The 19 Best Potato Salad Recipes to Freshen Up Your Summer Menu (2024)

FAQs

Is it better to make potato salad the night before? ›

Yes, potato salad gets even better if left to sit overnight in the fridge. The flavors combine and the potatoes absorb more of the seasoning/dressing, making for a more flavorful experience.

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.

There are a few additions common to potato salads that lose their zip when sitting too long: lemon juice and/or vinegar, onion, and mustard. If you can get a mustardless/eggless salad as a base you could then add your own mustard too. (I'd use Dijon here; it adds higher, fuller flavor notes than standard yellow.)

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.

Unpeeled potatoes.

The thin skins are usually tender after cooking and add color to the potato salad. Dice unpeeled potatoes into uniformly-sized pieces. Place in cold water, bring to a boil, then simmer until tender.

But the truth is, mayonnaise isn't your main concern when it comes to spoilage. The actual culprit is the potatoes. Yes, it's true!

If it's too runny, add some more potato; if it's too thick, add more brine. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more vinegar, oil, salt and pepper as needed.

You've got two options. The first option is to cook more potatoes and make more potato salad, adding more of every ingredient except mustard. Doing so will get the mustard content in equilibrium with the rest of the flavors in the salad. Your other option is to adjust the seasonings to compliment the…

Use pickle juice, buttermilk, and additional vinegar to freshen up a heavy dressing. A squeeze of lemon never hurt, either. If you have fresh herbs or scallion greens around, chop and toss them into the potato salad for some additional crunch and call it a green goddess potato salad.

As Wiggly Wisdom shares, a vinegary potato salad can easily be salvaged with a bit of lemon zest. Just take a fine grater or zester to the rind, measure out about a half teaspoon of zest per two cups of potato salad, and mix it in. Orange and lime also work if you don't have any lemon on hand.

How long can potato salad sit out and still be good? ›

Potato salad, like most perishable foods, cannot sit out for more than two hours, and closer to only one hour when the temperature is above 90°F and you're dining outside.

The typically accepted range for room temperature is 68-74 degrees Fahrenheit. According to the FDA, perishables, such as mayonnaise-based potato salad, fall under the "two-hour rule" and should be refrigerated after two hours.

Try draining the water and then leaving the potato on the stove for a few moments to cook any extra water out, just turn lightly so you don't over work the potato or it will turn mushy. Note, some lighter mayonnaise based dressings or lite versions will liquefy easier than a traditional mayonnaise.

Tossing the cooked potatoes in this tangy mixture while they are still hot allows them to absorb the flavors. After they cool, stir in the mayonnaise and more scallions, and you're ready to serve. You can make this potato salad up to two days ahead.

Symptoms of food poisoning often include upset stomach, diarrhea and vomiting. Symptoms usually start within hours or several days of eating the food. Most people have mild illness and get better without treatment.

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. Store the bacon separately or cook it up right before you serve to keep it crispy.

Potato salad can be kept in the refrigerator for about four to six days. When I make potato salad, I use one dozen hard boiled eggs, (shelled, of course,) five pounds of cooked potatoes, (Do not cook the potatoes too long because they will get mushy when you are mixing the ingredients together).

If you're here, you'll probably be glad to know that yes, you can peel and cut potatoes the day before you plan to serve them — and that it's super easy! All you have to do is submerge the bare potato pieces in water and refrigerate (more on that later).

The whole process is simple: peel them, leave them whole or dice them if you want, fill a bowl with cold water, submerge the potatoes and store in the fridge overnight. While this trick can be quite handy, it will only work for about 24 hours, so we would recommend to not prep your potatoes too far in advance.