I had a bounty from the Farmer’s Market, buying big bags of veggies for $5.00 a bag. I’m taking Potato Salad 2 ways to a 4th of July BBQ tonight made fresh from the Farm.
I loved my grandmother’s potato salad growing up, she would make it every Christmas Eve and decorate it with green pepper and roasted red peppers from a jar to make it look like a poinsettia. My kids don’t love mayonnaise so I have cut that out from one of these recipes and added just a little for the second so that it is similar to Grandma’s but not too saucy. I think the first recipe is like a German potato salad without the bacon and served cold instead of warm so I’ll call it:
German Summer Potato Salad
- 12 medium to large Red Potatoes
- 3 Tablespoons Dijon Mustard (or whatever mustard you like)
- 6 Tablespoons Pickle Juice (I used some of the Pickled Onion Juice too)
- 1 Large Dill Pickle chopped (I used my Dill Pickle Relish instead)
- 2 ribs of Celery, finely diced
- ½ Red Onion, finely diced (I substituted some of my Red Pickled Onion)
- 2 teaspoons Salt
- 1 teaspoon Celery Seed
- 1/2 teaspoon Dill Seed
- 2 Tablespoons chopped Dill leaves (optional)
- 1 Tablespoon Pickle Juice
- ¼ Cup Olive Oil
Put potatoes in a large pot and cook bringing it up to a light boil. I leave the skins on and cook until it’s easy to insert a knife, about 15 minutes. Then I cut them in about 1 inch cubes while still hot. (If you don’t like the skins in the salad, peel and cut first)
While potatoes are cooking, whisk the mustard with pickle juice. Pour over the hot potatoes and toss lightly with a large spoon. Cover and refrigerate until cool, about 20 minutes.
Combine the pickle (or relish), celery and celery seed, onion, dill seed and leaves, and 1 Tablespoon pickle juice with the olive oil and whisk together. Add potatoes and toss lightly again until coated. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
American Potato Salad (Grandma’s Lite)
- 12 medium to large Red Potatoes
- 3 Tablespoons Dijon or Prepared Mustard
- 6 Tablespoons Pickle Juice (I used some of the Pickled Onion Juice too)
- 1 Large Dill Pickle chopped (I used my Dill Pickle Relish instead)
- 2 ribs of Celery, finely diced
- ½ Red Onion, finely diced (I substituted some of my Red Pickled Onion)
- 2 teaspoons Salt
- 1 teaspoon Celery Seed
- 1 Tablespoon Pickle Juice
- 1/3 Cup Olive Oil Mayonnaise (or your favorite brand, Olive Oil Mayo is lighter in calories)
- 3 Hard Boiled Eggs, chopped in medium sized pieces
This is extremely similar to the first recipe, replacing the olive oil with the mayonnaise and adding the eggs like my grandmother did.
Put potatoes in a large pot and cook bringing it up to a light boil. I leave the skins on and cook until it’s easy to insert a knife, Then I cut them in about 1 inch cubes while still hot. (If you don’t like the skins in the salad, peel and cut first.)
While potatoes are cooking, whisk the mustard with pickle juice. Pour over the hot potatoes and toss lightly with a large spoon. Cover and refrigerate until cool, about 20 minutes.
Combine the pickle (or relish), celery and celery seed, onion, and 1 Tablespoon pickle juice with the mayonnaise and whisk together.. Mix with potatoes then the eggs. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Tips: I like a more vinegar taste, so cut back on the mustard and pickle juice if you don’t like it as much.
- You can substitute vinegar for the pickle juice. My grandmother mixed it in with the mustard and mayonnaise and put onto the warm potatoes.
- You can substitute Yukon potatoes for the red. If there are other seasonings or herbs you like, add them in. I put some chopped baby tuscan kale into one of my German batches and it was good. You can also add bacon to the German Potato salad if you don’t need it to be vegetarian.
- Adding mustard and pickle juice while potatoes are still warm helps the flavor to get absorbed into the potatoes better.