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Southern Potato Salad is a classic recipe that’s perfect for potlucks, picnics, and BBQs. It’s creamy, tangy, and whips up in less than 30 minutes. You can even make it up to a day ahead of time.
Potato Salads are perfect for a family cookout or as a potluck dish. I promise you everyone will be asking for this Southern Potato Salad recipe!
Table of Contents
About the Recipe
This old fashioned Potato Salad recipe has chunks of potato, hard boiled eggs, and pickle relish with a creamy mayo-based dressing.
It’s the perfect side dish to serve with everything from backyard BBQ favorites like Juicy Grilled Hamburgers and Grilled Chicken Breast to picnic fare like a Club Sandwich or Fried Chicken Thighs.
Ingredients for Potato Salad
- Potatoes – read on for the best potatoes to use for my Southern potato salad recipe. I am a fan of russets or red potatoes.
- Hard Boiled Eggs – choose whichever cooking method suits your fancy – Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs, Air Fryer Hard Boiled Eggs, or learn the basics of How to Boil Eggs the traditional way.
- Celery + Green Onions – to add crunch and flavor. Add more veggies if you want, like shredded carrots or olives.
- Dressing – the potato salad dressing has creamy mayo, tangy mustard, vinegar, pickle relish, garlic powder, and sugar. Follow the measurements, but then give it a taste and decide if you want to adjust anything. Feel free to customize it to something you really love. You can replace the mayo with Miracle Whip, or use chopped dill pickles instead of relish.
How to Make Southern Potato Salad
- Boil the potatoes: Peel and dice your potatoes into bite sized pieces. Watch until they are just fork tender – don’t overcook or they will become mushy. Boil, drain, and set aside to dry.
- Make the dressing: While the potatoes are drying and cooling, mix the creamy dressing in a large mixing bowl. Taste and add more mustard or mayo, or maybe more pickle relish. Add the potatoes and stir to coat with the dressing, then fold in the celery, onions, eggs, and potatoes to the large bowl with the dressing and gently stir everything together.
- Cover and chill until you’re ready to serve. Sprinkle paprika on top for color.
Best Potatoes for Potato Salad
I use good old russet potatoes when I make Southern Potato Salad. I’ve also used red other potato salad recipes like my Bacon Ranch Red Potato Salad and Lemon Herb Red Potato Salad and new or yukon gold potatoes for my Grandma’s Authentic Swabia Style German Potato Salad.
I love reds and whites because you can eat the skins. You do have to peel russets but they hold their shape the best which is why I love them in homemade potato salad. Each of these will hold their shape when you boil them.
FAQs
Most food, but especially dairy based foods like mayo should not sit out longer than 2 hours. In the interest of food safety, you should refrigerate most foods within two hours.
Keep potato salad covered and refrigerated and it will last several days.
Absolutely! Feel free to make the potato salad recipe up to 24 hours in advance. This actually let the flavors blend more and it will taste even better!
Helpful Tips
- When drying your potatoes, lay them out on a flat surface and sprinkle with a little salt. This will help them dry out quicker.
- Try a fancy mustard in the dressing, like ground mustard or dijon.
- Add the eggs to the boiling water with the potatoes for one less pot to wash. Make sure to shock the eggs (not the potatoes) in cold water.
- Keep refrigerated until ready to serve, and make ahead up to 24 hours in advance.
More Potato Recipes to Love
- Roasted Lemon Potatoes
- Crispy Roasted Red Potatoes
- The BEST Loaded Baked Potato Soup
- Loaded Smashed Potatoes
- Grilled Potatoes Recipe
Southern Potato Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 pounds russet potatoes about 5 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 ¼ cups mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- ¼ cup pickle relish
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons white vinegar
- 5 hard boiled eggs diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 5 green onions diced
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Paprika
Instructions
- Place diced potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Add a couple teaspoons of salt and bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Cook until potatoes are fork tender, about 10 minutes. Watch closely and do not overcook or the potatoes will become mushy. Drain and set aside.
- In a large bowl, stir together mayonnaise, mustard, pickle relish, garlic powder, sugar and vinegar.
- Add potatoes and stir to coat completely. Fold in eggs, celery and green onions. Taste and add salt and pepper as desired. If desired, top with a few sliced eggs and a sprinkle of paprika.
Notes
- Feel free to adjust any of the ingredients for the potato or the dressing.
- Keep refrigerated until ready to serve, and make ahead up to 24 hours in advance.
- Store covered in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
Perfect – everyone loved it 🙂
Awesome! Thanks for stopping by Amanda.
Definitely a keeper!!!! A must try!!
Thank you Michelle!
