Simple potato salad recipe! An ideal dish for summer parties, family dinners and a great recipe all year round. This creamy potato salad is loaded with chives, light mayo, salad cream and dill.
This is the best potato salad recipe you will ever make. I know this is a bold statement, but it is the truth! You can’t beat the simplicity of this salad. I have kept this recipe simple with few easy to source ingredients. More importantly, you can either have it warm or cold and it can be made ahead of the time it's needed.
In my opinion, potato salad tastes better the next day or when made well ahead before use as the potato would have absorbed all the flavours from the simple creamy dressing and herbs used.
Potato salad Ingredients
New potatoes: For this simple potato salad recipe, I have used the small type with thin skin, they are waxy and the best for potato salad. I love the fact that I don’t have to peel it before boiling them. I can also cut them into equal chunks or cook them whole.
Chives: Can you ever go wrong with adding chives to anything? Chopped chives are my first choice for any creamy dressing and if I run out, I would use spring onions instead.
Dill: I used dried dill as it is a lot subtle in flavour than the fresh one. If you would be using fresh dill, please use it according to your preference.
Salt and black pepper: for taste and most importantly, for boiling the potatoes.
Mayonnaise: I used light mayonnaise. If you have an extra five minutes, you can try your hands on this easy homemade mayonnaise.
Salad cream: For tangy taste and you only need a little to compliment the mayonnaise. Also, salad cream ingredients contain vinegar and mustard which are part of what some people add to their potato salad. So, stay away from adding extra vinegar or soaking the potato with vinegar except it’s your thing and you would prefer vinegary potato salad then it would be totally fine.
Use light salad cream for a healthier version.
Jump to Recipe
Creamy or vinaigrette dressing
This is a matter of personal preference. I will give you some ideas for both and you can make an informed decision.
For a creamy potato salad: you can go for any of these options alongside mayonnaise; Sour cream, salad cream, crème Fraiche, yogurt, cream cheese, avocado etc
Vinegar potato salad: Choose from any of these; apple cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar, white vinegar, red wine vinegar etc
How to make Simple potato salad
Scrub the back of the potatoes (you don’t need to peel it if you are using new potatoes) and cut into same chunk sizes.
Add it to a large pot and cover with cold water, add salt and simmer on medium heat. Cook the potatoes until fork tender then drain.
Add the potatoes into a salad bowl or a large bowl. Leave to cool slightly
Add mayonnaise, salad cream, pepper, chopped chives and dill to the potatoes then combine.
Serve the potato salad immediately or chill until needed.
You can make the salad ahead of time and it keeps in the fridge for up to 5 days. I would be surprised if you still have it for that long.
For a healthier potato salad dressing, use yogurt instead of mayonnaise or swap mayonnaise and salad cream for a lighter version.
How long to boil potatoes for potato salad
There is no fast or hard rule here. The size of the potato and type would dictate how long it would cook for. Typically, potatoes cut into bite-size/chunks would cook faster than a whole potato.
A general rule to test your potato for doneness is by using a fork or knife. If the fork goes through easily then the potato is cooked. This same rule applies when cooking yam. I Will start checking on my potatoes between 8 and 15 minutes
Jump to RecipeBest potato for potato salad
It is important to choose the right potatoes for this recipe. For more traditional potato salad or any type, I would choose new potato any day over any other kind. That being said, red skin potato works well too but I just leave that for posh people. Waxy potato (with thin skin) is the best for potato salad.
Floury potato (the starchy type with thick skin) like Maris Piper can be used too. But for this simple potato salad recipe, I have used new potatoes and that’s all I ever use except when I can’t source it. In the absence of these, I would use Maris Piper or Yukon gold potatoes.
A general rule about using the right potatoes: Waxy potatoes are able to hole their shape when cooked. They are great for steaming, salad and baking. Example of waxy potato in the UK includes new potatoes, Anya, Charlotte etc
Here in the UK, an example of floury potatoes is Maris piper (It is the most common in the UK and versatile too), king Edward, Russet just to name a few. These are great for chips, mashed potatoes and baking.
Tips
- Aim to cut potatoes into equal chunks (same sizes) so they’ll cook evenly
- If you are using new potatoes, you don’t need to peel the skin, just scrub them clean before use.
- Cook potato in salted water. This is very important
- You can eat potato salad warm or cold depending on the dressing used. If you would be eating this salad immediately, you may want to use a vinaigrette dressing instead of the creamy one.
- You can go wild on what you add to your potato salad if you don’t want to keep it simple like mine. Add celery, cucumber, boiled eggs, bacon, radish, micro salad etc and for the herbs, you may add thyme, spring onions, parsley etc
- Boil the potato with cold water and gradually bring the water to boil. Keep the heat on medium as you want the potatoes to cook all the way through. Cooking on high heat from the start would only cook the outer part of the potatoes leaving the interior crunchy
What Jenna said about this salad
Made this several times over the summer. Everyone loved this potato salad! Perfect for people who don't love mayonnaise. Look forward to making this again soon.
Other Salad Recipes You Might Love
What To Serve With Potato Salad
Simple Potato Salad Recipe
Equipment
- saucepan and salad bowl
Ingredients
- 1 kg new potatoes scrubbed clean and cut into bite-size chunks
- ⅓ cup full fat or light Mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons full fat or light salad cream
- 2 tbsp chopped chives
- ½ tsp dill
- 2 tsp salt and more for seasoning salad if need be
- black pepper use according to preference
Instructions
- Add the cubed potatoes to a large pot and cover with cold water, add salt and simmer on medium heat. Cook the potatoes until fork tender then drain.
- Add the drained potatoes into a salad bowl or a large bowl. Leave to cool slightly
- To the cooled potatoes, add mayonnaise, salad cream, pepper, chopped chives, dill and mix to combine. Taste for seasoning and adjust to preference
- Serve the potato salad immediately or chill in the fridge until needed.You can make the salad ahead of time and it keeps in the fridge for up to 4 days. I would be surprised if you still have it for that long.
Notes
If you made this simple potato salad recipe, don’t forget to leave me feedback. Tag me @myactivekitchen on Instagram and save away to your Pinterest.
ATB
Ajoke x
Looks great! This will be up for dinner tomorrow at mine. Very well done.
Thanks so much Anne, I can't wait to hear your feedback.
I am inspired...thank you for the simplicity of this dish!
Thank you so much, IJ. I hope you will be making some soon.
Some dishes always tastes best when served simple. I have always likes potato salad they way you made here, it's simple and fuss free.
I agree with you Kankana, some recipes are best left as simple as you can keep them.