The best potato salad recipe means different things to different people. To some, it’s whatever their mom or grandmom made. To those who’ve tasted this easy recipe made with mayo, vinegar, red onion, egg, and herbs, it’s this potato salad. Hands down.
Though it’s not exactly traditional or old-fashioned or even Southern potato salad, it’s spectacular. Don’t trust us? Take a look at our recipe testers’ reviews below. You’ll find comments such as “The best I’ve ever had.” “A++” “Beautiful.” “Perfect.” “Easy peasy.” “A great addition at any party.”
But don’t take our word for it. Try this easy and, dare we say, elegant riff on potato salad and experience for yourself why we consider it the best.–David Leite
Potato Salad FAQs
According to the FDA, no more than 1 to 2 hours at room temperature.
Savory is a member of the mint family. It’s an herb with small green leaves. There are two types of savory: summer and winter. The summer version is sweet and spicy, and is lighter in flavor than it’s wintry sibling. Winter savory, on the other hand, boasts holiday-esque flavors, with hints of sage and pine.
Stick with waxy potatoes for salad, such as red or new potatoes. They hold their shape the best when boiled. All-purpose potatoes, such as Yukon Gold will also work here, but avoid starchy varieties like Russets.
Easy Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped basil leaves
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped marjoram leaves
- 1 tablespoon thyme or savory leaves
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup thinly sliced or finely chopped red onion
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, (optional)
- 2 pounds boiled or steamed potatoes, peeled if desired, chopped (about 4 cups)
- 2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped (optional)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir together the basil, marjoram, thyme, and mayonnaise. Cover and refrigerate for about 2 hours.
- If using the vinegar, in another small bowl, combine the onion and vinegar and let them mingle at room temperature for 15 minutes. Drain the onion.If not using the vinegar, continue with the next step and simply use the plain raw onion.
- In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, onion, eggs, if using, salt, and pepper. Add as much of the mayonnaise mixture as desired and gently toss. Serve the potato salad immediately or cover and refrigerate until chilled through, at least 2 hours.
Notes
Potato Salad Variation
Upon first glance, it may appear as though this recipe provides you with a single amazing potato salad. But in actuality, it bestows upon you a blueprint which you can tweak in any of many ways to create an infinite number of potato salad magnificence. So, potato salad lovers, let’s talk stir-ins, shall we? We’ll show you ours if you show us yours. ~ Smidgen finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, dill, or chervil leaves ~ Spoonful coarse-grain mustard ~ Untold amounts of crisp, crumbled bacon ~ Some chopped apple ~ Little pieces of puckery chopped pickles ~ Chopped olives—pitted, natch—of your choice
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
This easy potato salad recipe got an “all hands raised” vote today. Not only does it have that perfect potato salad taste and texture, but it’s pretty to look at sitting in the bowl! The flavors are crisp but mellow, like all great potato salads should be.
This is a three-step, easy-peasy recipe that everyone can make. I added fresh basil, fresh thyme, and oregano (sometimes known as wild marjoram). I did marinate the onion in the cider vinegar. I think this qualifies as a magic, secret ingredient.
All in all, this is an A++ recipe that will be a great addition at any party—dress up or casual.
Potato salad is a standard at our home in the summer, and this one ticks all the boxes for becoming the new favorite. This is an easy, flavorful dish that’s a nice change from regular potato salad. It’s easy to prepare, and with a little planning, is sure to become a favorite in your home, too.
Using the right potatoes is the key to good potato salad. I used new baby reds, both to eliminate the peeling and because they hold their shape well after boiling.
While it’s nice to make homemade mayonnaise, this recipe worked just as well with store-bought mayonnaise.
I used basil, dill, oregano, and parsley as the herbs for my salad. (I was unable to find marjoram in any of the stores or markets I went to.) I used a large red onion, as our family is partial to the flavor of onion in salads, and I marinated it in the cider vinegar.
I popped the raw eggs into the pot of boiling potatoes for the last 5 or 6 minutes to save dirtying another pot. I drained the potatoes and let the eggs rest until they were cool enough to peel and they were perfectly hard-boiled. The planning comes in now, as the herb and mayonnaise blend rests in the fridge for a couple hours to blend the flavors. This is a step you really don’t want to miss, as the herbs infuse the mayonnaise and really enhance the finished dish. Chill it for as long as you can, even if you don’t have the 2 hours suggested.
