Viral smash potato salad

Instructions

1. First up for the viral smash potato salad, tip your spuds into a pan of cold water, HEAVILY seasoned with salt. It needs to taste like the sea, so all of that flavour gets into those potatoes. Bring the pan to the boil and cook for 10-15 minutes, until the potatoes are mostly cooked but not falling apart. While your potatoes are boiling, crack on with your seasonings.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the dried herbs and spices and add enough olive oil to make an oily paste, thick enough to coat over the potatoes. Drain the potatoes into a colander and pop a clean tea towel over the top. Leave the potatoes to steam dry for 10-15 minutes. When the potatoes are drying, preheat the oven to 200ºc/400ºf.
3. Grab a baking tray and tip all of your spuds out, then spread them out so they’ve got a bit of room. Use a second tray if you need to, as they need a bit of space to get criiiiispy! Find a small ramekin or sturdy water glass to press your potatoes down gently, so they flatten out and get a larger surface area.
4. Smother your smashed baby potatoes in your flavoured oil mix and get them into the oven at 200ºc/400ºf for around 40 minutes, which is coincidentally the perfect amount of time to make some quick pickled shallots. For your pickle, pour your vinegar of choice, peppercorns, sugar and a big pinch of salt into a saucepan with the water. Pop that on the stove until it comes to the boil, and meanwhile peel your shallots and slice into rings.
5. When your shallots are all sliced and the vinegar mixture has come to the boil, chuck in the shallots, separating them roughly into rings so they absorb more pickle. Leave them to cool down while your potatoes carry on cooking. While your potatoes are going crispy, grab them out of the oven and flip them over. Spread over some more of your spice mix (you might need to add a bit more oil to stretch it out but that’s ok) and return to the oven for another 15-20 minutes until super crispy.
6. After returning your potatoes to the oven, get your dressing ready. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, sour cream, mustard, chopped parsley, chives and spring onions and season generously with salt and black pepper. Use a fork to scoop out plenty of your pickled shallot rings and don’t completely drain them off – you need some of the acidic pickle to balance out the creaminess of the sauce. Give the dressing a taste for seasoning and adjust as needed, then get your smashed potatoes out of the oven. Ideally, mix the potatoes into the dressing while they’re still warm, and just before serving. Garnish with a few more rings of pickled shallot.