Best Ever Potato Salad
This BEST EVER Potato Salad (with bacon!) is straight from grandma’s recipe box! It is easy, creamy, and loaded with bacon, and a secret ingredient in the dressing puts it over the top. It converted me to being a potato salad lover! Please don't go through the entire summer without making this at least once!
Why You’ll Love This Potato Salad with Bacon
I long disliked potato salad because of how over-the-top mayonnaise-y it typically is. That is, until this recipe. It was life-changing, and I am so happy to share the recipe with you!
This recipe comes from a friend's grandmother, and on the recipe card she gave me it is titled "Best Ever Potato Salad". A bold statement and one that always gives me pause, but it is absolutely, 100% warranted in this case.
First, I tend to trust old family recipes over others; second, the grandma was confident enough to call it the best; and lastly, it has a secret ingredient that takes it over the top. Well-deserved!
Ingredients
This classic potato salad relies upon these basic ingredients:
- Red Potatoes – You can substitute Yukon gold potatoes; both hold their shape really well in potato salad.
- Bacon – Regular sliced bacon is perfect!
- Hard-Boiled Eggs – A classic potato salad add-in.
- Celery – For crunch and flavor!
- Onion – A small yellow onion; you can substitute a shallot.
- Mayonnaise – This is the base of the dressing. You can substitute all or part with either sour cream or plain Greek yogurt. These will both impart more of a tangy flavor, but will still work well here.
- Dijon Mustard – Adds a little bite to the dressing.
- Sugar – Classic granulated sugar for a little sweetness in the dressing.
Many potato salad recipes call for vinegar of some type in the dressing, but the Dijon mustard here does a great job of adding tang and acid and goes incredibly well with the creaminess of the mayonnaise and the sweetness of the sugar.
The Secret Ingredient that Makes This Potato Salad THE BEST
The bacon drippings!
Along with all of the great ingredients that give this salad a great depth of flavor and lots of texture, the dressing on this potato salad is what makes it insanely special.
After frying up the bacon, you save a couple of tablespoons of the bacon drippings and whisk in a modest amount of mayonnaise, some Dijon mustard, a bit of sugar, and a smidge of salt.
It is ah-mazing. The flavor is robust, not terribly mayonnaise-y (a huge bonus in my book), and a perfect accent to all the flavors and textures in the salad.
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How to Make This Potato Salad
First things first… if you haven’t hard-boiled your eggs yet, do that first so they have time to cool down before being added to the potato salad. Then…
- Boil the potatoes until they are fork-tender, then drain.
- Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a skillet until crisp. Drain off the bacon drippings, reserving a couple of tablespoons.
- Add the remaining dressing ingredients to the skillet and whisk to combine.
- Toss together the potatoes, eggs, celery, and green pepper. Pour the dressing over and stir to coat, then gently mix in the bacon.
- Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving.
Making it Ahead of Time
Potato salad is the perfect candidate for making in advance! You can safely (and easily) make this potato salad up to 1 day in advance and keep it covered in the refrigerator before serving.
I have served this to people who claim to hate potato salad because of the mayonnaise factor. I have also served it to people who claim that they only like their mom's/grandma's/aunt's recipe and no others.
All of these people? They have tripped over themselves raving about this recipe, declaring it the best ever potato salad they've ever had.
If You Like This Potato Salad Recipe, Try These Summery Salads:
- Chinese Coleslaw
- Loaded Baked Potato Salad
- Thai Peanut Cabbage Slaw
- Seven Layer Salad
- Broccoli Salad
Watch the Recipe Video:
If you make this potato salad recipe and love it, remember to stop back and give it a 5-star rating - it helps others find the recipe! ❤️️
Best Ever Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds red potatoes, cut into small cubes (about 4 cups)
- 12 ounce package bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
- ¾ cup (170 g) mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
- 1 stalk celery, finely diced
- 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
- ½ medium green pepper, finely diced
Instructions
- Boil the potatoes until they are fork tender. (If you're not sure how to boil the potatoes, this is a good resource.) Drain the potatoes and set aside.
- Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a skillet over medium-low heat until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings in the skillet and remove the pan from heat.
- Add the mayonnaise, mustard, sugar and salt to the reserved bacon drippings in the skillet and whisk to combine.
- In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, eggs, celery, onion and green pepper. Pour the dressing over the ingredients and gently stir to evenly coat. Stir in the bacon.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving. Leftovers can be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Notes
- Potatoes: You can substitute Yukon gold potatoes; they also hold their shape well in potato salad.
- Onion: You can use one shallot in place of the chopped onion.
- Mayonnaise: You can substitute all or part with sour cream or plain Greek yogurt. These will both impart more of a tangy flavor but will still work.
- Storage: Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Make-Ahead: You can prepare this potato salad and keep it covered, in the refrigerator, up to 1 day in advance of serving it.
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
[photos by Ari of Well Seasoned]
Wow. I have never made potato salad before but this recipe looked good. It is fabulous! The dressing, even without the bacon is really good. I used bacon bits (keep them in the freezer) and it worked just as well.
I don’t like the way your link/post button cover the left side of the recipe. Very inconvenient.
Hi John, I’m not sure what you’re referring to, as I don’t see anything like that. Can you take a screen shot and let me know what operating system and browser you’re using? That will help me fix it!
I did make this and it is very good. I WILL make this again.
By far the best potato salad I’ve ever had!
I’ve made a recipe similar to this minus eggs, onions and bell peppers. In my mayonnaise mixture I use apple cider vinegar, spicy brown mustard, celery and bacon bits. The eggs and onions make it spoil quicker, onions also leave a strong aftertaste.
