Best Potato Salad For Two – The Perfect Summer Side Dish Recipe

With summer in full force, it is time to enjoy all sorts of picnic and barbecue foods, including my favorite cookout side dish, potato salad. While it’s easy to prepare hamburgers and hot dogs for two, planning smaller portions of side dishes requires a bit more effort.

Although you could purchase a specific amount at the deli counter or pick up a plastic container of your favorite side dish at your local grocery store, it is more economical to make it yourself. And it really is easy to do!

With the recent rise in grocery prices, many of us are looking for ways to save money wherever we can. And one way to do that is to prepare our own food.

However, making your own food in an effort to save money does require a little extra planning. Although, it is well worth it when you see how much money that you can save by doing so.

Save Money By Meal Planning Each Week

Instead of making several trips to the grocery store to get the ingredients that you need to make a specific recipe, plan your grocery list for an entire week.

Every Saturday I write out a list of meals that I plan to make for the upcoming week. Then I look in the refrigerator and pantry to see what ingredients that I have in stock to make those recipes.

For instance, when making potato salad for two, I know that I will need a couple of potatoes. And later in the week when I plan to make Garlic Butter Smashed Potatoes, I will need a few more. Therefore, as I plan my weekly menu, I will check my supply of ingredients to see what I already have on hand.

Write A Grocery List

Then as I am doing the search through the kitchen, I write down what items that I will need to purchase at the grocery. Once the list is complete, the weekly grocery shopping can begin.

Using this method of meal planning for the week, I am making one trip to the grocery. Besides saving gas money getting to and from the store, it also prevents me from picking up those extra items not on the list that happen to catch my eye.

Not only does it help me save money by not purchasing more expensive, pre-made items, it also decreases the amount of food waste at the end of the week. Having a plan and sticking to the menu is easy to do when you make it a weekly habit.

So instead of heading to the deli to pick up a pint of potato salad for the next time you grill out, plan ahead and make it instead using this easy, small batch recipe.

Potato Salad For Two

*A printable recipe card is located at the bottom of this article which contains the specific measurements, temperatures and cook times. However, continue reading below to learn about more helpful tips about this specific recipe.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 medium size Yukon Gold potatoes
• 1 egg
• 1/4 sweet onion
• 1/2 stalk celery
• 2 dill pickle spears
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 Tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

My favorite potato variety to use for this recipe is Yukon Gold. They are the best all-purpose potato that I use in the majority of my recipes.

You will need two, medium size Yukon gold potatoes to make this potato salad recipe. Start by scrubbing, peeling and dicing the potatoes into 1 inch cubes.

Add the potato chunks to a medium size sauce pan and cover with cold water. Place the pan over high heat and boil until the potatoes are just fork tender, approximately 8-10 minutes.

While the potatoes are boiling, make a hard boiled egg based on your preferred cooking method. Although I sometimes make Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs, I most often boil the egg instead.

Suggested Cooking Method For Hard Boiled Eggs

Add the egg to a small sauce pan and cover with cold water. Turn the burner to high heat and bring to a boil.

Once it reaches a full boil turn off the heat and cover the pan. Remove the pan from the burner and let it sit in the hot water for 12 minutes.

Remove the egg from the water and place it in an ice water bath for 3 minutes. Once the egg has been sitting in the ice water, remove it and peel it under cold running water.

The peel will come off easily once it is cracked. Then dice the egg using a sharp knife or an Egg Slicer and set aside.

Assembling The Potato Salad For Two

Once the potatoes are fork tender, pour the potatoes in a colander and drain. Then immediately run the potatoes under cold water or place them in an ice water bath to stop the cooking process.

Place the cooked potatoes in a medium size bowl. Then add the diced onion, celery, egg and pickle spears to the bowl. Set the bowl aside while you prepare the dressing.

Potato Salad Dressing

In a small bowl add the mayonnaise, mustard, paprika, seasoned salt, and pepper and stir until well mixed.

Pour the dressing directly over potatoes, egg, celery, onion, and pickles and gently toss until evenly coated.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, before serving. I prefer to make this the day before serving so that the flavors have time to meld together even better.

Just like with many recipes, this one gets even better after a day or two that it is made.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I use a large Russet Potato instead?

Although you can make potato salad using one large Russet potato, I prefer to use two Yukon gold potatoes instead. Because Russet potatoes have a large starch to water ratio, the potatoes don’t hold their shape very well when cooked.

However, if you like creamy potato salad with less visible chunks of potatoes, then definitely use a Russet potato instead.

2. Can I use sweet pickles instead of dill pickles?

You can use whatever type of pickle that you prefer. Sweeter varieties such as Bread & Butter pickles will produce a sweeter taste of the potato salad that some people prefer.

For those that like a little extra heat in their food, you can even use hot & spicy pickles.

3. How long will this keep in the refrigerator?

You can keep potato salad in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. However, more importantly, it is important that items that contain mayonnaise, such as Deviled Eggs and potato salad do not sit out of the refrigerator for more than two hours.

Enjoy! Mary

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