How Long Do You Cook Red Potatoes For Potato Salad

This Red Potato Salad recipe is the perfect potluck side, or lunch side for work or a picnic. It's easy to make and has lots of fresh flavor and texture.

What makes or breaks a potato salad is whether there's lots of flavor incorporated into the dish. Otherwise, potatoes can be quite bland and boring. That won't be a problem for us today!

Red Potato Salad - In a Gray Bowl with Fresh Herbs and Scallions

For potato salad in particular, I believe there are three essentials for making it delicious:

Seasoning the boiling water heavily with salt, so salt penetrates the potato
A knockout dressing with lots of flavor
Fresh herbs and vegetables to add crunch and texture

It's actually easy to accomplish this with relatively minimal ingredients!

Red Potato Salad Recipe - In a Gray Bowl with Fresh Herbs and Scallions

When I go to parties in the summer or on a picnic, I'll almost always bring some sort of sturdy salad like this.

Salmon Salad, Cranberry Chicken Salad, Caprese Pasta Salad, and Egg Salad are some of my other go-tos. It's truly one of my favorite recipe categories! This is also a great side for dishes like Buttermilk Fried Chicken or Oven BBQ Pork Spare Ribs.

How to Make It Step by Step:

Start with the dressing so it's ready to go for when the potatoes are hot. That way they absorb the dressing and flavor really nicely.

Combine mayonnaise, extra virgin olive oil, Dijon mustard, red or white wine vinegar, salt, and pepper in a bowl:

Mayonnaise, olive oil, vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper in a Bowl with Whisk

I love the combination of fats here, with the fruity flavor and aroma of the olive oil, and the creamy classic flavor of the mayonnaise. It's so much better than a mayonnaise-only dressing.

Also, if you have 10 minutes to spare, I recommend making some homemade mayonnaise for optimal flavor.

I think red or white wine vinegars are by far the best acids here, but champagne vinegar, sherry vinegar, and apple cider vinegar work too.

Whisk that together until creamy and smooth:

Whisked Creamy Mayonnaise Dressing In Bowl

What are the best potatoes for potato salad?

I recommend "waxy potatoes," like red potatoes or yukon gold, over the starchy ones like russet. They hold up better, whereas russets can fall apart into mush.

Slice (or chunk) some red potatoes and put them in a big pot. How I cut them totally depends on my mood, and both work great.

Cover the potatoes completely with cool water:

Pouring Water Into Pan with Red Potato Slices

Next add a couple tablespoons of salt to the water:

Adding Salt Into Pan with Red Potato Slices

I know it seems like a lot of salt, but the potatoes will only absorb a small amount of this water, and it will help season the potatoes "on the inside."

Bring the potatoes to a boil over high heat.

How long do you cook red potatoes for potato salad? It depends on how you cut them up, but about 5 minutes after the water is boiling, or until fork tender.

Then drain them in a colander, and let them sit for a few minutes to let the steam escape a bit.

Boiled Red Potato Slices Draining In Colander

While the potatoes are still warm, toss them with the dressing, then add chopped celery, scallions, and chives:

Red Skin Potato Slices in Bowl with Celery, Chives, and Scallions On Top

You can either serve this warm (which I love) or you can chill it for a few hours before enjoying.

Red Skin Potato Salad - Served in Gray Bowl with Scallions and Celery

Potato Croquettes, Steak Fries, and Potato Gratin are some of my other favorite potato dishes.

I have a whole section of potato recipes in my recipe index if you want more ideas. Enjoy!

If you want to make this red potato salad for a crowd, you can scale the recipe as needed. You may need to boil the potatoes for longer since it may take longer for the pot of water to reach a boil.

Is this potato salad healthy? That means different things to everyone, but it is gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian, and paleo.

Can potato salad be made ahead? Yes, I'd only make it up to 1 day ahead though, so the flavor is still fresh and at its peak.

How many days will potato salad last? In the fridge for about 4 days before the flavor starts to deteriorate too much.

Red Potato Salad In a Gray Bowl with Fresh Herbs and Scallions

Red Potato Salad

Servings: 6

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 15 mins

Total Time: 25 mins

This Red Potato Salad recipe is packed with flavor, easy to make, and perfect to take to potlucks and picnics!

1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
salt
freshly ground black pepper
2.5 lbs red potatoes, sliced or chunked
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/3 cup sliced scallions
1/3 cup sliced chives

In a large bowl, whisk to combine the mayonnaise, olive oil, vinegar, mustard, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp black pepper.
Place the cut up red potatoes into a large pot, and fill with enough cold water to cover the potatoes, plus an inch.
Bring the pot to a boil over high heat, and cook the potatoes until fork tender. The time will really vary depending on if you sliced the potatoes or cut them into chunks, and how large, but for me it usually only takes about 5 minutes once the water is boiling, about 10-15 minutes total.
Once the potatoes are fork tender, drain them in a colander and let them sit for a few minutes for the excess steam to come off.
While the potatoes are still warm, toss them well with the dressing.
Stir in the celery, scallions, and chives, then serve warm or chill for several hours before serving. Enjoy!

Calories: 252 kcal , Carbohydrates: 31 g , Protein: 4 g , Fat: 13 g , Saturated Fat: 2 g , Cholesterol: 6 mg , Sodium: 320 mg , Fiber: 4 g , Sugar: 3 g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Post updated with new pictures, writing, and more tips in August 2018. Originally published July 2014.