Dill Pickle Potato Salad

If you’ve tasted one, you understand the power of dill pickles—they’re briny, tangy, fresh and a serious flavor enhancer for everything from basic turkey sandwiches to juicy cheeseburgers and savory barbecue sliders. Now, fellow pickle fanatics can add potato salad to that list. This recipe for dill pickle potato salad is a pickle-riffic twist on classic, creamy potato salad recipes.

To make this potato salad recipe with dill pickles, we add chopped dill pickles to the traditional potato salad trifecta of potatoes, hard-boiled eggs and fresh celery—for extra crunch and herby dill flavor. But we don’t stop there! Mixing a splash of pickle juice into the potato salad dressing packs punchy pickle flavor into every bite.

Dill Pickle Potato Salad Ingredients

ELLIE CROWLEY FOR TASTE OF HOME

• Potatoes: When it comes to potato salad, not all spuds are created equal. We recommend using waxy potatoes, like red potatoes. Their low starch content helps them retain their shape during and after cooking. That means when you cut the potatoes and mix them with the dressing, they won’t break down and turn into mashed potatoes.
• Eggs: Hard-boiled eggs bump up the protein content in potato salad and add rich flavor and a pleasant, soft texture. This recipe calls for chopping the eggs, but you can also grate them for a lighter, fluffier texture. You can skip the eggs if you prefer a vegan dill pickle potato salad (see more tips below).
• Celery: Crunchy celery balances the soft, tender texture of the potatoes and eggs, and its fresh flavor helps brighten the rich mayo-based dressing. It also gives the potato salad pretty hints of green!
• Green onions: Like celery, sliced green onions deliver fresh flavor and a pop of color. You can substitute chopped red or yellow onions, but they taste sharper than green onions, so a little goes a long way.
• Dill pickles: Our star ingredient! You can use spicy or garlic dill pickles for an extra kick. Chips or full-size pickles work here—just chop whatever pickles you have into bite-sized pieces. Dill pickle relish works in a pinch, and spares you some chopping.
• Pickle juice: Don’t toss the brine when you polish off a jar of pickles. It’s a secret weapon for perking up everything from salad dressings (like we’re doing here) to marinades and even cocktails. Besides flavor, pickle juice thins the mayonnaise to the right consistency to evenly coat the potato salad.
• Mayonnaise: Our creamy dressing contains just a handful of ingredients, starting with mayonnaise. Since it’s the dressing base, use a mayo brand you love or try homemade mayonnaise (one taste and you may not go back to store-bought).
• Mustard: A healthy dollop of prepared mustard adds another layer of tanginess and sharpness. We like the golden hue that yellow mustard gives to potato salad recipes.
• Pantry spices: The dressing is seasoned simply with celery seed, salt and pepper. If you don’t have celery seed, omit the salt and use celery salt (a mixture of ground celery seed and salt).

Directions

Step 1: Cook the potatoes

Place the potatoes in a Dutch oven or large kettle and add enough cool water to cover them. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pot and simmer until the potatoes are tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain and allow the potatoes to cool.

Editor’s Tip: Remember to salt the cooking water—it’ll season the spuds from the inside out. The potatoes will be easier to handle and firm up as they cool, making them less likely to fall apart in the following steps.

Step 2: Prepare the potato salad

Peel the potatoes, then cut them into bite-sized cubes. Place the cubed potatoes in a large bowl, then add the chopped hard-boiled eggs, celery, green onions and dill pickles.

Step 3: Make the dressing

Combine the mayonnaise with pickle juice, mustard, celery seed, salt and pepper in a small bowl until they’re blended.

Step 4: Dress the potato salad, then chill

Pour the dressing over the potato mixture and mix well to coat. Cover the potato salad or transfer it to an airtight storage container and refrigerate it for at least four hours. If desired, serve the dill pickle potato salad in a lettuce-lined bowl and garnish it with extra dill pickle slices.

Editor’s Tip: The pickle juice and mustard tanginess lose their punch over time. If you’re preparing dill pickle potato salad more than a few hours in advance, refresh the flavor by stirring in an extra splash of pickle juice or a teaspoon of mustard just before serving.

ELLIE CROWLEY FOR TASTE OF HOME

Dill Pickle Potato Salad Variations

• Change up the pickles: Give your potato salad a twist with different types of pickles. Try bread and butter pickles for a sweet and tangy twist or spicy pickles for bold flavor and some heat.
• Try another protein: Swap diced ham, crispy bacon crumbles or shredded cheese for the hard-boiled eggs to give your salad a different flavor profile. Or, make an extra-hearty potato salad with eggs and meat or cheese.
• Boost the flavor with herbs: Turn up the dilly vibe by stirring fresh chopped dill into your potato salad. Minced chives or flat-leaf parsley also make vibrant, herby additions.
• Make a spicy version: Add fresh or pickled jalapenos for heat, or substitute spicy mustard for the yellow mustard. You can also stir a dash of hot sauce into the dressing.
• Lighten the dressing: Give the potato salad dressing a healthier spin by swapping plain Greek yogurt for half or all the mayonnaise. I recommend using whole milk yogurt here for the richest flavor and creamiest texture.

How to Store Dill Pickle Potato Salad

Cover the potato salad and refrigerate it until you’re ready to serve it. If you’re making it a day or two in advance or have leftovers, transfer the potato salad to an airtight container before refrigerating it.

How long does dill pickle potato salad last?

Dill pickle potato salad will stay fresh for up to four days in the fridge. The tangy flavor lessens the longer it’s stored, but there’s an easy workaround: Mix the potato salad with pickle juice or extra mustard before serving to freshen up the flavor.

Can you make dill pickle potato salad ahead of time?

Dill pickle salad is an awesome make-ahead dish. You can prepare it a day or two before hosting a barbecue or make a batch on the weekend to enjoy with lunch all week long. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge until you’re ready to serve it.

Dill Pickle Potato Salad Tips

ELLIE CROWLEY FOR TASTE OF HOME

What are the best potatoes for dill pickle potato salad?

Waxy potatoes like red potatoes are best suited for potato salad recipes. After cooking, they hold their shape better than starchy russet potatoes, which tend to fall apart in salads. You could also use Yukon Golds, which are somewhere in between waxy and starchy.

Should I cut potatoes for potato salad before or after boiling?

Honestly, you can cut the potatoes before or after cooking—it depends on personal preference and the size of your potatoes! I recommend cutting the potatoes before boiling them if you have a bag of spuds that contains small and large potatoes. Uniformly cut potatoes will cook more evenly than whole potatoes of varying sizes. Cut potatoes will also cook faster than whole potatoes, so time is another consideration.

If you’re cooking whole potatoes, cool them in an ice water bath or pop them in the fridge for a few hours before cutting them. The potatoes will firm up as they cool, making for cleaner cubes and less crumbling.

Do you have to peel the potatoes for dill pickle salad?

Peeling the potatoes makes for a smoother potato salad, but you don’t have to remove the skins if you don’t want to. Yukon Golds and red potatoes have thin, tender skins that can be left on for a rustic appearance.

How do you make this dill pickle potato salad vegan?

You can make a vegan-friendly dill pickle potato salad with just a few plant-based swaps. Omit the hard-boiled eggs and use chopped white button mushrooms or cubed firm tofu to mimic their texture.

Traditional mayonnaise contains eggs, so choose a vegan mayonnaise for the dressing. Several popular mayo brands make vegan versions, or you can whip up homemade vegan mayonnaise with pantry staples and the liquid from canned chickpeas (aka aquafaba).