Oh Jeez. I could NOT find the written recipe card…
This is one of those recipes that is going to be hard to write since it was taught over and over again as my Mom was making her potato salad. This is what they call nowadays, oral history. I went through my recipe ‘book’ that is literally exploding, and couldn’t find a written recipe card for this potato salad – so I’m going to do my best to document this correctly and next time I make it – promise – I’ll measure instead of just putting it together… But even with that caveat – I’m positive you too could use this ‘recipe’ as a guide to make one heck of a potato salad for you and yours.
While we are on the topic – my recipe book was a grand gesture by my mom as I was first moving out. I got a recipe book – that had room for the recipe cards – that was broken down by desserts, mains, appetizers etc. Mom filled the book with recipes for me so I wouldn’t (presumably) starve as a new apartment dweller. The book had pockets for other recipes I might collect. The book – as it sits now – has about a 75 degree angle to it – in that it is stuffed with various recipes that I’ve collected across the years and by no chance will properly lay flat. As I went through it tonight – I realized that I’d come a ways in my cooking since Mom first sent me on my way… While there was no card with Mom’s Potato Salad on it – there were a LOT of recipes with a can of soup or two or three…. and many recipes cut out of the newspaper and as found on containers of chicken… Be that as it may, some were for sure family favorites and will get documented here !
What makes my Mom’s potato salad different?
The main differences between my Mom’s potato salad and many others I believe comes down to a couple of things:
- Mom didn’t use much mayonnaise;
- Mom used russet potatoes – cause we always had them on hand;
- Mom used a LOT of vegetables in her salad; and
- You need to make it in advance to it can settle and let the flavors meld.
But is it GOOD ?
A couple of years back, we were meeting for a 4th of July party – and a couple of us were talking about / coordinating what we could bring. I was asked to bring my Mom’s Potato Salad. BOOM. There you are.
When someone has a food at your house, remembers it, and then asks you to bring it somewhere else – and then even caveats it, if it isn’t too much work, would you please bring it… you know it’s good!
Picture of Mom and I from May 2023
Before I get you to the recipe I think I need to share a fairly recent pic of Mom and I. I love going to the pool and hanging out with my mom. We don’t get to do that much as I live some 2,000 miles from her. But, here’s a pic of us at the pool, having a fun day. I wished I had a pic of us making the potato salad, but alas, we’ll have to settle for this one. 🙂
Mom’s Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 5 Lbs Russet Potatoes
- 3-5 Large Carrots – Peeled and Diced
- 3-5 Celery Stalks – Peeled and Diced
- 1 Medium Onion – Diced small
- 1 Red Pepper – Trimmed and Diced
- 1 Green Pepper – Trimmed and Diced
- 1 Cup Mayonnaise – More or Less…
- 1 Tbl Dijon – Just a tad for all those potatoes
- ½ bunch Fresh Parsley – Finely chopped
- Lemon Juice – or plain vinegar
- 4-6 Radishes – Optional trimmed and diced
- 1-3 Hard Boiled Eggs – Optional (I ALWAYS leave them OUT!)
Instructions
- Mom's directions are to clean the potatoes and cover them in water in a LARGE pot. Leave the skins on. If your potatoes are large or very large – cut them in half or quarters. If your potatoes are small – go ahead and leave them whole.
- Add a generous sprinkling of salt – not so much as you would add for boiling pasta – probably about half that much. I'd say 1 – 1 ½ TBL of salt ought to do it…
- Boil gently until a knife tip goes into the potatoes. The potato ought to be tender. You don't want the potato too soft – and ready to be mashed – that is too cooked. Start testing the potatoes for 'done' after about 10 minutes of boiling gently. (Stir around the potatoes while they are boiling.).
- While the potatoes boil – clean and chop all the vegetables and get out the Mayo and the mustard.
- Here's the hardest part. Drain the potatoes and as quickly as you can – take off the skin and rough chop the potatoes and put them into a very large bowl. Work to get all the potatoes into the bowl while still hot. Use a kitchen towel to hold the potatoes and peel with a paring knife.
- Add the mayonnaise and the dijon to the potatoes – and stir while they are still warm. The potatoes will absorb the mayo and your salad will taste better and have better mouth feel if you get the mayo and mustard on them while warm.
- Add in the rest of the vegetables and stir gently. Some of the potatoes will turn mushy – and that is just fine and typically Mom's potato salad has chunks and creamy bits and crunchy bits of veg. That's how it is supposed to be !
- Check out whether or not you think you have used enough mayo. You may need to add a bit more for your / your families liking. See the picture of our finished potato salad. There's definitely mayo in there – but it's not an over abundance.
- Chop the fresh parsley and sprinkle half of it in / on the potatoes and stir.
- Add some S&P to the big bowl and take a taste. If it tastes flat – you may need a squeeze of half a lemon or a couple of Tsp of plain vinegar – or some additional S&P. Don't try to perfect it here. You must try it later – after it sits in the fridge overnight.
- Stir up and taste the potato salad the AM of your event. Fix the S&P or the acid as needed. Be very careful with the lemon or the vinegar – shouldn't need more than maybe half a lemon in the whole bowl or a couple of Tsp in the whole bowl.
