This article follows Meathead Goldwyn’s published recipe, Mom’s Old Fashioned Potato Salad at AmazingRibs.com. Its dressing is a blend of mayonnaise and sour cream, and because it contains both, it belongs in a cooler rather than on a sunny picnic table. The second half of this article covers the cold-holding rules from the FDA.
Ingredients
The recipe page lists about 2½ pounds (1.1 kg) of finished salad and 8 servings. Metric conversions of the US measures are ours, rounded.
- 2 pounds (about 900 g) waxy potatoes
- 1 egg
- 2 scallions
- 1 small red bell pepper
- 1 stalk celery
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) sour cream
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons sweet pickle relish (optional)
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- Black pepper to taste
- Optional: a jalapeño or hot pepper flakes
Method
- Chop the scallions, bell pepper and celery into pea-sized pieces. Mix them with everything except the egg, potatoes and salt in a large bowl.
- Scrub the potatoes. If the skin comes clean you can leave it on; if not, remove it. Cut them into 1/2-inch (about 1.3 cm) cubes.
- Bring enough water to cover the potatoes to a rolling boil and add 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, then turn the heat down to a simmer. Cook 10 to 15 minutes, until the tip of a sharp knife slides easily through a cube. Drain, cool, and add to the bowl.
- Bring the water back to a boil and lower the egg in gently with a spoon. For a standard large egg, Meathead says to boil 11 to 12 minutes once the water returns to a boil.
- Chill the egg in ice water for about 5 minutes, then crack, peel and chop it and add it to the bowl.
- Coat with the dressing, season with pepper and salt to taste, then chill and serve.
Two details in the source are loose. The method says “eggs” while the ingredient list says one egg, and it gives no chilling time. We have used the ingredient list, and we suggest chilling until the salad is cold throughout and holding it at 40°F (4°C) or below, as described below. The page notes that kosher salt is half as concentrated as table salt, so use half as much table salt.
Why Waxy Potatoes
Meathead’s Science of Potatoes page says waxy potatoes have moderate moisture and starch, and that when boiled they soften at the edges but hold their shape, which makes them especially good for potato salads and casseroles. Most red-skinned potatoes are waxy, and he names Yukon Gold as a popular example. Starchy potatoes, in contrast, can disintegrate if boiled too long.
Pickles or No Pickles
Meathead says a vocal minority of readers dislike pickles in potato salad, including his sous chef and his wife, but he likes it that way. His advice is simply to leave the relish out if you disagree, since it is marked optional in the ingredient list.
Keeping It Safe Outdoors
The FDA’s guide, Handling Food Safely While Eating Outdoors, sets out the rules that apply to this salad:
- Pack cold. Cold food goes in a cooler with ice or frozen gel packs and should be stored at 40°F (about 4°C) or below to prevent bacterial growth.
- Watch the clock. Perishable picnic food should not stay in the “Danger Zone”, between 40°F and 140°F (60°C), for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour if the outdoor temperature is above 90°F (32°C).
- Serve it on ice. Chicken salad and similar dishes can go directly on ice, or in a shallow container set in a deep pan of ice. Drain off melt water and replace the ice often.
- Discard if it sits. Once served, food that stays out longer than 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F) should be thrown away.
The FDA’s egg safety page repeats the same limits for cooked egg dishes: never leave them out of the refrigerator for more than 2 hours, or more than 1 hour when temperatures are above 90°F. That covers the chopped egg in this salad as well as the mayonnaise and sour cream.
Refrigerate leftovers promptly as well. The FDA says perishables should go into the refrigerator within 2 hours, or within 1 hour when it is hotter than 90°F outside.
Diet Note
This salad contains egg, mayonnaise and sour cream, so it is not vegan. We make no vegetarian claim, because brands of mayonnaise and pickle relish vary and we have not verified a specific product.
Keep reading
- Weber’s Creamy Grilled Sweet Potato Salad, Kept Cold Safely
- Meathead’s Creamy Southern Coleslaw, Kept Cold Safely
- Egg-Free Southern Potato Salad: Abi Cowell’s Recipe
- Weber’s Grilled New Potatoes, Plus the Parboil Tip