Potato salad is pretty generic, as a rule and I think most everyone has some sort of recipe they follow for making it. I've had potato salad at restaurants and take out, but never been really happy with how it tasted. I don't know....maybe it's nostalgia, but there's never been potato salad for me that tasted better than the recipe my mother always used. It's the recipe I've known and loved for well better than 65 years, so I just stay with it. It must be pretty good, as when I make it, everyone seems to show up to get some to take home with them. There's certainly nothing fancy nor exotic about it, but it just satisfies. You'll note that my recipe makes a HUGE batch and feel free to adjust it as necessary. I just know if I make this much of it, it always disappears from the refrigerator!
INGREDIENTS
10 pounds Russet potatoes
12 Eggs
1 Green Bell Pepper
1 Medium Purple onion
8 Ounces Sweet Pickles
Salt (to taste)
Pepper (to taste)
Paprika (to taste)
Mayonnaise
Yellow Mustard
PREPARATION
Begin by peeling the Russet potatoes and cutting them into quarters to facilitate boiling. Boil the potatoes, but don't over do it unless you want mashed potato salad. Check them with a fork as they boil, allowing for a bit of firmness so you have somewhat "chunky" potato salad after it's prepared. If you prefer smoother potato salad, feel free to boil them a bit more.
Hard boil the 12 eggs, remove the shells and allow them to cool a bit in cold water for easy handling.
Now, for some dicing. Remove the seeds from the green bell pepper and dice the pepper. Cut the purple onion up and dice it, as well. Dice the sweet pickles....I like a lot of sweet pickle in my potato salad, so I use all 8 ounces. Save the juice from the sweet pickles...we're going to use it. No, I don't use sweet pickle relish in place of the diced sweet pickles, as it just doesn't work as well to me. Dice the dozen hard boiled eggs, as well.
In a large pot, add the potatoes, bell pepper, onion, sweet pickles and hard boiled eggs. Mix the ingredients all together. As you are mixing them, add salt and pepper to your taste.
Now, add about 4 ounces of the sweet pickle juice to the pot and mix it in well with the salad. I like the taste of the sweet pickles and juice, so I add enough to satisfy my own taste for that.
Now, begin adding the Mayonnaise to the salad. Make sure you really moisten the salad with the Mayonnaise. Don't worry too much about putting in too much mayo, as the potatoes are going to absorb it quickly. Begin adding the mustard to the salad...usually I use about half as much mustard as I did Mayonnaise, as I like a nice yellowish color to the salad and the flavor of the mustard should come through the flavor. Your salad should have a nice sunny, yellowish color by the time you finish adding the mustard.
Add the Paprika to the salad, sprinkling it generously into the mix. Stir in well and there should be a nice reddish hint of color to the yellow potato salad mix. When I'm finished mixing all together, I sprinkle a bit of Paprika on top of the salad, just for appearance.
I find that the flavors blend best if you allow the salad to rest in the refrigerator for several hours, or even better...overnight...before serving. Check the salad before serving, as the Mayonnaise will absorb into the potatoes, leaving the salad a bit too dry. I then add more Mayonnaise to moisten the salad before serving.
The salad is ready to serve...with a bright sunny color, just a hint of blush from the Paprika and some inviting color from the green bell pepper, purple onion and green sweet pickles. The sweetness of the pickle juice and the sour taste of the mustard really imparts a pleasant flavor to the potato salad.
I hope you enjoy and get as many compliments for your salad as I do mine. Everyone seems to love it!
If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at: stan.kain@gmail.com
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