Black southern potato salad is serious business and I have the fondest memories of eating the very best version since childhood. The Soul Food potato salad recipe I'm sharing with you today is truly cookout worthy and will have you promoted to potato salad duty in your family after just one bite! Let's get into it.
And if you enjoy this recipe, you'll love my southern deviled egg dip, too!
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Who made the potato salad?
Dee Dee is my auntie on my mom's side and today's recipe is a slightly tweaked version of her potato salad. Dee Dee's name is really Kimberly but I couldn't pronounce that when I was little so she's been my Dee Dee ever since. Nicknames run rampant in African American families!
As long as I can remember, potato salad was her dish. The Black women in my family taught me everything I know about Soul Food; and Aunt Georgia had peach cobbler and my grandma did the pound cakes and southern green beans, and Aunt Carol did the dirty rice but Dee Dee's was THE cookout potato salad.
If you've ever been to a Black function or even just watched the Black Jeopardy SNL skit, you know that the maker of the potato salad matters. And that raisins don't belong!
❤️ Why You'll Love this Recipe
Flavorful - This dish is tangy, savory, and a little sweet--just what good potato salad should be. Since our family is concentrated in Southeast Texas, ours is similar to a Louisiana style potato salad with Cajun and Creole influence.
Simple to Make - Now, I won't lie to you there is some prep work involved but this is a very straightforward recipe. Boil the eggs and potatoes, make the mayo and mustard sauce, then mix everything up and chill.
Cookout Ready - Good potato salad should be made with care and at least a few hours ahead of time to be the zesty, cold, and creamy complement to heavy and smoky grilled meats we commonly enjoy at barbecues. And this potato salad is worthy of the cookout.
👉🏾 My old school potato salad recipe pairs perfectly with your fave cookout dishes like finger-lickin' grilled ribs, baked mac & cheese, bbq baked beans, and hibiscus sweet tea. Don't forget a slice of red velvet layer cake for dessert!
Going to a cookout soon? Here's my full Black cookout menu right on time for summer.
Featured Reader Review
★★★★★
"This is still my favorite potato salad. The addition of the pimentos is chef's kiss! Making it again for my husband and I for Memorial Day tomorrow. Thank you for this keeper recipe!"
-Samantha
What You'll Need for this Recipe
Yukon Gold Potatoes are what I grew up eating in potato salad. They peel easy, maintain their shape without crumbling and become nice and buttery without being too starchy!
Eggs are a must in potato salad and you can adjust the amount up or down depending on your preference. Dee Dee uses four or five eggs and I crack up to six to eight.
Mayonnaise from whichever brand you like best. Southerners are picky about their mayo but I've made this recipe successfully with Miracle Whip, Duke's, Blue Plate, and Chosen Foods avocado oil mayonnaise.
Sweet Dill Pickle Relish and Pimentos add just the right amount of sweetness without putting straight sugar in the potato salad and bright pepperiness similar to bell peppers but with less crunch.
Chicken Broth is optional but adds extra savory flavor when boiling the potatoes so I highly recommend it! You could also use turkey broth for similar flavor.
Simple Spices like garlic powder, smoked paprika, sea salt and black pepper round out the flavor profile.
Check out the recipe card below for full ingredients list, measurements, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions!
Substitutions & Variations
Skin on or Off is a decision to be made based on what kind of potatoes you use. Red skin potatoes are great for skin on potato salad, however, I recommend peeling the Yukon Gold variety that works best in this recipe.
Mustard goes in potato salad if you ask me so it's not a matter of whether to add it but rather which kind. I like spicy brown mustard but you can also use yellow mustard, Creole mustard or even dijon mustard.
Spices vary from person to person and family to family. Making potato salad using celery salt and onion powder is pretty common.
Garnishes are where you can go buck-wild. I like chives and a generous sprinkle of paprika and sometimes even halved eggs for deviled egg potato salad vibes.
For classic tater salad with a twist, peep my balsamic potato salad!
