This is the best potato salad recipe to take to your next summer potluck with other classic sides like coleslaw, macaroni salad, and baked beans! Made with simple ingredients, southern potato salad is rich, creamy, and tangy, with a welcome crunch from red onions and celery. It also keeps well for a few days, so it’s a great option to make a night in advance!
Don’t limit yourself to enjoying this recipe only at potlucks! I often whip it up as a side for smash burgers and BBQ chicken for quintessential summer dinners that my family loves to devour. And since it has a generous yield of 8 servings, in part thanks to hard-boiled eggs adding a little bulk, I typically have leftovers that we can enjoy for a second meal!
Key Ingredients
Here are the key ingredients for making the best potato salad! You can find the full list with measurements in the recipe below.
Potatoes — I find waxy potatoes (like red potatoes) or all-purpose potatoes (like Yukon gold potatoes) to be the best options for this recipe because they hold their shape well during cooking and assembly. Starchy potatoes like Russets also make a good potato salad if you like a softer or less chunky version. They can become a bit crumbly when cooked due to their high starch content and will fall apart more easily when the salad is stirred together.
Red onion — setting the onions in a little apple cider vinegar for a few minutes helps to “deflame” them, so you get the crunch and flavor without the sharpness. If you prefer a milder onion flavor, use sweet onions or sliced green onions.
Mayonnaise and sour cream — mayonnaise and sour cream form the creamy base of the potato salad dressing. You can use your favorite brand of mayo or elevate the potato salad by making homemade mayonnaise with my fail-proof recipe!
Dijon mustard — Dijon mustard adds a nice tang to balance the creamy mayo. You can swap this for yellow mustard or brown mustard if that’s what you have on hand.
Pickles — dill pickles add textural interest and also introduce a salty, briny element that balances the creamy salad. If you don’t like dill pickles, you can replace them with finely chopped fresh cucumber, radish, or pickled onions!
Eggs — hard-boiled eggs give the salad extra richness and a nice textural variation from the potatoes and crunchy vegetables like diced celery. Plus, they help to bulk up the salad for a more satisfying side.
Potato Salad Recipe
Video
Equipment
- Large Pot
- Colander
Ingredients
- 3 pounds Yukon gold, russet, or red-skin potatoes (1.35kg)
- 3 teaspoons salt divided
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar divided (60mL)
- ½ cup red onion finely diced (75g)
- ½ cup mayonnaise (104g)
- ½ cup sour cream (120g)
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper plus more to taste
- ½ cup chopped dill pickles (70g)
- 4 hard-boiled eggs peeled and chopped
- 2 stalks celery diced (150g)
- ¼ cup fresh chopped herbs such as dill, parsley, or chives
- Pinch of paprika
Instructions
- Peel the potatoes if you like, and cut into ¾ to 1-inch-sized pieces. Place them in a large pot, then cover with cold water by about two inches. Add two teaspoons of salt to the water, place over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until fork tender.
- Drain the potatoes, then spread them on a sheet tray in a single layer to cool slightly, about 10 minutes. While they are still warm, place them in a large mixing bowl and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of vinegar. Stir gently to combine. (This helps to season the potatoes.) Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- In a medium bowl, combine the onions with the remaining 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar. Set this aside for about 10 minutes to “deflame” the onion and take the “bite” out.
- To the bowl with the onions, combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, Dijon mustard, the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt, and pepper. Stir well to combine.
- To the bowl with the potatoes, add the pickles, hard-boiled eggs, celery, and dressing. Stir gently to coat all of the ingredients. Add a splash of the pickle juice to taste, if you like. Fold in the fresh herbs. Sprinkle the paprika on top just before serving.
Notes
- Vinegar substitute: You can use lemon juice or white wine vinegar in place of the apple cider vinegar.
- For the chopped pickles, you can use dill, spicy, or sweet pickles. Or replace the chopped pickles with sweet pickle relish.
- If you like a looser potato salad, you can use the pickle juice as well! Once you measure the pickles, pour the brine from the pickle jar into the measuring cup with the chopped pickles until it’s full.
- Stir warm potatoes into the dressing. This helps flavor the potatoes even more. On a technical level, hot potatoes have open cells to absorb flavor. They close as they cool, so the potatoes will absorb less flavor if you wait until they cool before adding the dressing.
Nutrition
Pro Tips For Making The Best Potato Salad
Start the potatoes in cold water. Starting the cooking process with cold water helps the potatoes cook evenly and hold their shape. If you start the potatoes in hot or boiling water, the outsides will cook very quickly while the insides are still hard, which will eventually lead to the chopped potatoes falling apart by the time the center turns tender.
Cut the potatoes into pieces that are the same size. This ensures they cook at the same pace and are ready at the same time.
Make sure the potatoes are tender, but not falling apart. Holding their shape is key for getting nice potato chunks in the salad. If they are overcooked, the potatoes will crumble apart or turn very sticky, making your salad more pasty than creamy.
Use one of these methods for the hard-boiled eggs: For the perfect hard-boiled eggs that you don’t have to watch over on the stove, try my air fryer hard boiled eggs or Instant Pot hard boiled eggs. For a more traditional method, follow the stovetop boiling method and easy peeling trick I use in my egg salad recipe.
If you have time, chill before serving. Even a quick 30-minute chill in the refrigerator gives the flavors time to meld. Ideally, I like to make my salad several hours up to a day in advance for the best flavor!
Should I Peel The Potatoes Before Cooking Them?
This is totally up to you! Potato peels add a bit more texture and chew to the salad, so it’s really a matter of personal preference. The one potato I do recommend peeling, regardless, is Russets; their skin is a bit rougher and tougher than red or gold potatoes.
Season The Water When Cooking Potatoes
When making boiled potatoes, you need to generously salt the cooking water. Potatoes soak up water while they cook, so adding salt will help to season them from the inside out as they absorb the salted water. Just like when boiling pasta, your boiled potatoes won’t ever taste quite as flavorful if you only season them after boiling.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, I don’t recommend freezing potato salad. The dressing will separate, and it will have an unpleasant texture once thawed.
Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
If you’ve tried this potato salad recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
