All-American Potato Salad
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS For flavorful all-American potato salad, we decided to use firm-textured Yukon Gold
potatoes because they hold their shape after cooking and won’t turn mushy in the salad.
Our recipe benefited from the sweetness of an unexpected ingredient: pickle juice.
We drizzled the still-warm potatoes with a mixture of pickle juice and mustard. The
hot potatoes easily absorbed the acidic liquid and tasted seasoned through to the
middle. A combination of mayonnaise and sour cream formed the base of our creamy dressing,
seasoned with classic additions like celery seeds, celery, and chopped hard-cooked
eggs. See the sidebar that follows the recipe.
SERVES 4 TO 6
Make sure not to overcook the potatoes or the salad will be quite sloppy. Keep the water at a gentle simmer and use the tip of a paring knife to judge the doneness of the potatoes. If the knife inserts easily into the potato pieces, they are done.
|
2 |
large eggs |
|
Salt |
|
|
2 |
pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into ¾-inch cubes |
|
3 |
tablespoons dill pickle juice, plus ¼ cup finely chopped dill pickles |
|
1 |
tablespoon yellow mustard |
|
¼ |
teaspoon pepper |
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½ |
teaspoon celery seeds |
|
½ |
cup mayonnaise |
|
¼ |
cup sour cream |
|
½ |
small red onion, chopped fine |
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1 |
celery rib, chopped fine |
1. Bring eggs, 1½ teaspoons salt, and 1 quart water to boil in small saucepan. Remove pan from heat, cover and let sit for 10 minutes. Transfer eggs to bowl filled with ice water and let cool for 5 minutes, then peel and chop coarse.
2. Place potatoes in large saucepan with cold water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to boil over high heat, add 1 teaspoon salt, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until potatoes are tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
3. Drain potatoes thoroughly, then spread out on rimmed baking sheet. Mix 2 tablespoons pickle juice and mustard together in small bowl, drizzle pickle juice mixture over hot potatoes, and toss until evenly coated. Refrigerate until cooled, about 30 minutes.
4. Mix remaining tablespoon pickle juice, chopped pickles, ½ teaspoon salt, pepper, celery seeds, mayonnaise, sour cream, red onion, and celery in large bowl. Toss in cooled potatoes, cover, and refrigerate until well chilled, about 30 minutes. (Salad can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.) Gently stir in eggs, just before serving.