Easy Classic American Potato Salad Recipe

Classic American Potato Salad is the perfect side dish for your BBQ or potluck dinners this upcoming summer. Made with hard boiled eggs and homemade mayonnaise, this American Potato Salad Recipe is creamy and definitely comforting.

When it comes to BBQ’s having a side of creamy potato salad along side a grilled hamburger or steak makes for a perfect meal. This American Potato Salad Recipe and is so simple to make and it travels so well. Be it to a friend or family’s BBQ, a picnic or even a weekend at the camp, it should be in your cooler, ready to go and enjoy when you get there. 

Potato Choices

Russet potatoes tend to be the choice of potato for this potato salad. They are starchy potatoes and they tend to be a bit more flaky and crumbly that will enhance the creamy texture. 

Yukon Golds and Red potatoes are waxy potatoes, they tend to be more heartier and dense. They do have a higher sugar content so they will hold their shape better but they won’t be as creamy.

In this recipe I used Yukon gold potatoes.

Classic American Potato Salad Mix-ins

Traditionally potato salad is made with potatoes, hard boiled eggs, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard or yellow mustard and maybe some sweet relish with some onions and/or celery. I tend to opt for a more simplified version but will add in some extras if i want a little more pizazz in my potato salad. I also tend to opt for a homemade mayonnaise instead of the store bought Miracle Whip or Hellman’s mayonnaise.

Optional Mix-ins for your Classic Potato Salad Recipe

If you want to make this recipe more colorful, feel free to add any number of ingredients that can give it some color and some extra texture.

• Red onion and crunchy celery are good for crunchy and colorful aspects to a potato salad.
• Red bell peppers are great for color and some crunch.
• Chives or green onions are also a great option. They give a bit of an onion flavor without the crunch and give a nice green color sprinkled throughout the salad. 
• Celery seed, small but mighty. These little seeds might not seem like much but can add that extra boost of flavor to your dish.
• Dill or sweet pickle relish are also a good option for a more tangy or sweet flavor. Even a little bit of the pickle juice can add the flavor without the crunch. Just be carful not to add too much of the juice, too much can make for a soggy dressing or potato.
• Diced sweet pickles or dill pickles if you like a bigger chunk of pickle.
• Some like to add sour cream in addition to the mayonnaise.
• If your a fan of the Hawaiian style food, you can add some chopped ham, pineapple and maybe some diced fuji apples.

Easy Make Ahead American Potato Salad Recipe

Planning ahead for your backyard barbecues or other get-together, you can make this up to 2 days ahead of time, just keep it in an airtight container in your refrigerator. 

What to Serve with Potato Salad

• Baked Beans
• Hamburgers 
• Grilled Steak
• Meatloaf
• Coleslaw

​The possibilities are endless.

​How to make American Potato Salad Recipe

Peel your potatoes if you don’t want the skins on. I usually leave them on. Half or quarter the potatoes depending on the size of the potato. I usually do around a 4×4″ size so they cook a bit faster.

Place potatoes to a medium or large pot and just cover and bring the water to a boil on high heat until it starts to bubble. Then bring the heat down to medium low, adjust as necessary and allow to lightly boil for about 15 minutes. 

After the 15 minutes, check the potatoes with a fork or knife to see how soft they are. You want them to be “fork tender”, so easily pierced with a fork but the potato does not fall apart. You don’t want to boil for too long, the potatoes will fall apart and turn to mush when your mix your salad together.

Once the potatoes are cooked as described, completely drain of water and set aside to cool. If you able to let them cool in the fridge in a bowl, this can speed up the process a bit for mixing it with the mayonnaise later.

Cook your eggs either stove top or in the instant pot. In the instant pot, just put your trivet on the bottom of the insert, put your eggs on top, add a cup of water and set to pressure-cook for 5 minutes. Let pressure naturally release for 5 minutes after. Be sure to take out right after that and add to a ice or cold water bath to quickly cool them down for easiest peeling.

If you want to cook them on the stovetop I have a post HERE on how to quickly steam your eggs.

Once your potatoes and hard-boiled eggs are cooled down and no longer warm, peel the eggs and cut the eggs and potatoes into about 1.5 inch to 2 inch pieces. Add them to a large bowl.

Add in your mayo and any other mix-ins of your choosing and give it a good mix.

Garnish on top of the potato salad with some scallions or chives.

Serve right away or cover and set in the fridge to chill until ready to serve. 

Note: You want your potatoes to be room temperature or cold when you start to assemble the salad. Warm potatoes will melt or cook your mayonnaise and you won’t have a good texture and coating on your ingredients.

Storage

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Other Recipes You May Like

The Best New England Maine Baked Beans Recipe

How to Cook Easy Peel Steamed Hard Boiled Eggs

Easy Gluten Free Stuffed Mushrooms Recipe

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