Old Fashioned Simple Potato Salad (Gluten-Free)

Old Fashioned Simple Potato Salad is the perfect side dish for all your summer entertaining. Easy and quick to make, you can have it ready to go while you prepare the rest of the meal. It is best served chilled, so you can make it a day ahead and it will be ready to serve when you are.

When I was growing up I never liked potato salad. I couldn’t figure it out because I loved potatoes made every other way. Being Irish, they are my favorite food group, LOL! It wasn’t until I was in college and visiting a friend’s house that I discovered how much I had been missing.

Joyce’s mother made us potato salad and I fell in love! It was so simple with only 7 ingredients, easy to make, and SO much better than any store-bought versions I had tried. Not too heavily dressed with a simple sauce poured over perfectly boiled potatoes (in their jackets!). She made it for me every time I visited, and it became a joke that she had to stock up on potatoes the moment she heard I was coming over to see her daughter.

Eventually she shared her secrets and I learned to make it for myself. And no surprise, it became one of my most requested dishes. Aspects have changed over the years, I have added a few more ingredients, but the foundation is the same. And still just as delicious!

There is something very comforting about potato salad – maybe it is the memories of warm summer days, picnics at the beach, barbecues, and softball games with friends it conjures up. I make a lot of different types of potato salad but this is the one I keep coming back to and the one I always serve at a traditional barbecue.

If you don’t like mayonnaise or are afraid of it spoiling on a hot day, you can also use a simple vinaigrette or Italian dressing on this salad. In that case, leave out the pickles and add some bell peppers to the celery and onions. If you wanted you could even add some chopped salami and a sprinkle of oregano for an Italian twist! Any way you make it, I know your family and friends will love this old fashioned simple potato salad.

Adding just a little pickle juice helps cut through the fat of the mayonnaise and balances the flavors. For a little extra color, and to follow in my mom’s footsteps, I added a sprinkle of paprika over the top. Old habits … 🙂  

Mayonnaise-based potato salads need to be kept cold for safety reasons. If you are planning on serving it at a barbecue or picnic, place it in a serving bowl and take along a bowl big enough for the serving bowl to easily fit inside – a wide shallow bowl would be perfect. When you get to your destination, place some ice in the large bowl, nestle the serving bowl in the ice, and add more ice around the edges. This will keep your salad nice and cold. Replenish the ice as needed.

While I can eat an entire bowl of this salad, I know most people consider it a side dish to the entrée of grilled meats, poultry, or seafood. Personally I would be happy with this salad as my main course. Yep, I am most definitely of Irish descent and I have a feeling Darby McCarty would be proud! Yep, that’s a real person, my 7th Great Grandfather from Tyrone, Ireland who immigrated in the 1600s.

You are going to love this Old Fashioned Simple Potato Salad. It is the one dish that everyone clamors for, especially the children. I hope you make it and enjoy it as much as I do. And may it be the beginning of many happy memories for you!

Did you enjoy this recipe? Let me know in the comments and leave a star rating, I love hearing from you!

Ingredients needed for Old Fashioned Simple Potato Salad:

• Russet potatoes, green onions, celery, sweet pickle relish, salt and pepper
• Mayonnaise, yellow or spicy brown mustard, sweet pickle juice

 

PRO Tip:

If you want a more colorful salad, use red onions in place of half the green onions and add about 3 tbsp very finely chopped red or orange bell peppers.

 

How to make Old Fashioned Simple Potato Salad:

1. Boil the whole, unpeeled potatoes in a large pot of cold water until tender. Scoop them out with a slotted spoon and set aside to cool until you can handle them.
2. Use a paring knife to peel each one and cut into bite-sized cubes. Put the potatoes in a large mixing bowl and add the green onions, celery, pickle relish, salt, and pepper. Gently toss them together.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, and 1 tsp of the pickle juice. If it is too thick add a little more pickle juice. Add salt and pepper to taste, whisk together and taste. Adjust seasonings if needed.
4. Pour half the dressing over the potatoes and toss to coat evenly. Some people like “wetter” potato salad and others prefer a dryer version – add as much dressing as you like. Taste and adjust seasonings.
5. Transfer to a serving bowl, cover, and refrigerate until chilled, at least 30 minutes. Keep in refrigerate until about 15 minutes before serving. Can be made up to 2 days ahead. Sprinkle the top with more chopped green onions if desired before serving.

 

PRO Tip:

There is a quicker way to chop celery. Trim the ends off the celery stalks and cut each lengthwise into three long strips. Cut them crosswise in half and then pile all pieces together, lining up the ends and chop crosswise with a sharp knife. This creates perfectly sized pieces with the fewest cuts.

 

Recommended Tools (affiliate links; no extra cost to you):

• Chef’s knife
• Cutting board
• Vegetable peeler 
• Measuring spoons
• Large stockpot or Dutch oven
• Slotted spoon
• Mixing bowls
• Whisk

 

Gluten-Free Tips:

This recipe is naturally gluten-free!

All recommended ingredients are gluten-free as of the writing of this article. Always check to be sure the products haven’t changed and are still safe to consume.

 

 

 

 

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