Give potato salad extra zing

I know we’re past Fourth of July, when a new recipe for potato salad might have been helpful for your picnic planning, but the truth is that Independence Day is just the beginning of potato salad season. As temperatures heat up (finally!) and the grills come out, this tried-and-true side dish is simple to put together, delicious warm or cold and keeps in the fridge for several days. I make it once every couple of weeks all summer long, whether it’s just a small batch for our own family or a big bowl for a backyard barbecue with friends.

Although the recipe is entirely my own, it’s not unlike the potato salads you’ve had at picnics and parties your whole life and it shares some culinary lineage with the aggressively yellow stuff that comes in a tub from the grocery store. More than anything, it’s inspired by my mother’s potato salad, which in my opinion was the absolute zenith of potato salads everywhere for all time. I say inspired by, because it’s not exactly my mother’s. I don’t have the recipe and I don’t think she ever had one, either. Even if I did have the recipe, I surely wouldn’t be able to resist “Monikizing” it with my own adjustments and additions. There’s something in me that resists following directions, even when I know the directions are helping me achieve an outcome that I very much want. (Hmmm. More fodder for my therapist.)

So this recipe is like my mom’s, but it’s got more of the stuff that I like in a potato salad, namely mustard and sweet pickles. If you don’t like potato salad with mustard, you might as well stop reading right now and go do something useful like clip your toenails or vacuum under the couch or develop a new political system whereby every citizen is constitutionally guaranteed free candy and subsequent root canals.

I also like big chunks of potato. I’m not going to argue the merits of peeled versus unpeeled potatoes because I don’t have an opinion and I make it both ways, depending on how industrious I’m feeling. I don’t like too much dressing. That is, I want the ingredients to be clearly identifiable through the sauce. I like a bit of crunchy celery but not too much. I like a few crisp red onions but I don’t want to the pieces to be so big that the onion overwhelms all other flavors. I like a bit of paprika, some hard-boiled egg and pimientos for color. Finally, I love black olives in a potato salad, but my spouse and offspring don’t. Occasionally I get all crazy and put olives in anyway, just to be contrary, like I did last night. My daughter ate it right up and never noticed the olives, while my husband, polite Brit that he is, quietly pushed all his olive bits to the side. Poor dear. He puts up with so much.

So here’s the basic recipe, which I have never written down because I vary it every time, depending on what I have on hand and what I feel like. This recipe makes a big batch, just right for backyard get-togethers, church potlucks and family reunions.

Wash and roughly chop four large russet potatoes into inch-size chunks or slightly larger. I’ve used red and Yukon gold potatoes, too. No matter what kind of potato you use, it will serve the same fundamental function: a plain, starchy base to carry the fixings. Leave the peels on or take them off as you desire. Sometimes I give the potatoes a rudimentary peeling but leave some peels on for a happy medium. (As my grandmother used to say: All the vitamins are in the peels! That’s not true, of course, but it sounded so wise when she said it.)

Boil the potato chunks in generously salted water until they’re done all the way through but not soft. Drain them and put them in a large bowl. I usually hard-boil two to three eggs right along with the potatoes and set them aside to cool while I’m adding the other ingredients. Add a large (7 ounce) jar of drained pimientos, ½ cup sweet pickle relish (yes, that much, just go with it), ½ cup chopped sweet gherkins, ½ cup minced red onion and ½ cup diced or sliced celery. For olive-lovers like me, add ½ cup sliced olives or a cup of whole olives. I’m not going to be a stickler and say they must be black olives; if you like green olives, go for it. I’m all for freedom of olives.

At this point, the eggs should be cool enough to peel and cut into chunks. Add those to the potatoes and then get ready for my secret ingredient: ¼ cup of sweet gherkin brine. Don’t worry about adding this amount of liquid — the potatoes will soak it right up, adding a wonderful extra tang. Toss in about ½ teaspoon salt (or more to taste) plus ½ teaspoon each mustard powder, lemon pepper and paprika. I sometimes add fresh dill, but some people might find that it conflicts with the sweet pickle flavor. You do you.

Now for the dressing. Are you ready for mustard? Good. We’re using equal parts mustard and mayonnaise, so ¼ cup each. As I said, I don’t like too much sauce, so if you want a saucier potato salad, you can increase those amounts to 1/3 cup or add more mayonnaise than mustard, if you like. I don’t agree with you but I’m not there to take the mayonnaise jar out of your hands. I’ve been known to add a squirt of ranch dressing, too, just for kicks. I mean, ranch never made anything worse, did it?

Stir everything together vigorously. The potatoes might get mushed around a bit but that’s fine. Taste for saltiness and add more if you like. You can serve this salad right away while it’s still warm or you can put the whole thing in the fridge and let the flavors mingle around for a few hours. If pressed, I’d have to say that I like it cold after sitting in the fridge overnight. In fact, I may have had potato salad for breakfast once or twice. I mean, it’s got eggs, right?

Whether you eat it morning, noon or night, this salad is a classic. Unless you’re a mustard-hater, it’s sure to make you smile, though you’ll want to get those pimientos out of your teeth first.