Potato Salad
Published on May 25, 2022
Quick Summary
Potato Salad – this is the BEST potato salad recipe. It is the perfect side dish for all of your summer BBQ’s, picnics, and potlucks! This classic potato salad is always a favorite!
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Pin ItPotato Salad is a classic recipe that everyone loves. It’s really not a party or potluck unless there is a big bowl of potato salad for everyone to share. It is a staple and this is the BEST potato salad recipe. It is going to be your GO TO from now on.
This potato salad is made with hearty potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, celery, pickles, green onion, and a creamy, rich, mayo-based dressing that gives the salad lots of flavor.
This nostalgic, comforting potato salad is the perfect side dish for all of your summer gatherings! Make a big bowl for your next BBQ, picnic, or pool party. I am sure it will go fast. Everyone will want a big scoop on their plate.
Table of Contents
Key Ingredients
- Yukon Gold potatoes– washed, peeled, and cut in half. Cut the potatoes in equal size pieces so they cook evenly. Also, don’t cut them too small or they will cook too quickly and get mushy.
- Greek yogurt– I love using Greek yogurt for a boost of protein and I love the creamy texture.
- Mayonnaise– use your favorite brand. You can use light or full fat.
- Mustard– I use a mix of classic yellow mustard and whole grain mustard.
- Green onions– I love using green onions because they aren’t too strong, but add great flavor.
- Celery– finely chopped celery for a nice crunch!
- Dill pickles– finely chop the pickles for a salty, crunchy kick!
- Hard-boiled eggs– peeled and roughly chopped. The eggs make the salad super creamy!
- Dill– so fresh!
- Paprika– for color and a hint of sweetness!
The Best Potatoes to Use
For potato salad, we like to use Yukon gold potatoes because they have a thin skin and are less starchy than Russet potatoes. They are creamy, buttery, and hold their shape after cooking. They also absorb the dressing nicely. You can find Yukon gold potatoes at almost every grocery store.
Russet potatoes are very starchy and will give you a more mushy potato salad. Red potatoes (new potatoes) are too firm and hold their shape a little too well. So go for the gold and use Yukon gold potatoes to make the best potato salad!
Of course, if all you have is Russet potatoes, you can use them, but we do recommend Yukon gold:)
Cooking the Potatoes
- I peel the potatoes before cooking, but if you want a heartier texture to your potato salad, you can leave the skins on. It is personal preference.
- Place the potatoes in a pot of cold water where they’re fully submerged. Then bring the water to a boil and reduce the potatoes to a simmer to finish cooking.
- Cook the potatoes until they are just tender when pierced with a fork. You don’t want the potatoes to be crunchy and you don’t want them to fall apart. The time will vary depending on the size of your potatoes. Check early to be safe.
- Drain the potatoes. Once the potatoes are cool enough to touch, cut them into chunks, about 1/2-inch pieces.
How to Make Potato Salad
- Place the cooked potatoes in a large bowl and let them cool down while you make the dressing.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, and mustards.
- Pour the mixture over the potatoes and gently stir with a rubber spatula until the potatoes are well coated.
- Add the onions, celery, pickles, eggs, dill, and paprika. Gently stir again. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste.
- Cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to eat. Pro tip, potato salad is better the second day so you can make this salad in advance. The salad flavors get even better the longer it sits!
How to Store
Store potato salad in an airtight container or tightly covered bowl in the fridge for up to 5 days. Do not let potato salad sit at room temperature for more than two hours, or even less on a hot day.
You can technically freeze potato salad, but I don’t recommend it. The creamy dressing doesn’t freeze well and when the salad thaws the dressing is watery and the potatoes are a little soggy. Potato salad is best fresh!
Recipe Variations
- You can use Miracle Whip instead of mayonnaise if that is what you prefer.
- If you don’t care for Greek yogurt, you can use all mayo or Miracle whip.
- Use diced red onion or sweet onions instead of green onion for a stronger onion flavor.
- Instead of chopped dill pickles, you can use sweet relish if you prefer sweet pickles.
- Add chopped, cooked bacon. My boys always love this addition!
- Stir in a small handful of capers.
- Add herbs. Fresh parsley, chives, thyme, and tarragon are all good options.
FAQ
I prefer to peel the potatoes for a creamier texture, but if you want a heartier, thicker texture, you can leave the skins on. It is personal preference.
