This easy, classic Potato Salad Recipe with eggs, celery, and green onion is handed down from my grandma with her secret tips and creamy, tangy dressing to make it THE BEST potato salad recipe ever.
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How to Make the Best Potato Salad
It may be pretty bold to claim, but saying this is the BEST Potato Salad recipe is a statement I 100% stand behind. But I’m not the only one. With over 2,000 positive reviews, this potato salad is popular all year round—not just in summer but at Thanksgiving and Christmas, too. It’s the classic potato salad I grew up on and the recipe my Grandma Mary Jane passed down to my mom, aunts, cousins, sister, and me. In our recipe, creamy potatoes and chopped egg are dressed in a simple dressing made with Miracle Whip instead of mayo, giving it a hint of sweetness and lots of tang. Celery and green onions add a bit of crunch with celery seed adding an earthy layer of flavor. I’ve shared other potato salad recipes here on the blog including my German potato salad, this creamy dill potato salad, my no-mayo potato salad with herbs, and this popular loaded baked potato salad, but this traditional potato salad recipe outranks them all. So now it’s your turn to give it a try. Here’s how to make the best potato salad ever. Let’s get started…
What’s in THE BEST Easy Potato Salad
- Yukon gold potatoes—I’ve found Yukon gold potatoes are the best for potato salad because they have a creamier texture that holds its shape better in potato salad and won’t turn mushy.
- White vinegar—I sprinkle just-cooked, warm potatoes with white vinegar to add flavor and tang. Use cider vinegar or pickle juice if you prefer.
- Hard-boiled eggs—Eggs add to the creamy factor in potato salad while adding a slightly different texture. My grandma’s original recipe calls for just three eggs, but since I’m a super fan of eggs in potato salad, I’ve added two more. It probably stems from my adoration of egg salad, so feel free to adapt to your taste.
- Celery—A few ribs of chopped celery adds a bit of crunch to every bite. I’ve tried this recipe with diced pickles because everything tastes better with pickles. Except for this version of potato salad. So I’m saving the pickles for my tuna salad sandwiches.
- Green onion—Chopped green onion adds a little heat to this salad but isn’t as bold as yellow onion. Red onion would be a fine substitute.
- Miracle Whip—This is the secret sauce to this potato salad dressing. Similar in consistency and often interchangeable, Miracle Whip dressing tastes sweeter and less eggy than traditional mayonnaise.
- Yellow mustard—Mustard adds spice and tang to the potato salad dressing. Like on my hot dogs, plain old yellow mustard is the best and I don’t even dream about getting fancy schmancy with German browns, hearty-seeded, or Frenchy dijon mustards. I save that for my German potato salad.
- Celery seed—This dried spice extends the celery flavor by adding an earthy flavor. Like in my favorite bloody mary recipe, you do not want to skip the celery seed flavor.
- Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper—As always, the essential flavor boosters for any dish.
- Paprika—Paprika doesn’t add flavor here, but I use a sprinkle as the final touch to make the salad extra pretty when served.
What Type of Potato Is Best for Potato Salad
- I use Yukon gold potatoes (white potatoes) in our family’s potato salad recipe. Yukon gold potatoes taste creamier, sweeter, and hold their shape better than other varieties after cooking. And because they have thinner skin, they’re easy to peel after cooking.
- Avoid using starchier potatoes like russets that too easily turn to mush in salads like this.
- Choose potatoes around the same size for the most consistent cooking.
- Do you cut potatoes before boiling for potato salad? My mom says to boil the potatoes whole with the skin on, so I do too. Some commenters have suggested peeling and cutting the potatoes before cooking, but doing so allows the potatoes to absorb more water and could make a watery potato salad.
How to Make THE BEST Potato Salad Recipe
- Add the potatoes to a large pot filled with cold water, bring to a boil, then reduce to medium heat so the potato temperature rises at the same rate as the water. Don’t add the potatoes to hot, boiling water.
- While the potatoes cook, chop the hard-boiled egg, celery, and green onion. Chop into same-size pieces so you get some of each in every bite.
- Boil the potatoes until fork-tender and the skin begins to crack, about 30-35 minutes. Cooking time will depend on the size of your potatoes so adjust as needed.
- Reader-suggested cooking method: Steam the potatoes in 1 inch of water for 30 minutes. This method works because the potatoes don’t absorb as much water. Be sure to watch you don’t boil your water away and burn the pan.
- When cool to the touch, peel the potatoes and cut into bite-size dice.
- PRO TIP: To make peeling the cooked potato easier, use a sharp knife to score the skin of each potato in four sections, then peel off the skin. It often comes right off!
Here’s Why You Should Put Vinegar on Potato Salad
- Add a few splashes of vinegar to the warm potatoes. One of the biggest flavoring secrets for this recipe is adding white vinegar to the warm, diced potatoes. While still warm, the potatoes absorb the vinegar’s zing as they cool, adding another flavor of mellow tang from within.
Mix the Salad
- Mix the dressing. Mix the Miracle Whip with the mustard, celery seed, kosher salt, and black pepper in another bowl until smooth.
- Add the egg, celery, and green onion to the potatoes and toss with the dressing. Fold the salad carefully so the egg doesn’t disintegrate into the other ingredients.
