Potato Salad: 5 Mistakes To Avoid

Going to a cookout? Taking Potato Salad?  Make sure you avoid these mistakes before your potato salad hits the picnic table. 

🥔Using the wrong type of potatoes.

For this dish, avoid using starchy potatoes, like Russets, which tend to fall apart during cooking.  Stick with waxy potatoes — like Red Bliss, New, or Fingerling potatoes — for potato salad. These varieties have the least amount of starch and does the best job at retaining its shape during boiling.

 🥔Not starting the potatoes in cold water.

When we cook veggies, we often start them in boiling water, but this should not be the case with potatoes. The biggest problem with starting potatoes in boiling water is uneven cooking. This leads the outside of the potato being overcooked and mushy, while the inside is undercooked. The key to perfectly cooked potatoes is starting them in a pot of cold water.

🥔Not seasoning the water when cooking the potatoes.

A good potato salad must be seasoned, especially if it is being served cold. The key is seasoning as soon as possible.

🥔Undercooking or overcooking the potatoes.

Potatoes are the main ingredient, so it is essential that they are cooked exactly right.  The potatoes should be cooked so they are soft, tender, and creamy. Cook them until they are just tender when pierced with a fork. Depending on the type of potato and size of the potato cubes, this will take between eight and 12 minutes.

🥔Not dressing the potatoes at the right time.

The type of dressing you plan to use, mayo-based dressing or vinaigrette, will determine when the salad should be dressed. When dressing the salad with vinaigrette, toss the potatoes with dressing while they are still warm. They will absorb some of the vinaigrette and become more flavorful. When making a mayo-based salad, the opposite is true. Let the potatoes cool for at least 30 minutes to ensure the mayo does not become oily when mixed into the salad.

From the blog Kitchn  https://www.thekitchn.com/5-mistakes-to-avoid-when-making-potato-salad-221096