Recipe: Indian-Style Sweet Potato Salad with Yogurt-Spice Sauce

INDIAN-STYLE SWEET POTATO SALAD

1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, regular waxy potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes
1 medium red onion
2 teaspoons coarse salt
FOR THE YOGURT-SPICE SAUCE:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
FOR SERVING:
Leaves from 1 bunch cilantro
Leaves from 1 bunch mint

TO PREPARE THE SWEET POTATOES:
Cover the sweet potatoes with cold water in a pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Immediately reduce the heat to low and simmer gently until the potatoes feel soft all the way through when poked with a small knife, about 30 minutes. Don't overcook them or they'll fall apart when you construct the salad. Drain the sweet potatoes, let them cool at room temperature and chill them for several hours or overnight in the refrigerator. (Regular potatoes don't need to be chilled.)

TO PREPARE THE ONION:
Slice the onion as thin as you can - a vegetable slicer works well for this - and rub the slices with the coarse salt until you can't feel the salt on your fingers. The salt softens the onion and helps its texture meld with that of the sweet potatoes. Drain the onion in a colander for 20 minutes, quickly rinse the onion under cold water and squeeze the softened onion slices in your fingers to extract as much of their juice as you can. Set aside.

TO PREPARE THE YOGURT-SPICE SAUCE:
Combine the vegetable oil with the cumin and coriander in a small saucepan. Cook the spices over medium heat while stirring with a wooden spoon until you smell their fragrance, about 2 minutes. Stir in the red and black pepper, yogurt and lemon juice. Set aside.

TO ASSEMBLE AND SERVE:
Peel the sweet potatoes by pulling away the skin with your fingers or with a paring knife. Slice the sweet potatoes into rounds about 1/3-inch thick. Set aside.

Chop the cilantro and mint leaves - this is best done last so the mint leaves don't turn black and loose their fragrance - and stir them into the yogurt-spice sauce. Arrange the sweet potato slices in alternating layers with the onion and the Yogurt-Spice Sauce in a salad bowl or baking dish, finishing with a layer of sauce. Serve at room temperature or slightly cool.

Serves 4 as a side dish
Source: Vegetables by James Peterson