2 pots 1 large for boiling potatoes, 1 medium for boiling eggs
3 mixing bowls 1 small for creaming egg yolks, 1 medium for holding egg whites, 1 large for mixing all the ingredients together in
1 cooks knife 1 knife for chopping
Ingredients
5eaPotatoes Gold or RedUse 4 if very large, 6 if small medium. These hold together when dicing and mixing, you avoid mashed potatoes
3eaeggs, hardboiled2 if you like, 4 if you like more. See the How to make a perfect hardboiled egg recipe
3TbspRed wine vinegarMatch to number of eggs
3TbspYellow mustardThe star of the show, match to the number of eggs
1TbspHot Sauce, optionalI use Tapatio or Red, Adjust to your taste
1TbspCayanne pepper, optionalAdjust to your taste
1TbspOld Bay seasoning, optional2 if you like
1stalkcelery, small dice, optional2 if you like
1eaBell pepper, small dice, optional2 if you like
1/4eayellow or red onion, gratedThe liquid from grating is used in the yolk mixture
1/4CupMayonnaiseThis will vary a lot, but start with a 1/4 cup.
1TbspSaltNeeded to bring out flavors
1TbspBlack pepperNeeded to bring out flavors
2tspWhite pepper, optionalThis adds some kick.
Instructions
This recipe is built on the hard boiled eggs and the boiled potatoes. Both of those require cooking and then chilling.
Perfect Boiled Eggs
Using a pot large enough for one layer of eggs, cover the eggs with water and bring to a boil. Boil ten minutes, turn the burner off and let the eggs come to room temperature. If you do not need to use these put them in the refrigerator.
Peel the eggs. Separate the yolk from the whites and put each in separate bowls.
Potato Boiling
Wash the potatoes to remove any dirt
Peel if you want to, I like to leave the skin on
Using a pot large enough to hold the potatoes and let water boil, bring the water to a boil.
Add potatoes to the boiling water and cook just above a simmer for around 35 minutes. You will need to check the potatoes to make sure they are not over cooked.
Drain the water from the pot, immediately dump in cold water, and if available, ice
Cool the potatoes down as fast as you can. If you will not be using them store in the refrigerator.
Dicing every
The order you do things is how you want to work. I like to dice the potatoes first, then optional celery, bell pepper. Stir those together.
Dice the potatoes, I do mine in small and medium sizes. Place in large bowl.
Dice the option vegetables, and mix in with the potatoes.
Dice the egg whites and mix in with the potatoes
Creaming the Egg Yolks
Using a fork, mash the egg yolks to a rough paste
Add the vinegar and mix in to a smoother paste
Add the yellow mustard and cream.
Add the spices to the creamed egg yolks.
The Grand Finale
Using a large spoon or scraper mix the egg yolk mixture into the potatoes. Carefully mix to ensure it is evenly
Using a large spoon drop mayonnaise on the potato mixture. Carefully cut it in with the spoon or scraper. If your potatoes are too soft you could end up with mashed potatoes.
You want a dry mixture right now. Taste! Sprinkle any additional spices, salt, pepper, hot sauce, cayanne pepper, on top of the potato salad.
Add small spoonfuls of mayo and cut in to moisten the mixture. This will absorb mayo as it chills later on.
Sprinkle paprika over the salad. I will add some mayo on top that will be cut in when dishing out the salad.
Notes
This is an old-fashioned potato salad, probably from the 1880's or 1890's. My grandmother was a great farm wife cook. I learned a lot from her on how to make kitchen magic.I add the seasonings to bring out the flavors of the eggs and potatoes. My preference is to use the Old Bay seasoning in the egg yolk mixture and sprinkle paprika on the top and then Old Bay over that. Careful though.Although not in the ingredient list but something I use a lot is Accent flavor enhancer. It is MSG and it brings out more of the flavors too. A tablespoon would work in this recipe.