Potato Salad

Source

American Potato Salad

One of the things I love about summer is potato salad. However, I've never really made it myself. I couldn't tell you why, I just never got around to it, I suppose. It sounded good this week and I saw no reason why I couldn't get around to it at last, so I started looking for recipes.

I remembered some interesting salads in one of the issues of Food Network Magazine I had laying on my coffee table. Sure enough, there were two recipes, one creamy-style from Aaron McCargo Jr. and one vinaigrette-dressed from Paula Deen. Both looked good, but not perfect.

I tend to prefer creamy style potato salad over vinaigrette dressed but I don't particularly like mayonnaise (or, to be honest, the calories that come with it). So, I used my usual 70-30 mixture of sour cream and mayo. I took the best components from each: bacon from Paula's, eggs, Worcestershire and hot sauce from Aaron's, then whipped up my own take.

For a first attempt, I'm in love. The spicy kick from the hot sauce is perfect and there's plenty of crunch from the bacon and green onions so I never missed the celery (my husband really dislikes celery) common to the ones I grew up with. Plus, the Worcestershire, an addition I thought was odd (but intriguing), added unexpected depth.

It technically serves four, but it never made it past the evening. We wound up having it as dessert later on. Now that's some good potato salad!

Potato Salad [printable recipe]

Adapted from Food Network magazine (June/July 2009)
Serves 4

  • 3 potatoes (about 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 lb)
  • 4 green onions, chopped
  • 1/4 red onion, diced
  • 3 - 4 strips bacon, cooked crisp and chopped
  • 3 hardboiled eggs, chopped
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tsp garlic sauce (Kalina, for example) (optional)
  • 2 tbsp mayonnaise
  • 5 tbsp sour cream
  • 1/4 tsp dill
  • 1/4 tsp hot sauce
  • salt, pepper

Chop up potatoes (peeling first, if desired) and add to boiling, salted water. Drain, allow to cool. Combine with remaining ingredients and stir well, adjusting quantity of sour cream and mayo to your taste.