I just finished making this potato salad and while I normally don’t leave comments, I feel this one needs appreciation! I had some potatoes, celery, and green onions (which I love and feel don’t get utilized enough in recipes) that I needed to use up. I saw this recipe on pinterest and decided to whip it up. It’s one of those that left me scooping out of the bowl as soon as it was done, but in my opinion is when potato salad is best! The only thing I did slightly differently was to sprinkle it with Old Bay instead of paprika at the end. While I’m a southern girl now, I was born in Baltimore, Maryland and spent many a summer there with my grandparents and it’s just an ingredient that gives everything interest. Thank you so much for this incredibly tasty recipe, it’s the only one I’ll be using from now on!
Hi Rachael, Thank you so much for the awesome comment and you are so welcome.
This is the second time I’ve made this. It’s delicious.
Thank you Kerry!
DELICIOUS ! DELICIOUS! DELICIOUS!
Thank you Marie!
Has anyone made this a day ahead of time? Looking to save time for my sons party and would like to make this a day early… not sure the potatoes will stay fresh!
I’m doing the same. How did it turn out?
Best southern potato salad I’ve ever made following this recipe.
Thank you Brooke!
This was so good! I added a bit more sugar, and since i didn’t have relish, I just chopped up some dill pickles. It was absolutely fabulous and the perfect classic potato salad. I made it for the 4th of July and everyone loved it. Thank you for the recipe!
You are so welcome Kristin! Awesome feedback, thanks for stopping by to share.
VERY good potato salad. We prefer a tangier potato salad, so I decreased the mayo & sugar and used more mustard (both yellow & dijon). I didn’t have any pickle relish, so used dill pickles and chopped yellow onion (still used the green onions as well). Lots of positive comments from guests.
Loved your boiled egg instructions too, they turned out great as well.
That’s awesome TDur! Love the feedback, thanks for stopping by.
I’m 65 and just in the past couple of yrs started liking potato salad. This was so good! I made it for my co workers- they loved it!!! It was my first time making any salad!!! Thanks girl, you rock !!
You are so welcome Crystal! Thanks for stopping by to share.
fantastic, better than moms, but I wont tell. really good recipe
That’s awesome Lowell! Thanks for stopping by.
One word….AMAZING!!
Thank you Tracee!
This for including the nutrition information it’s super helpful as a diabetic! Just curious what size portions these amounts are based on.
It can vary based on the ingredients used. I usually just eyeball it as 8 portions from the finished salad. I’d say it’s probably around 1/2 cup per person.
I never leave comments and here I am. This was good. Like really good. I had a mom who made the perfect potato salad and up to now, I couldn’t even come close. A keeper!
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Amy.
Absolutely a total winner in our house! My mom passed a few years back and we loved her potato salad and of course she added ingredients with her heart lol so we weren’t sure but this taste so much like hers thank you so much!
You are so welcome Jamie! Thank you for sharing your story.
This is it!! My favorite potato salad for all time and the one I’ll always make from now on. I was worried about how much mayo I used because it’s more than I usually use but it turned out PERFECT!! I have some leftover to my mom and she started eating it right from the container!! I said Is it good mom? She said Yes! It’s really good! 😋
That’s awesome! Thanks for stopping by to share.
This was my first time making potato salad…I took my time deciding which one would be to my liking. I chose yours and was pleasantly surprised. I love it 😍
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Pamela!
Absolutely loved this recipe! I added red onion and it was a hit! I will add some black olives next time as well. Thank you!
You are so welcome Dallas! Awesome feedback, thanks for stopping by.
Tastes good but next time , I’m using red onion , and adding celery I did add 2 stalks celery this time to have a little crunch.. and a tad of onion powder and add a bit more pepper and I added Crumbles of bacon!! Mmm 😋 Other wise great base to start an amazing potato salad 🙂
Awesome feedback Kristen! Thanks for stopping by.
This is the closest recipe to my grandmas potato salad from Buda Texas☺️
I might suggest adding pimento to sauce and double the mustard. Since potatoes absorb salt it’s always good to adjust at the end of cooking if more is needed. Good job!
Love your old fashioned recipes.
Sandra
Thank you Sandra! Love the feedback, thanks for stopping by.
Best potato salad ever! My whole family loved it! I have never added celery before and it was great.
Awesome feedback Darlene! Thanks for stopping by.
Made this today for church social tomorrow…. absolutely delicious and presents itself well… I added some olives just for fun… maybe next time pimientos….this is my go to potato salad now…… I have always been asked to bring my usual but this is taking it’s place now
I love olives in potato salad!
Do you use sweet pickle relish or sour ?
Consider it a personal taste – I think sweet pickle is delicious in potato salad, but some prefer the more sour taste of dill.
Very creamy and liked the small bit of crunch from the celery. Had to send it to the host of the game night, her husband loved it!
Nice! Thanks for stopping Michelle.
Do the potatoes have to be completely cooled before mixing with the sauce or can it still be warm?
They can be cooled to room temperature or a little above that.
I assume the pickle relish is called for is dill pickle relish, not sweet. Is that correct?
You can use either, but yes, most often it’s dill pickle relish that I use.
So Good! You have to try it!