Grate Barbecue Side Trifecta

The holy trinity of barbecue sides – coleslaw, potato salad & pasta salad.

Side show. Arguably just as important to barbecue feast, sides provide contrast and color to the main dishes. Here are three of my personal favorites with a grate take.

  • Green Goddess Pasta Salad
  • Grate Potato Salad
  • Toasted Sesame Asian Slaw

Grate Potato Salad

Grate potato salad is a culmination of a variety of ingredients & dishes I personally enjoy: German potato salad, garlic aioli, bacon.

A traditional German Potato Salad does not call for mayo unlike its American counterpart. Rather, German Potato Salad typically calls for some combination of vinegar and mustard.

Enter garlic aioli, which if you ask me is the superior form of mayo. Garlic aioli adds much more complexity of flavor and is simpatico to potatoes all shapes and sizes.

Toasted Sesame Asian Slaw

While coleslaw is a classic, nothing beats an easy Asian Slaw with mixed cabbage. It’s lighter than normal coleslaw and highlights the crispness of the red and green cabbage.

Green Goddess Pasta Salad

Green Goddess is nothing if all the rage in the form of salad dressing. I wanted to create a flavor packed creamier version of Green Goddess Pasta Salad which delivers all of the punch of flavors of a green goddess dressing and typical pasta salad in one glossy dressing.

Grate Potato Salad

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb of Baby Gold Potatoes
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 head of garlic
  • 1 shallot – diced
  • 8 oz of cooked bacon – crumbled
  • 1/3 cup of mayo
  • S&P to taste
  • 2-3 TBSP of champagne vinegar
  • 1 TBSP of fresh parsley chopped

Garlic Aioli:

  1. Heat oven to 400.
  2. Chop sprout of garlic off and outermost layers of clove. Drizzle with olive oil and cover with tin foil.
  3. Bake in oven for approximately 25 minutes or until tender.
  4. Cool and set aside.
  5. Add mayo, 1/2 lemon worth of lemon juice, S&P and cooled garlic in a bowl. Combine until fully incorporated.

Potato Salad:

  1. Heat water in pot to a rolling boil. Add salt. Add quartered potatoes and lower to medium heat. Cook for 13-15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender but not completely mush.
  2. Drain and remove potatoes.
  3. In large bowl combine potatoes, garlic aioli, champagne vinegar, cooked crumbled bacon, S&P to taste and parsley. ***Pro Tip*** for creamy potato salad, combine ingredients when potatoes are still warm. The warmer the are the easier it will be for the ingredients to incorporate.
  4. Combine ingredients until fully incorporate, serve & enjoy!

Toasted Sesame Asian Slaw

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb of coleslaw mix cabbage
  • 2-3 green onions – chopped
  • 1/4 cup of rice vinegar
  • 1 TBSP of sesame oil
  • 1/8 cup of sesame seeds
  1. Combine coleslaw mix cabbage, green onions, rice vinegar and sesame oil together in bowl. Mix until incorporated.
  2. Toast Sesame Seeds in pan on medium heat until golden.
  3. Add to slaw and mix. Serve & enjoy!

Green Goddess Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

  • 8 oz of shell pasta
  • 2 medium ripe avocados
  • 1/2 cup of greek yogurt
  • 5-7 leafs of fresh basil
  • 2 TBSP of fresh parsley
  • 1 TBSP of fresh dill
  • 1 TBSP of EVOO
  • 1/2 lemon worth or lemon juice
  • 2-4 TBSP of water
  • 1-2 green onions
  • 1/4 red onion – diced
  • 4-5 cherry tomatoes – halved
  • S&P to taste
  1. Cook pasta al dente.
  2. Add green yogurt, basil, parsley, dill, EVOO, lemon juice, green onions, and S&P to taste into food processor. Start with TBSP of water and combine.
  3. Combine until fully incorporated and desired texture is achieved. Add water slowly as needed to add in blending.
  4. Combine with cooked pasta and stir until fully incorporated.
  5. Add diced red onion and halved tomatoes.
  6. Serve & enjoy!