How to Make Black Potato Salad
- Step One: Hard boil the eggs, drain them, then peel once they're comfortable enough to handle. (Photos One and Two).
- Step Two: Roughly chop the eggs to your desired size. (Photo Three)
- Step Three: Peel the potatoes then cut them into chunks about one to two inches in size. (Photos Four and Five)
Pro Tip #1
Cutting the potatoes too big means they will take longer to cook and cool. Alternatively, if you cut the potatoes too small, they are more likely to break when mixing later so you'll end up more of a smashed or mashed potato texture. I also recommend cutting into 1-2 inch chunks so that they will be bite-sized and not awkward to navigate when serving and eating!
- Step Four: Add the potatoes to a pot with generously salted water and a splash of broth or stock and cook until fork tender. (Photo Six)
Pro Tip #2
Either salting the water or adding broth will add great flavor to the potato pieces but doing both is really magical. Each lil chunk of potato gets infused with so much flavor that they taste good all on the own. And once you add the sauce, it's OVER!
Pro Tip #3
Fork tender means that you can easily stick a fork through a potato piece and it slides off.
- Step Five: Drain the potatoes and let the cool to room temperature. You can stick the drained potatoes in the refrigerator to cool faster. (Photo Seven)
- Step Six: While the potatoes cool, chop up the celery and onion then mix them up with mayonnaise, mustard, sweet relish, pimentos, and spices. (Photos Eight and Nine)
- Step Seven: Mixed the cooled potatoes and eggs into the sauce until evenly coated then cover and place in the fridge to cool for at least one hour. (Photos 10 and 11)
Pro Tip #4
Mixing warm potatoes or eggs into the mayo and mustard sauce will break up the mayonnaise resulting in a clumpy texture and oily potato salad. So make sure these ingredients are cooled to room temperature first.
- Step Eight: When you're ready to serve the chilled potato salad, garnish it with a sprinkle of paprika then add some chopped chive over top.
Frequently Asked Questions
Good potato salad actually gets better with time so it's a great make-ahead dish for the day before your get-together. You can make it up to three days in advance if stored properly. Just reserve the garnishes until you're ready to serve it.
Store the potato salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to five days this way.
I don't recommend freezing leftover potato salad because of the mayonnaise and boiled eggs, which will have a different texture once thawed and not be very appetizing.
Is potato salad a Black food?
American potato salad is a southern food now enjoyed across the nation thanks the Great Migration of Black southerners from the Jim Crow South, and eaten by all races of people. African American southern potato salad IS Soul Food, though. Because of the love and care and ingredients we put into it.
So what's the difference vs white potato salad? There's no definitive single difference despite what you might have heard about "Karen's potato salad" but the potato salad of white cultures tends to have much more variation in ingredients and method like the warm German potato salad, for example.
Black and blended cultures outside the United States make potato salad, too, including Jamaican and Puerto Rican.
More Favorite Potato Recipes
Looking for other recipes like this one? Try these:
I hope you'll enjoy the best Soul Food style potato salad recipe soon and very soon. And sharing is caring, so be sure to pin this recipe for later and follow me over on Pinterest. Thanks for reading!
📖 Recipe
Dee Dee's Soul Food Potato Salad
Equipment
- 1 vegetable peeler or paring knife
- 1 knife
- 1 deep pot four quarts or larger
- 1 colander or strainer
- 1 kitchen spoon or silicone spatula
- 1 large mixing bowl
Ingredients
- water
- 6 eggs
- 2 ½ pounds Yukon gold potatoes about 8-10 potatoes
- ½ teaspoon sea salt plus more for boiling potaotes
- 1 cup chicken broth or stock
- 3 stalks celery
- ½ sweet yellow onion
- 1 ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¾ cup spicy brown mustard
- 10 ounces sweet pickle relish
- 4 ounces pimentos canned or jarred and diced
- ½ teaspoon paprika plus more for garnish
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 blades fresh chive
Instructions
- Bring a small saucepan of water to boil over medium-high heat (about five minutes) then add eggs and cook for about 10 minutes or until hard boiled. Drain eggs and allow to cool until they can be comfortably handled.water, 6 eggs
- While boiling the eggs, peel the potatoes and cut them into one to two-inch pieces.2 ½ pounds Yukon gold potatoes
- Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover them by about one inch with water. Generously salt the water and pour in chicken broth.½ teaspoon sea salt, 1 cup chicken broth
- Cook the potatoes over medium-high heat for about 15 minutes or until fork tender then drain and cool them to room temperature.
