Amish Potato Salad (Old-Fashioned Recipe)

Amish potato salad is a guaranteed hit at your next summer BBQ or potluck.

Loaded with starchy potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, and a richer-than-rich dressing, it’s ridiculously creamy and decadent.

This scrummy chilled BBQ side dish goes great with cookout classics, such as burgers, hot dogs, and steaks.

If you want to impress your party guests, this Amish potato salad recipe must be present.

What Is Amish Potato Salad?

Just like regular potato salad, Amish potato salad is a delectable dish made of potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, and a creamy dressing.

What sets it apart is that its dressing has a deeper flavor. It’s made with a combination of eggs, vinegar, milk, mustard, mayonnaise, and butter.

It’s slightly sweeter, tangier, and has a more complex flavor than classic potato salad dressing, which is usually just mayonnaise.

Trust me, it’s one of those old-fashioned Amish recipes you’ll turn to again and again.

Ingredients

Amish recipes take simple ingredients and treat them right. And this potato salad is no exception. Here’s everything you need to pull off this classic recipe.

• Potatoes. The star of the dish. Pick from my top 3 potato varieties for Amish potato salad.

• Eggs. An essential element to the dressing. Aside from binding the ingredients together, it also helps give the dressing a smooth and creamy consistency.

• Cornstarch. This ingredient is responsible for thickening the dressing.

• Salt. A dash of salt lifts those bold flavors to make this recipe so satisfying. 

• Apple cider vinegar.  It adds just a subtle tartness to the dressing, providing a nice contrast to its richness.

• Milk. For an incredibly rich and creamy dressing.

• Yellow Mustard. Adds subtle tanginess to the dressing.

• Butter. Adds shine and even more richness to the dressing.

• Mayonnaise. Also adds extra creaminess and richness to the dressing. Miracle Whip works, too.

• Onion, celery, carrots. Mix-ins offer flavor, crunch, and color to the salad.

• Celery Seed. For earthy, savory flavor. 

• Hard-boiled eggs. Another element that provides creaminess and richness galore! They’re also what gives the salad its signature yellow hue.

The Best Potato for Amish Potato Salad

What are the best potatoes for potato salad? Well, you want to use starchy potatoes because they do a fine job of absorbing the dressing.

They should also be firm enough that they won’t fall apart when you toss them with the rest of the ingredients.

That said, the perfect candidates for Amish potato salad are russet potatoes and Yukon Golds. 

Coming in at third place are red baby potatoes. They’re waxy and able to keep their shape when boiled.

I also like that their skins are soft enough that I don’t need to peel them. Plus, because of their size, they’ll cook faster.

How Do You Make Amish Potato Salad?

Wondering how long to boil potatoes for potato salad? Curious about adding eggs?

Don’t stress. While this recipe has quite a few steps, they’re all super easy. And when you blend all the components together, it’s heavenly!

Check out how easy this potato salad recipe comes together.

1. Boil the potatoes. Place them in a large pot and fill it up with enough water to cover the spuds. Cook the potatoes until they’re fork-tender and drain. Then, set aside to cool.

2. Make the eggs. While the potatoes are cooling, boil the eggs and chop them up.

3. Make the dressing. Combine eggs, sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a saucepan. Add in the vinegar, milk, and mustard. Cook and stir until the sauce thickens.

4. Let the dressing cool. Remove it from the heat and mix in the butter. Allow the dressing to cool in the fridge. Once chilled, mix in the mayonnaise.

5. Add the potatoes. Slice the potatoes and combine the salad mix-ins. Once the spuds are cool enough to handle, cut them up into bite-sized chunks. Next, toss them with the onions, celery carrots, and hard-boiled eggs.

6. Bring it all together. Toss in the dressing to the potatoes and allow the salad to cool. Potato salad tastes better the longer it chills, so try to let it rest in the fridge for 24 hours.

7. Serve. Remove the potato salad from the fridge, serve, and dig in!

Tips for the Best Amish Potato Salad

Check out these quick and easy tips to ensure your potato salad is the star of your next summer BBQ!

• Boil whole potatoes. Don’t slice the potatoes before boiling them. This might cut down the length of cooking, but it’ll also make the potatoes too mushy. When you boil the potatoes with the peels on, the skins will protect the spuds from absorbing too much water.

• Generously salt potato water. Salt the boiling water for better-tasting potatoes. When boiling, the potatoes will soak up all that seasoning. It’s a small step that makes a big difference. 

• Drain the potatoes well. Any excess water will add unnecessary moisture to the dressing, which will result in a watery salad.

• Let those spuds cool. Allow the potatoes to cool slightly before you toss them together with the dressing. Combining hot potatoes with the dressing will cause the potatoes to sweat, also resulting in a watery salad.

• Be gentle. Coat the potatoes with the dressing very gently. You’re making potato salad here, not mashed potatoes!

• Don’t chop the potatoes too small. Potatoes will naturally fall apart when mixing. Cutting them a bit larger will ensure there are no small pieces in the dressing. 

• Make the night before. Amish potato salad tastes better the next day! As it chills, the potatoes absorb the dressing. Make it up to 2 days in advance for better flavor.

Variations

Once you master the basics, it’s time for variations! Here are some tasty variations on this classic that will make your mouth water.

• Add fresh herbs. Dill, chives, basil, tarragon, thyme, and parsley all taste great with potatoes. It’s bright, fresh, and oh-so-summery. 

• Make it meaty. Amish potato salad is already rich and decadent, but adding bacon crumbles will make it even more so. Everything is better with bacon!

• Get cheesy. You know what else tastes great with potatoes? Cheese! Top the salad with shredded cheddar and thank me later.

• Bring on the spice. Spice up the salad with paprika, red chili flakes, or cayenne pepper. Other spices and seasonings such as onion powder, and garlic salt make great flavor additions, too.

• Make it a meal. Turn the salad into a full meal by mixing in your favorite small-shaped pasta such as macaroni, farfalle, or fusilli. 

How to Store Amish Potato Salad

Like many Amish casserole recipes, potato salad always tastes better the next day!

To keep those leftovers for longer, follow these easy storage tips. 

• To store. Place Amish potato salad in an airtight container or cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 to 4 days.

• To freeze. I don’t recommend freezing the salad as the potatoes will get mushy and grainy once frozen and thawed.

More Potato Recipes You’ll Love

Hellmanns’ Potato Salad
Scalloped Potatoes
Lighthouse Inn Potatoes
Irish Mashed Potatoes
Whipped Sweet Potatoes

Looking for More Amish Recipes?

Amish Macaroni Salad
Amish Broccoli Salad
Amish Sugar Cookies
Amish Caramel Corn