American Potato salad (for 12)

• 4 pounds marble potatoes (or Yukon gold and red bliss mixed if you can’t find marble potatoes)
• 3 hard boiled eggs chopped
• 6 scallions white and green slices thin
• 2 celery ribs chopped fine
• 4 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp celery salt
• 1.5 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
• 3/4 cup mayo (plus more if needed)
• 2 tbsp whole grain mustard
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 jalapeño seeds and ribs removed and chopped fine (optional)
• 2 tbsp sweet or dill relish (optional)

1. Boil whole potatoes about 25 minutes until a knife tip pierces easily, but not until skins split. You want the chunks to hold together when you cut them. I start checking them at 20 minutes. Drain. *see note below.
2. Immediately cut potatoes into 1/2 inch pieces and put in a bowl. Sprinkle with vinegar, celery salt, onion powder and let cool. Seasoning while warm helps the flavors penetrate better. Add a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper (you can taste at this point but don’t over salt at this stage. You can add more later)
3. When potatoes are cooled, add eggs, green onion, celery, parsley, and, if using, jalapeños and relish. Stir in mayo and mustard.
4. Once everything is mixed in, using a beadle, mash a few times into the bowl to break some of the potatoes but not to make mashed potatoes. Having some broken up potatoes helps the creamy texture without having to overmayo the salad.
5. Adjust seasonings according to taste.
6. Serves about 12 or more depending on how many side dishes your bbq has.

I hate sweet pickle relish in potato salad, so I had to learn to make my own. I tried a lot or recipes, but none worked with my tastes, so I tweaked until I got this.

If you don’t have fresh parsley, skip it. Do NOT sub in dried. It just doesn’t work. Tonight, I skipped the parsley because I forgot to buy it!

Celery salt is the key ingredient. Until I used celery salt in my potatoes, it didn’t taste right. I will not make it without it. It can be overpowering, though, which is why I augment the celery salt with regular salt.

Note: marble potatoes can sometimes cook unevenly if you get the three version kind. My purple potatoes were much softer than the Yukon gold. If you have some potatoes that are more cooked than others, that’s okay. Some mashed up potatoes help give the potato salad a creaminess mayo alone won’t give you.

Regarding relish. Adjust the amount to your taste. I don’t tend to add sweet to the entire bowl because I don’t like it, but everyone else does. I’ll set some aside for me with dill relish and add sweet to the rest.