The Best Potato Salad

My go-to classic potato salad recipe is easy to make, perfectly zesty and creamy, and always a crowd fave!

I’m returning to my Midwestern roots today to pay homage to the potluck dish that will forever be a nostalgic favorite…my classic potato salad recipe. ♡

There are of course a million different takes on how to make potato salad. But if you grew up in the Midwest or South and spent any amount of time at backyard barbecues, church basement dinners, or summertime picnics, you know exactly what I’m talking about when it comes to a “classic” creamy potato salad. We start with freshly-diced potatoes, boiled until perfectly tender and then tossed with a hint of vinegar. Then to the potatoes, we add the classic building blocks of hard-boiled eggs, crisp celery and tangy red onion. A big scoop of pickle relish adds a deliciously briny kick, although some may argue it’s optional. Then everything gets tossed with a rich and creamy dressing spiked with mustard, celery salt, vinegar, and paprika to bring everything together. Potato salad perfection.

Now I know that there are strong opinions out there on the topic of Miracle Whip versus mayo, so you do you! Feel free to also add in any extras you might like, such as bacon, avocado or fresh herbs. And while I personally love leaving the potato skins on for extra texture and nutrients, you’re totally welcome to peel the potatoes here if you prefer.

Let’s make some potato salad together!

The BEST Potato Salad Recipe | 1-Minute Video

Potato Salad Ingredients

Here are some quick notes about the easy potato salad ingredients you will need for this recipe:

• Potatoes: I prefer buttery Yukon Gold potatoes or red potatoes in this recipe because they hold their shape well and won’t get too mushy, but any other variety of potatoes can work well too.
• Hard-boiled eggs: I always cook hard-boiled eggs in the Instant Pot nowadays, but you’re welcome to also make them the traditional way on the stovetop.
• Mayo or Miracle Whip: Up to you! Miracle Whip (a lighter, slightly sweeter and spicier mayo “dressing”) was always the standard for this potato salad in the Midwest. But feel free to use mayo instead (I would recommend Duke’s), or you could use a 50/50 mix of the two. To lighten things up, feel free to also also sub in some plain Greek yogurt or low-fat sour cream for part of the mayo.
• Vinegar: I make this salad with apple cider vinegar, but red wine vinegar or white vinegar would also work well.
• Pickle relish (optional): If you love pickles, a good scoop of relish (or you can dice your own pickles) adds an irresistible sweet tang to this salad! If you’re not into pickles, no worries, just leave it out.
• Veggies: Raw celery and onion add a classic bit of crunch to this potato salad.
• Seasonings: We will use Dijon mustard, celery salt, paprika (I prefer smoked paprika), fine sea salt and black pepper to season the creamy dressing. I also recommend sprinkling the salad with a hint of extra smoked paprika before serving.

How To Make Potato Salad

Full instructions are included in the recipe below, but here are the basic steps for how to make potato salad:

1. Boil the potatoes. We’ll place them in a pot, cover with cold water, and boiled until fork-tender.
2. Drain the potatoes. Drain the potatoes in a colander, return them to the pot, drizzle with vinegar and let them cool for awhile. (If you need to speed up this process, you can rinse the potatoes in cold water until chilled before returning them to the pot!)
3. Make the dressing. While the potatoes cool, whip up the dressing.
4. Combine. Toss everything together very gently in a large mixing bowl.
5. Season. Give it a taste and adjust seasonings as needed.
6. Chill. Transfer the potato salad to a serving bowl, cover, and refrigerate for 1-2 hours to chill.
7. Serve. Then serve and enjoy! ♡

How To Store Potato Salad

Potato salad unfortunately does not freeze well. So if you are making a batch in advance or have leftovers to store, simply place the potato salad in a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Potato Salad Tips

Here are a few quick potato salad tips to keep in mind when making this recipe!

1. Don’t overcook the potatoes. In order to avoid a mushy potato salad, regularly check the potatoes while they are cooking. Once they can easily be pierced with a fork, they’re ready to go!
2. Be sure to add some crunch. Celery and onion are the classic additions to creamy potato salad. But if celery isn’t your thing, try adding in some radishes, bell peppers, cucumbers, fennel or carrots instead to the salad to give it some nice texture and crunch.
3. Give it time to chill. All of these delicious flavors will continue to meld as the potato salad sits, so it will be even more delicious after it has chilled in the fridge for a few hours.
4. Adjust seasonings to taste. Everyone has their own opinions about how homemade potato salad should taste, so please feel free to adjust any of the seasonings (or any of the larger ingredient ratios) to taste!

Potato Salad Variations

• Add bacon: Add crumbled crispy bacon just before serving.
• Add cheese: Add shredded cheese, such as cheddar, smoked gouda, crumbled feta or Parmesan.
• Add fresh herbs: Add chopped fresh chives, dill, parsley, basil, or thyme to taste.
• Add extra veggies: Add bell pepper, carrots, cucumber, fennel, green onions, peas, radishes, or sweet corn.
• Add olives or capers: Add your favorite olives or capers for some extra briny flavor.
• Use baked potatoes: Chop up leftover baked potatoes instead to turn this into a baked potato salad.
• Make it vegan: Omit the eggs and swap in your favorite vegan mayo to make this a vegan potato salad recipe.

More Potato Salad Recipes

Looking for more make-ahead salad inspiration for summertime? Here are a few more favorite recipes:

• German Potato Salad
• French Potato Salad
• Italian Potato Salad

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The BEST Potato Salad!

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 180 reviews

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 60 minutes
• Yield: 6 -8 servings 1x

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Description

My go-to recipe for classic, creamy, zesty, Southern potato salad.  See notes above for possible ingredient variations.

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Ingredients

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• 3 pounds Yukon Gold or red potatoes*, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/4 cups mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup dill pickle relish (optional)
• 1 teaspoon celery salt
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 4 hard-boiled eggs, diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• half of a small red onion, thinly sliced
• sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
• optional toppings: smoked paprika or Old Bay seasoning, chopped fresh chives, (extra) sliced hard-boiled eggs

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Instructions

1. Boil the potatoes. Place the diced potatoes in a large stockpot and add enough cold water so that the potatoes are covered by 1 inch. Cook over medium-high heat until the water reaches a boil. Reduce heat to medium to maintain a simmer, then continue cooking the potatoes for 5-8 minutes or until the potatoes pierce easily with a fork. Try to avoid overcooking the potatoes.
2. Drain the potatoes. Drain the potatoes thoroughly in a colander. Return the potatoes to the stockpot, drizzle evenly with the vinegar, and let the potatoes rest for 20-30 minutes* or until cool enough to handle.
3. Make the dressing. Meanwhile, whisk together the mayo, celery salt, mustard and pickle relish in a medium bowl until evenly combined.
4. Combine. Once the potatoes are ready to go, add in the mayo mixture, diced eggs, celery and onion.  Toss gently until evenly combined.
5. Season. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper if needed. (Also feel free to add in a tablespoon or two of pickle juice if you would like.)
6. Chill. Transfer the potato salad to a serving bowl, cover, and refrigerate for 1-2 hours to chill.
7. Serve. Serve chilled and enjoy! Leftovers can be refrigerated in a sealed container for up to 3 days.

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Notes

Potatoes: Feel free to peel the potatoes if you would like.  I prefer to leave the skins on to add extra texture to the potato salad.

Time-saving method: If you are in a hurry, you can rinse the potatoes immediately with cold water until chilled. Then drain the potatoes thoroughly in a colander, return them to the stockpot, drizzle evenly with the vinegar, and continue on with Step 3.