- Give this salad time before serving. Allowing the potato salad flavors to meld is important so if I’m planning on eating the salad the day I make it, I’ll prepare it at lunch so the flavors can build, or I’ll make it a day ahead.
How is Miracle Whip Different from Mayonnaise
In this recipe’s reader comments, there’s some debate about using Miracle Whip over traditional mayonnaise. Miracle Whip and mayonnaise are similar in consistency but have different tastes. When used as a sandwich spread, they’re often used interchangeably. Both have a creamy tang but Miracle Whip is sweeter and less eggy than mayonnaise. So while I’m a mayo fan, in this potato salad I like the sweetness of Miracle Whip that mayo just doesn’t have. That’s why time and again I’ve returned to my roots and back to Miracle Whip. If you’re a mayo fan, try my Loaded Baked Potato Salad, or by all means, make the move and swap it out here. Or maybe, just maybe, give the old Whip a try.
How to Keep Potato Salad from Getting Watery
- Use the right potato. Creamy Yukon golds cooked with the skin on absorb the dressing and hold it well.
- Be sure to add the dressing to cool potatoes. Potatoes will sweat water as they cool, and that can contribute to watery potato salad.
- Avoid low-fat or fat-free Miracle Whip in the dressing. Ingredients used to make lower-fat versions of salad dressings can contribute to a less stable product that releases more water into the dish.
- Reader Vicki sent in an email with her suggestion to avoid watery potato salad. BUT! I don’t have this problem and like to salt my potato water to add flavor, so test this tip to decide for yourself: “I asked a renowned chef what I was doing wrong, and he told me NEVER to salt the potatoes either during cooking or preparing the salad. The salt makes the potatoes seep water. Ever since I took his suggestion, I have never had a problem with watery salad. You can season the salad with salt, pepper, and other seasonings just before serving and it won’t affect the potatoes once they have been mixed with the mayo. Just an FYI.”
Potato Salad Substitutions and Variations
Everyone has their favorite ingredients for potato salad, just check out the comments for this recipe. Here are a few additions and variations you may be craving now.
- Can you use mayo instead of Miracle Whip? If you prefer to, go for it. Personally, the sweetness in Miracle Whip is what I have the most fondness for.
- Try a half-and-half situation by subbing in half sour cream or Greek yogurt for any part of the mayo/Miracle Whip combo.
- Try adding pickles. For more zing, adding diced sweet pickles, dill pickles or pickle relish will give this salad another layer of flavor.
- Chopped red onion or radishes will add a bit more heat.
- Add bacon for an earthy bite (or just make my Baked Potato Salad with bacon, sour cream, and cheddar cheese instead.)
- Instead of Yukon gold potatoes, try red potatoes with their skins on for a more colorful potato look.
How to Make THE BEST Potato Salad
This easy, classic Potato Salad Recipe with eggs, celery, and green onion is handed down from my grandma with her secret tips and creamy, tangy dressing to make it THE BEST potato salad recipe ever.
Servings 8
Calories 228kcal
Ingredients
- 3 pounds medium white potatoes or Yukon golds skin on
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (optional for adding flavor to potatoes)
- 3 tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 celery stalks ribs , diced
- 6 green onions diced
- 5 hard-boiled eggs peeled
- 1 ½ cups Miracle Whip or mayonnaise if you prefer
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1 ½ teaspoons celery seed
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- paprika for garnish
Instructions
- Add the potatoes to a large pot of cold water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a lightly rolling boil over medium heat and add 1 teaspoon of kosher salt (optional). Cook for 30-35 minutes or until the potatoes are easily pierced with a fork or paring knife. Cooking time will vary depending on the size of the potatoes. Drain and set aside until cool enough to handle.
- Peel the skins from the potatoes and cut into ½” to ¾” square pieces. Transfer the warm potatoes to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with the white vinegar. Toss the potatoes with the vinegar and set the potatoes aside to cool, about 15-20 minutes.
- Add the celery and the green onions to the potato mixture. Chop 4 of the hard boiled eggs and add to the potato mixture.
- In a medium bowl, mix the Miracle Whip (or mayonnaise), yellow mustard, celery seed, and ¾ teaspoon salt and pepper. Fold into the potato mixture and season with more salt and pepper to taste. Slice the last egg into thin slices and place them on top of the salad. Sprinkle with paprika if desired. Chill for at least 1 hour or overnight before serving.
Notes
If you prefer, substitute the Miracle Whip with mayonnaise. Or, use half mayonnaise and half Greek yogurt or sour cream for more tang.
As I noted in the text of this post, a reader commented that adding kosher salt to the potato cooking water could make a watery potato salad. I haven’t had that experience so I often add kosher salt when cooking to impart flavor to the potatoes. But, you can always skip salting the water if you prefer.
Refrigerate the salad at least one hour up to overnight before serving for the flavors to meld.
For best results, the salad can be made one day before serving.
As I noted in the text of this post, a reader commented that adding kosher salt to the potato cooking water could make a watery potato salad. I haven’t had that experience so I often add kosher salt when cooking to impart flavor to the potatoes. But, you can always skip salting the water if you prefer.
Refrigerate the salad at least one hour up to overnight before serving for the flavors to meld.
For best results, the salad can be made one day before serving.
