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Classic Potato Salad is everything you want

Potato Salad is a favorite for several reasons. It’s easy to make. It uses the best of summer potatoes. And it’s so darned delicious!

It’s all about the potatoes

There are a lot of opinions as to which potatoes make the best potato salad. As you can see from the photos I am sure, we prefer red skin potatoes. The fresher the better and that is easy this time of year. If you don’t grow your own potatoes, they are abundant at Farmer’s Markets and roadside vegetable stands. Fresh red potatoes stay firm longer, and still absorb the dressing without getting soggy. I used smallish ones here, but any size will work.

What about add-ins?

This too is a matter of personal preference. I’m sharing our favorite combo here. You can easily add or subtract to suit your own tastes. Celery, green onions and olives are so good together.

Shredded carrots are a nice addition, as are diced sweet peppers. And, if you don’t care for olives, you can use dill or sweet pickles. I am not fond of sweet pickles in potato salad, but my bread and butter pickles are quite tasty in it. If you’re using sweet pickles, I would use vinegar in the dressing, rather than the pickle brine.

Eggs or no eggs?

We like eggs in ours, but if you prefer to leave them out, that is not a problem. We have lots of flavor going on in here, so it is going to be good anyway. It’s important to remember that along with the mayonnaise, eggs are going to require refrigeration pretty quickly. Potato Salad should not be left out of the refrigerator for more than an hour or so. Something like this travel salad bowl can come in handy for picnics though.

Some fresh herbs are nice

I really like fresh flat-leaf parsley in potato salad, but there are other hebs that will give you lots of flavor. Dill is a favorite [definitely use dill pickles instead of green olives in that case] and recently I tried using basil, which was quite different, but very tasty. Parsely is pretty much a must have for me though.

Make this early in the day

Classic Potato Salad is served cold, so you need to give this a good 6 hours to chill. That amount of time also gives the flavors time to mingle and enhance each other. This is also good the next day, if you want to make it even further ahead.

How to make Classic Potato Salad

recipe for Classic Potato Salad on The Creekside Cook

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5 from 2 votes

Classic Potato Salad

Author: Donalyn Ketchum

This potato salad is summer in a bowl for us! New potatoes, and crisp add-ins, plus tons of flavor.

Prep Time30

Chilling Time6

Course: Salads, Side Dishes

Cuisine: American

Meal: Brunch, Dinner, Lunch, Picinic

Servings:

Calories: 228kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

2 lbs new red potatoes
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 stalks celery
4 large scallions
10 green olives
4 large hard boiled eggs
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
2 tablespoons olive brine, or apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh grind pepper

Instructions

Scrub the potatoes, and cut them into roughly 1 inch pieces. Try to get them close to the same size, so that they cook evenly.
Add the potatoes to a 3 quart sauce pan, add the first amount of salt, and simmer gently over low-medium heat until a kinife inserted in a potato goes in easily. Slightly underdone is better than over cooked, so don't leave them too long. 15 to 20 minutes will probably do it.
In the meantime, chop the celery in a medium dice [1/4 inch pieces], slice the green and white part of the scallions in 1/8th inch slices, and roughly chop the olives.
Peel and chop the boiled eggs.
Mince the parsley.
When the potatoes are cooked, drain them, and rinse briefly under cold, running water.
At this point, I like to spread the potatoes out on a paper towel lined baking sheet to cool for a few minutes. *see notes This will dry the surface of the potatoes which will ensure the salad isn't soggy.
Add all of the ingredients to a bowl large enough to allow gentle mixing of everything, until it is all evenly combined.
Cover the salad, and refrigerate for at least 6 hours before serving.
Check the salad before serving, and add a bit more mayo, if it seems dry.

Notes

*If you are in a bit more of a hurry. you can set the tray of potatoes in the freezer for no more than 15 minutes to cool and dry them quickly. [this is an old restaurant trick]. Don't forget them - if they freeze, they will be ruined. This will cut down on the total cooling time however, and works well if you don't have 6 hours for the salad to chill.

Leftovers absolutely must be refrigerated, for up to about 3 days.

Nutrition

It’s a classic for a reason

I will never lose my affection for this old family favorite, and I hope that you will feel the same! Looking for something to serve this with? Herb Marinated Chicken Thighs would be a great idea, and so are Southwest Chicken Kebabs.

Comments

Masie says

I made this salad the day after you put it up and I’m so glad that I did. Everyone loved it! I haven’t had such good potato salad since the ones my grandma used to make. Thanks for a great recipe and for great memories!

- Donalyn says
  
  Masie – I am so glad to hear that you loved the salad. I kind of got the original recipe from my own grandmas and and my mom, so it has come full circle I guess.
  
Tommy says

Spectacular! Do you think it will be okay even without the eggs? My husband is allergic.

- Donalyn says
  
  Yes Tommy – you can definitely leave out the eggs. Or make the whole salad, leaving out the eggs, and then divide it and put eggs in only part of it.