Can you put carrots in potato salad
Hi Michelle, I personally wouldn’t because you would have to cook them a LONG time to soften, otherwise you would have crunchy chunks of carrots in the potato salad. From a texture perspective, I don’t think I would like it.
Wow, who knew bacon grease could make potato salad taste so great. I’m giving this 5 stars.
Made this today and it is delicious! I substituted yellow mustard for the dijon mustard as I am not a fan of dijon. I will definitely be making this again! LOVE
With all the praise, I am not sure what happened when I made it. I checked a couple times and followed directions to a T. I’m an experienced cook of 50 years as well. I’m thinking maybe the brand of bacon was more salty than the brand I normally use. But that much bacon, paired with the 2 TBS. of bacon grease, then with the added tsp. of salt, and it was EXTREMELY salty… on the verge of inedible. Seriously. And I love salt. Everyone else is happy with it, so I’m puzzled. This is the first of your recipes I have made, but I want to try other ones that I might like instead. Sorry. Wish I had the reaction everyone else had.
It’s my favorite potato salad ever!! I won’t make another ever again!! As a matter of fact I made it for tonite. Can’t wait to dig in!! Anyone who has tried it, wants the recipe!! Thanks
This is a very tasty potato salad and even my critical foodie hubby loved this potato salad! The bacon is a great addition that I’ve never tried before! I used The old fashioned smoke house special bacon from Thielen meats in Little Falls, MN from a trip up to northern MN. I omitted the green peppers,mustard and sugar and instead used a little turmeric and curry powders. This is my new potato salad recipe!! Thanks!
Oh my! This is the best potato salad recipe I have made…..very tasty!!
This is one of the best potato salads that I have ever had. I made it with very few changes and it was wonderful. I only used 6 slices of bacon, left out the green pepper and onion. But I did add a bunch of green onions. I made it for a luncheon and everyone raved about it, even the 91 year old aunt! This will be made lots of times this summer!
I have made numerous potatoe salad recipes and was looking for something a little different . This is yummy! Doubled the recipe and used a generous portion of capers instead of the green peppers. Lots of fresh ground pepper. It’s goung to the Kentucky Derby tomorrow. We party on the backside with the horses and this will be a new winner!
Reminds me of my Grandmas German Potato salad will save recipe and try this summer with Pork Ribs. Thanks you have a Great site
This looks good. I cut down on mayo, no sugar and I add pickle juice. Bacon addition good!
I wasn’t going to rate this recipe at first. When I first made it, then put it in the fridge for a while to get cold while I finished cooking the rest of Easter supper, I thought it just okay the first day that I ate it and my fiance thought the same thing, just okay. However, when we ate some of it the next day after it sat in the fridge much longer and got really cold, it seemed to really come together. We definitely enjoyed it much better and ageee with it being savory. So I give you 5 stars and thank you for a different version of potato salad that I will definitely make again.
Do u use mayonnaise or hellmans?
Hi Jennifer, I use Hellmann’s, which is a brand of mayonnaise, so yes to both ;-)
Best Ever Potato Salad is amazing! The family has been begging for it again and again! Good job on this one!
AMAZING. I made this for a BBQ and it disappeared quick. I added sliced black olives and a little extra mayonnaise after it chilled in the fridge. Definitely making this again.
This is by far the best potato salad ever. I’ve never been a big fan of potato salad either, but I make it because my husband likes it. This recipe made me a believer. I will admit I didn’t use celery or green pepper because I didn’t have any and I added shredded cheese. I honestly don’t think it matters what you put in it, it’s the dressing made with bacon drippings that puts this recipe over the top! I will never need another recipe, this is the winner!!
I made this great recipe. I changed the onion to purple and added zucchini relish.
Hands down, the best ever!
when u say 1 stalk, does that mean 1 rib or whole stalk
Hi Ruby, 1 rib, sorry for any confusion!
Just made this for a shared lunch at my work – everyone loves it and wants the recipe! Absolutely delicious!
Your recipes excite me. I am going to have to try the potato salad tomorrow. <y daughter is coming over and bringing her bacon-cheese-hot dogs. I almost drool reading your potato salad recipe. Love your Friday page. Love to see your boys and that huggable dog. Keep up the good works. Sue
Question regarding the potatoes… am I correct in thinking that the potatoes should be cool before mixing in the dressing?
I don’t want the dressing to melt off of the potatoes and make a mess. thanks!
Hi Lori, Yes, they should be close to room temperature. I’ve found that if you do the potatoes first, then proceed to everything else, by the time the dressing is ready, the potatoes should be just fine to add them in. Enjoy!
Made this yesterday for a football party and everyone loved it. My only modification was that I left out the sugar.
Can I substitute Pancetta for bacon?
Sure!
FANTASTIC recipe!!! Not a huge pot salad fan, but THIS one knocks it outta the park!
A few suggestions…
Only add 3-4 bacon strips (cooked and chopped)
Limit bacon grease to 1 to 1.5 Tbls *otherwise you get a greasy aftertaste
Add lots of fresh ground pepper!
Make sure to mix dressing ingredients separately, then add to potatoes & veg (avoid over mixing, so pots don’t get totally mushed)
*Also note…with 1.5lbs red potatoes, your salad will be heavily “dressed”…I’ve had folks ask for minimally dressed, in which case, cook 2 lbs potatoes.
Otherwise, this potato salad gets TOP marks, and should be included for any backyard BBQ!