We were invited to a BBQ with extended family, so I doubled the recipe quite easily. Since I was taking the salad with us and it would be some time before serving. I chose to loosen the dressing with 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar that I marinated the onion in so it wouldn’t become too thick.
The additions you like to put in your potato salad are a matter of personal taste. One of my testers missed the diced pickle I usually add. Another thought that the potato salad could have used a little more salt—but that it was the perfect side dish if a salty meat was being served. That said, everyone liked it enough that there wasn’t any left at the end of the meal.
I just made this potato salad for a Labor Day cookout and it was the best I’ve ever had. I used basil, lemon thyme, and summer savory from my herb garden, and added some chopped dill pickles I made. Otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly. It’s perfect but easily adaptable. Try it!
This beautiful potato salad has so much going for it, although all this can be summed up in a couple words: simplicity and flavor. It’s so easy to make and has only a few ingredients that combine wonderfully.
This salad has a lovely herbal boldness to it, so if you want to personalize it, your other choices for additions should also have a fairly bold flavor. Chopped pickles or capers, for instance, would be good additions, and maybe even chopped sun-dried tomatoes.
I think this recipe is quite fine as written—not too much dressing with well-balanced flavors and textures. If you want it creamier, you could add up to 1/3 cup more mayonnaise, but only mix in a little at a time until you reach your idea of perfection.
My dad, a native New Yorker, always made the best potato salad. It included chopped crisp bacon, chopped olives and plenty of mayo– just as suggested in your featured recipe above. It made me smile to see “his” favorite add-ins in the ingredient list. Funny story: once or twice each summer, always on a Sunday, dad would fry a batch of chicken, make his potato salad and fill a big wicker laundry basket with picnic fare, load the basket into the trunk, then load the family in the car, take us to church, then drive us about an hour to a lovely park near Wiliamsburg, Virginia to enjoy this delicious lunch. Now, as an adult, I think back on all that food riding around in our trunk for hours, not in a cooler, mind you, and no one ever got sick! Amazing, huh? Thanks for rekindling a wonderful memory. I’m still smiling.
Irene, you are most welcome. Your comment was so evocative. And the thing about mayo is it’s pasteurized! It’s heartier than most people think it is.
oh dear, you’ve got my cravings going and there are no potatoes in the pantry! Sometimes I do the yogurt/mayo thing…sometimes sour cream plays a role, I do like the vinegar addition, sometimes with a pinch or two of sugar. Capers can be nice, as can a taste of scallion. I do usually add in something crispy, as I like the contrast in texture. Sometimes celery or red or green bell pepper, though if I am in the mood a poblano might sneak in. Alas, my potato salad is different every time I make it, depending on what I have on hand and where my mind gets to wandering….for the Fourth of July I might use a combination of white potatoes, purple potatoes and red bell pepper 🙂
Zally, I was with you–right there at your side–until you mentioned the “something crispy.” I love textural contrast but not in my potato salad. So weird, but I like it soft. Little pillows of potatoes.
In your honor David, today, I am feeling I would jettison the crispy, but add perhaps some fresh sweet green peas and crumbled bacon….not too crispy. 🙂
BACON! I LOVE BACON!
To all at LC – Bravo! Two simple words, if I may – malt vinegar.
I used 5 tbsp. of malt instead of the 1/4C apple cider vin. and the subtle depth sent your (close-to-perfect!) recipe to a higher level.
I promise you will not be disappointed.
Michael, thank you for that! I think it’s a great addition.
Yogurt over mayonnaise. Works wonderfully and removes a high-fat industrial product from the recipe. Oh, and shallots over onion….
Hey, Lewis. I can see the shallots over onion, but I’d have to cut the mayo with some yogurt. All yogurt is just too tart for me.
To each his or her own, Lewis! I must say, I’m with David in that I tend to use half yogurt and half mayonnaise. And I use only homemade mayonnaise, so there’s no issue with the industrial processed ingredient, because I am in full support of you in removing those items from one’s life.