- While the potatoes cook and cool, peel the hard boiled eggs and chop them then chop the celery and dice the onion.3 stalks celery, ½ sweet yellow onion
- Add the mayonnaise, mustard, sweet relish, pimentos, chopped celery and onion, smoked paprika, garlic powder, sea salt, and black pepper to a large bowl and stir until combined. Taste test the sauce and add more seasoning, as needed.1 ½ cup mayonnaise, ¾ cup spicy brown mustard, 10 ounces sweet pickle relish, 4 ounces pimentos, ½ teaspoon paprika, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Mix the cooled potatoes and eggs into the sauce until well coated then cover the bowl and place it in the refrigerator to chill for at least one hour.
- Garnish chilled potato salad with a generous sprinkle of paprika and chopped chives.3 blades fresh chive
shay says
My go to potato salad recipe! Dee Dee girl, you did that!
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thanks so much, Shay! Glad you love it.
Yanick says
I made this for a friend's house party BBQ. It got rave reviews and was all gone by the end of the event.
Jazzmine Woodard says
So glad to hear thank, Yanick. Thank you for your feedback!
PopPop says
Way to bail me out!!! Thanks DeeDee. Everythikng was a hit for thanksgiving but my potato salad. I threw it away. The next day I had to redeem myself, so I came across your recipe. Excellent. Great with gumbo.
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thank you for your note, PopPop! I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe, and we love it with gumbo, too.
Samantha says
This is still my favorite potato salad. The addition of the pimentos is chef’s kiss! Making it again for my husband and I for Memorial Day tomorrow. Thank you for this keeper recipe!
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thanks so much for your note, Samantha. I'm glad you enjoy this one as much as we do. Wishing you a restful Memorial Day.
Mary says
I make this potato salad for my place where we sell hamburgers and hot dogs. Everyone loves the potato salad.
Kimberly(DeeDee)💜 says
Thank you so much! This is my recipe and I was so honored when my niece shared it! Glad you guys enjoyed it! 🥰💜
Marcus Avery says
I made this potato salad recipe for my recent family bbq and it was hit! Folks were wiping the bowl clean lol
Jazzmine Woodard says
I know that's right! Glad I'm not the only one who cleans my potato salad bowl lol. Thanks, Marcus.
cait boyce says
This is my go-to potato salad for every event! Don’t think I wouldn’t bring this to a wedding!
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thanks, Cait! I'm glad you love this potato salad, too.
Kimberly(DeeDee) says
Thank you Marcus!! So glad it was a hit! Hope you continue to make and enjoy! 🥰💜
Krysten says
The addition of the pimentos in this soul food potato salad recipe was such a great idea! I love the flavor that it added. This is definitely on the menu at our next cookout.
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thanks, Krysten! So glad you enjoyed.
Marta says
I've never added sweet pickle relish to my potato salad before this recipe and now I can taste what I've been missing. This is definitely going to be a staple in our home.
Donna W says
I’ve always been good at making potato salad but this one here was by far the best I’ve ever made it was a huge hit at our cookout yesterday and there was very prior left over. We finished it off today thank you Dee Dee got sharing you amazing positive potato salad.
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thank you, Donna! I'll pass on your message and am so glad this potato salad was a hit for you.
Kimberly(DeeDee) says
Awwww I'm so glad you guys enjoyed it. You're so welcome! I'm was excited to learn that my recipe is a hit! Hope more people get to enjoy! Happy eating! 🙏🥰💜