Food & Cooking Recipes Salad Recipes Basic Potato Salad 4.2 (86) This simple potato salad recipe will be your summer staple for cookouts and family dinners. Prep Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 25 mins Total Time: 1 hr 40 mins Servings: 8 Jump to recipe This simple potato salad recipe calls for just four basic ingredients: scallions, mayonnaise, white-wine vinegar, and Yukon gold potatoes. The waxy potatoes won't crumble like starchier ones, they hold their shape through the mixing and stirring. While they're steaming, mix the vinegar with scallions, and season with salt and pepper. 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 the salad is ready to serve. The result is a tangy, just-dressed-enough summer side that’s simple without being boring. Perfect for cookouts, potlucks, and parties, this recipe couldn’t be easier to pull together. 32 Cookout Sides for Your Next Summer Gathering Credit: Andrea Araiza Why We Use Yukon Gold Potatoes for This Potato Salad Yukon Gold potatoes are our favorite all-purpose variety because of their creamy texture and flavor and they are the best type of potato to use for this recipe. They are widely available and well-suited to all kinds of potato dishes, from mashed to scalloped. As an alternative, use another waxy type of potato, such as Red Bliss. Waxy potatoes are low in starch and high in moisture, so they hold their shape well in a potato salad. Do not use starchy russet potatoes—the kind best suited for baked potatoes—as they will fall apart in your salad. The Technique Our foolproof method produces an easy potato salad every time. Here are the steps that set our recipe apart: Leaving the Skins on the Potatoes Perhaps the most controversial thing about our easy potato salad is that we leave the skins on the potatoes. There are several reasons for this: ease (one less prep step), look (we like the pop of color that the skins offer in the potato salad), and they add texture. Cutting the Potatoes Aside from choosing the right potato variety, the most important step for making a good basic potato salad is cutting the pieces into uniformly sized pieces so they cook evenly. If you have a mix of sizes, smaller pieces will be overcooked or start to fall apart, while the larger pieces will not be cooked through. Steaming Rather Than Boiling the Potatoes Many potato salad recipes call for boiling the potatoes. Depending on the potato used, the size of the pieces of potato, and how long they are cooked for, boiling can result in overcooked, watery potatoes, which results in a mushy potato salad. Steaming gives you more control and keeps the pieces intact, which is what you want for potato salad. How to Steam Without a Steamer Basket No steamer basket? No problem. To make this recipe without one, there are two easy options: Use a metal colander: If you have a metal colander, place it in the bottom of a deep pot and add an inch of water. It'll lift the potatoes off the bottom of the pot while letting the steam work its magic on those spuds.Use foil and a plate: To pull off this hack, roll three large sheets of foil into balls—each about the size of a clementine—then place them in the bottom of your pot. Add an inch of water, then set a heatproof plate on top. Use a slotted spoon or a spider to remove the potatoes once they're cooked, rather than trying to lift them out with the plate. Making Ahead Potato salad can generally be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Some people say potato salad tastes better the next day. Even if you’re not in that camp, you need to allow about 1 hour for the potatoes to cool before adding the mayonnaise. Directions Credit: Andrea Araiza Prep steamer basket and pan: Set a steamer basket in a Dutch oven (or large pot with a lid), and add enough salted water to come just below basket; bring to a boil. Credit: Andrea Araiza Steam potatoes: Place potatoes in basket, cover pot, and reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Steam potatoes, gently tossing occasionally, until tender, 15 to 25 minutes. Credit: Andrea Araiza Combine vinegar and scallion whites: Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine vinegar, scallion whites, 1 teaspoon coarse salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Credit: Andrea Araiza Toss potatoes in vinegar mixture and chill: Add hot potatoes to vinegar mixture; toss to combine. Cool to room temperature, tossing occasionally, about 1 hour. Credit: Andrea Araiza Add mayonnaise and scallion greens: Add mayonnaise and scallion greens to cooled potatoes; mix gently to combine. Credit: Andrea Araiza Serve or refrigerate: Serve, or cover and refrigerate up to 2 days. Credit: Andrea Araiza How to Store Potato Salad and Food Safety Potato salad must be refrigerated. Like other chilled foods, it should not be out of the refrigerator for more than two hours—and for a shorter time in a hot room or outdoors. Potato salad is often served at backyard BBQs and other outdoor gatherings and can pose a health risk if left outside for an extended time in hot weather. Place it on the buffet out of direct sunshine, don’t leave it out for more than one hour, and move any leftover potato salad to the refrigerator once everyone has loaded their plates. How Long It Lasts: Leftover potato salad will last up to two days in the refrigerator. Variations This easy potato salad delights with its simplicity, but that doesn't mean you can't tweak it to suit your preferences. Swap in another waxy potato like fingerlings or red-skinned spuds Use full-fat mayonnaise for an even creamier result Add an herby note by mixing in one-quarter cup of chopped parsley or dill Stir in a dollop of yellow or Dijon mustard for some extra zing 5 More Potato Salad Recipes to Try Martha's Favorite Potato Salad Dill, Potato, and Egg Salad New Potato Salad With Red-Wine Vinaigrette Deviled Egg Potato Salad Smoky Potato Salad With Corn and Chipotles Updated by Esther Reynolds Esther Reynolds Esther Reynolds is an experienced recipe developer, recipe tester, food editor, and writer with over a decade of experience in the food and media industries.