Roasted Purple Potatoes with Saffron Dipping Sauce

This one’s a past recipe revived from the archives and inspired by Iranian culture and cuisine from a past trip with Francois. Together, we love to discover the flavors of each country we visit through regional food. Upon returning, I love to take those discoveries to my home lab / kitchen and meld ingredients in ways that evoke delicious past experiences. Today we’re conjuring Iran through potatoes.

Of the ~4,000 varieties of potatoes, purple potatoes are one of my favorites. They contain four times as many antioxidants as Russet potatoes and are available nearly year-round. Natural pigments give purple potatoes their color. For this recipe, we salt and roast them and pair with a savory homemade saffron mayonnaise, inspired by the abundant saffron in Iran.

Roasted Purple Potatoes with Saffron Dipping Sauce

Preheat the oven to 450˚

Roast the potatoes – Cut the potatoes into even size pieces, toss with olive oil and place on a parchment lined sheet pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven. 

 While the potatoes are roasting, make the saffron mayonnaise. Crumble the saffron threads in small bowl. Add the hot water and let the saffron steep for 5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and blend to combine. Pour into a serving bowl and serve with the roasted potatoes

serves 6

ROASTED POTATOES

  • 1 lb purple fingerling potatoes, washed and dried

SAFFRON MAYONNAISE

  • 10 saffron threads, crumbled
  • 1 tsp hot water
  • ¾ cup vegan mayonnaise
  • 1 medium garlic clove, minced
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
  • salt and freshly ground pepper to taste