This perfect briny potato salad has been a bungalow favorite for decades. But the recipe was never revealed…until now!
My mother has been making this potato salad for years in the country. It makes its way out every time we’re grilling. It’s our official summer salad.
It makes enough for everyone. And everyone always begs for the recipe.
Even the owner of a big supermarket offered to pay for the recipe (even thousands of dollars!) so he could sell this potato salad in the takeout department.
But we could never give it out.
Not because we don’t want to share. We totally would. But we didn’t have a recipe! We literally never even measured what we did, not even once.
And because I’ve been making it with my mother since I was a little girl, I knew how to prepare it and not measure too.
20 or 25 years ago, after tasting it in a restaurant, we came home and tried to duplicate it, and have been preparing it this way ever since. I tweaked two things – the addition of pickle juice and Montreal seasoning instead of pepper.
This potato salad is very forgiving. Anything summer needs to be flexible. If you know that you’re going to be busy and want to stay sitting in the circle in the bungalow colony or want to stay by the pool, you can simply cut the potato pieces larger so they take longer to cook. And if you’re in a rush? Cut them smaller.
My mother would make all the parts of this salad in separate pots, but I like to do it all together so I only need to use one pot.
Start by peeling and cubing the potatoes and peel and chunk the carrots. Add them to a large pot, cover with water, add salt, and bring to a boil.
Optionally, you can put the eggs in the same pot now (wash them well if you do), or simply cook them separately. Bring to a boil. Remove the eggs after 5 minutes and add to an ice bath.
Continue cooking the potatoes and carrots until you can poke a fork through them easily but they’re not falling apart. The time depends on the size of your cubes. This pot of potatoes took about 15 minutes (go back out to the circle and come back!). We personally like when there’s a longer cooking time because the carrots get sweeter.
If you do shmooze too much and overcook your potatoes, simply drain and put in the fridge so they harden up a little more before mixing. (But if your circle is extra shmooze-worthy, you’ll end up making mashed potatoes instead.)
After draining, let cool (if you’re in a rush, put them in the fridge). If everything is mixed while it’s still hot and steamy, it will turn to mush. Let it cool off for at least 20 minutes (unless you prefer it mushy).
Chop the carrots finely and add the potatoes and carrots to a large bowl.
Chop 3 eggs and 5 yolks (save the whites for another use).
Then chop the Israeli pickles (don’t get rid of the brine just yet, you’ll it). Add to salad along with ½ cup of brine.
Finally, stir in the mayonnaise.
Add Montreal steak seasoning and a bit of salt.
Now enjoy with all your neighbors.
Potato Salad with Pickles for a Crowd
Ingredients
- 5 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 7 small carrots, peeled and left whole or chopped
- 1 tbsp salt
- 6 raw eggs, washed
- 1 (11 oz) can Israeli pickles in brine, chopped
- ½ cup pickle brine
- 2 ½ cups mayonnaise (full-fat only)
- 1 tbsp Montreal Steak Seasoning (or a combination of salt, black pepper, and white pepper)
- ¾ tsp salt
Instructions
- Add potatoes and carrots to a large pot, cover with water, add salt, and bring to a boil. Optionally, you can put the eggs in the same pot now (wash them well if you do), or simply cook them separately. Bring to a boil. Remove the eggs after 5 minutes and add to an ice bath.
- Continue cooking the potatoes and carrots until you can poke a fork through them easily but they’re not falling apart, about 15 minutes.
- After draining, let cool for at least 20 minutes. Chop the carrots finely and add the potatoes and carrots to a large bowl.
- Chop 3 eggs and 5 yolks (save the whites for another use).
- Add pickles and brine.
- Finally, stir in the mayonnaise. Add Montreal steak seasoning and a bit of salt and stir to combine.
