were less than photogenic. Second time around, I paid closer attention to the parboil, and made sure the coins were sliced correctly. The mustard/mayonnaise bath provides a lovely crisp coating around the finished potatoes. They are crisp on the outside and soft and creamy on the inside. We love them! I think many different seasoning options would go well with this dish, so feel free to be creative!



Mustard Grilled Potatoes
Source: Slightly adapted from Fine Cooking

By par-cooking your potatoes before they go on the grill, they'll have a soft, almost cakey texture on the inside when they're done, but they'll still have that terrific grilled flavor. The mayonnaise not only adds flavor to the potatoes, but helps keep them from sticking to the grill. Serves four as a side dish.

1 lb. medium red- or yellow-skinned potatoes
Kosher salt
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 Tbs. Dijon mustard
2 tsp. herb seasoning of your choice
freshly ground pepper

Wash the potatoes and cut them into 3/8-inch slices. Cover the potatoes with cold water and 1 Tbs. salt  in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower to a gentle simmer (you don't want them to break up), and cook until they're almost but not quite fully cooked, 4 to 6 minutes. The potatoes will still be a little hard in the center, but the outer edges will look opaque. Drain in a large colander and rinse with cold water until they're cool; handle them gently. Spread them out on clean dishtowels and let them sit at room temperature (for up to an hour) until you're ready to grill them.

Light a charcoal grill and allow the fire to reach a medium-hot temperature (the top of the coals should be 5 to 6 inches from the grill grate, and you'll be able to hold your hand over the fire for no more than 3 to 4 seconds when it's medium hot). Alternatively, heat the entire surface of a gas grill until it reaches medium hot.

In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, mustard, seasoning, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss the potato slices with the mayonnaise mixture until the potatoes are well-coated. Put the potatoes on the grill grate in one layer, directly over the fire. Cook for 3 to 6 minutes or just until deep golden brown and crisp. With tongs, turn the pieces over to the other side. Cook until that side is deep golden brown and crisp, another 3 to 6 minutes. Remove and serve immediately.