Recipe: A Simple Potato Salad (2024)

FAQs

What are the ingredients for a good potato salad? ›

Stir mayonnaise, pickles, hard-cooked eggs, red onion, celery, mustard, cider vinegar, salt, and pepper together in a large bowl. Fold in cooled potatoes until well combined. For best flavor, chill potato salad in the refrigerator until chilled or overnight before serving.

Forgetting To Salt The Water

Just as you would with pasta, seasoning the water is the only way to flavor the potatoes themselves. The vegetable absorbs the water it's cooked in, so if you just boil them in unseasoned water, you'll end up with tasteless taters that no amount of mayo, herbs, or bacon bits can help.

Taste of Home Deputy Food Editor James Schend suggests adding a tablespoon or two of apple cider vinegar to the water before it comes to a simmer, which will help create a “crust” on the potatoes. This way, they'll be less likely to fall apart.

There's no reason at all, so my advice is to leave the skins on. The skin on a potato adds a nice texture and flavor to the potato salad and it's also the healthiest part.

Yes, if your potato salad is a cold salad, as most are, allow the cooked potatoes to cool to room temperature before adding the dressing and other ingredients.

Bottom Line: When stored safely, fresh potato salad should keep for up to five days.

Yes, and PLEASE do, chilling your salad will only make it more flavorful! You can make the Potato salad 1 or 2 days in advance and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. I often make my potato salad the night before serving for best results.

POTATOES, MAYONNAISE (SOYBEAN OIL, WATER, EGG YOLKS, VINEGAR, SALT), MUSTARD (WATER, VINEGAR, MUSTARD SEED, SALT, SUGAR, SOYBEAN OIL, TURMERIC, PAPRIKA, GARLIC POWDER, SPICES, ANNATTO EXTRACT (COLOR], XANTHAN GUM, CITRIC ACID, NATURAL FLAVOR), DILL PICKLE CUBES (CUCUMBER VINEGAR, SALT, CALCIUM CHLORIDE, NATURAL ...

Potatoes can retain moisture. To prevent this, drain the potatoes very well in a colander or pot. Allow all the steam to escape the potatoes before mixing them with the dressing and other ingredients.

Why is it called Chef's salad? ›

When the customers started requesting the off-menu salad made with cuts of meat, cheese and hard boiled eggs, the hotel decided to add it to the menu. Giving chef Seydoux the honor of naming the salad he is purported to have said "Well, it's really a chef's salad."

According to StillTasty.com, prepared potato salad—whether homemade or store-bought, dressed with vinegar and oil or mayonnaise—will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to five days if stored properly.

Waxy potatoes are generally considered the best for classic potato salad because they retain their shape, you don't have to peel them, and they have a smooth texture.