Cut the potatoes in half, making sure the pieces are similar in size so they cook evenly. Don’t cut them too small or they will cook too quickly and get mushy.
This potato salad recipe is full of flavor thanks to the creamy dressing that is made with mayonnaise, Greek yogurt, yellow mustard, and whole grain mustard. The salad also has celery, green onions, dill pickles, hard-boiled eggs, paprika, and fresh dill. Also, make sure you properly salt and pepper your salad for flavor.
You don’t have to, but I like to add hard-boiled eggs for texture and flavor. If you don’t care for eggs, you can leave them out.
Yes, replace the Greek yogurt and regular mayo with 1 cup vegan mayonnaise. Also, omit the hard-boiled eggs.
More Side Dish Recipes
Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, washed and peeled, cut in half
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise, use your favorite brand
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard
- 1/2 cup chopped green onions
- 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
- 1/2 cup finely chopped dill pickles
- 3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a large pot, cover potatoes with cold water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, about 10 to 15 minutes. Drain potatoes and rinse with cold water. Once the potatoes are cool, cut them into chunks, about 1/2-inch pieces. Place potatoes in a large bowl.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, and mustards. Pour the mixture over the potatoes and gently stir with a rubber spatula until the potatoes are well coated.
- Add the onions, celery, pickles, eggs, dill and paprika. Gently stir again. Season generously with salt and black pepper, to taste.
- Cover and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?
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Loving using part Greek yogurt for this to make it healthier!!
Thanks! It is our favorite potato salad recipe.
I adore potato salad and would eat it weekly except for the fat content and high csrbs. Have to watch the carbs being type 2 diabetic. This sounds yummy. My only hesitation is the dill pickles. I love those too, but I have terrible memories of biting into a big forkful of an unknown person’s version of potato salad and getting hit with the god-awful sweet pickle relish laced stuff! But since the recipe has gotten such race reviews, I will take the lunge. All my other recipes from Two Peas have turned out great.
You mentioned in the beginning of the article that you liked Yukon Gold potatoes the best in this recipe, but when you read the actual recipe you call for russet. I prefer Yukon but let me know if you think russet would be better. I love using my Instant Pot to get the potatoes perfect as well.
You can use either, both work well. I made a change in the recipe so there isn’t any confusion. I like Yukons:)
9/6/2020:
This is delish! I made this tonight for tomorrow’s Labor Day bbq and had to taste it. One of my favorite recipes, my husband loved his bits because he said he doesn’t like a lot of mustard taste in his potato salad. Great recipe!! Thanks for sharing
Made this potato salad for Father’s Day ! Maria is right , this potato salad is great ! A little labor intensive but I did all my chopping in advance . This made it a little easier to put it all together . My husband has never been a big potato salad guy and he loved it ! I would always put sweet pickle relish in mine but the dill pickles and the fresh dill are great ! I’ll never go back to the sweet pickle relish ! Thanks Maria for a great recipe ! Your orzo salad is fantastic too !
This is a great recipe. I have always used a combo mayo & mustard dressing on my potato salads. I thought the quantity of mustard in this recipe would be too much. It’s actually perfect. I like mild minced red onion in my potato salads so I subbed for the green onions. I like paprika lightly sprinkled on top of the finished combined salad. I think 1/4 tsp would have been too much. Served this Memorial Day weekend with barbecued spareribs, pinto beans flavored with Rotel tomatoes and other good ingredients, garlic bread, and my Peachy Blueberry Cobbler that is a recipe published in Taste of Home. A special meal with my precious husband of 50 years. Thanks for the recipe! Remembering that we are the land of the free because of the brave!
My husband said this was the best potato salad he’s ever had. I’m inclined to agree with him!
I did make two minor substitutions because I didn’t have whole grain mustard or fresh dill on hand (I’m blaming our very slow start to summer for the latter and willing my dill plants to grow even now). Instead, I used dijon mustard and freeze-dried dill.
I’m bookmarking this as my forever go-to potato salad recipe.
Thanks for sharing this one Maria!
I am so glad you loved our potato salad recipe!
Absolutely perfect! It has everything I like from the yukon potatoes, fresh dill, yogurt and green onion. Thank you!
You are welcome!
I don’t like celery. I understand it adds a welcome crunch, but is there anything else I can use in its place? Would fennel give the wrong flavour?
You can leave the celery out. Fennel has a strong flavor, if you love it, you can try it.