The quintessential side dish for poboys or fried seafood in South Louisiana is a creamy Cajun Potato Salad. Made from starchy potatoes, smashed but chunky and blended with hard-boiled eggs, onions, and celery, mixed with relish, mayo, and a bit of Creole mustard. Don't overlook this sidecar, it's just what you need.
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What Makes This Recipe So Good?
This recipe is simple, but what else makes it so good? It's the flexibility to make it your own. I think the ingredients in this recipe are perfectly proportioned for a creamy smooth potato salad, but you may want to change things up a bit.
- Start with the potato-to-egg ratio. It's just the way I like it, but you may want more or less eggs.
- I think the best texture is achieved when the yellow, green (white parts) onions and celery are finely chopped. But if you want the onions and celery chunkier, chop them that way.
- I think sweet relish gives this potato salad a nice touch of sweetness, but you could replace it with dill relish, some other kind of pickle, or leave it out altogether.
- White pepper is good in this recipe because it blends in well with the potatoes and provides a background pepperiness, while the Creole Seasoning perfectly rounds out the flavor profile.
- The ratio of mayonnaise to Creole Mustard is the perfect glue that holds everything together. If you think you want more or less of these, give that a try.
Here’s What You Need
A complete list of ingredients with quantities can be found in the printable recipe card below.
Ingredient Notes
- Potatoes: Use a starchy potato like Yukon Gold or Russets.
- Onions: This recipe uses Yellow Onions plus the white parts of green onions to blend into the potatoes. White onions or any other sweet onion can be substituted for the Yellows. The green parts are perfect to garnish the potato salad, lending a slight crunch to every bite.
- Creole Mustard: If this recipe has a secret weapon, this is it. The mustard has a slight horseradish flavor indicative of many South Louisiana recipes. Any Dijon mustard, particularly whole grain, would be a suitable substitute.
- Pepper: I like to use ground white pepper in this recipe. This keeps the slight heat in the background and the pepper blends in well with the colors of this recipe.
- Salt: I developed this recipe using Le Bon Papa Creole Seasoning, an all-purpose Creole and Cajun seasoning that contains no salt or MSG. If you use a seasoning containing salt, hold off on adding any extra salt until you taste the recipe. Other sources of salt in this recipe are the mayo and Creole Mustard, but neither contains a lot of salt.
Equipment
No special equipment is needed to make this recipe. All you'll need to make this recipe is a mixing bowl and the usual prep equipment like a cutting board, chef's knife prep bowls, and measuring cups.
Hints and Tips (FAQs)
Leftovers can be held in the fridge for 3 to 4 days in an airtight container. Potato Salad should be refrigerated within two hours of making.
Potato Salad made with mayonnaise and eggs has the potential to spoil quickly and cause food-borne illnesses. For safe handling, refrigerate the potato salad within two hours of making or serving, keeping it between 32 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Set the bowl in a larger bowl with ice on the bottom when serving. Dispose of any Potato Salad left out for four hours at 41 to 135 Degrees Fahrenheit.
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Here’s What You Do
First…you have a beer. This simple recipe is more fun and even more simple when you properly prepare. Prepare yourself by popping the cap off a beer and enjoying it while you read the recipe all the way through. Learn what ingredients you need and what you will do with each one. Then perform your mise en place by preparing each ingredient before making the recipe.
Mise en place
Prep each ingredient before you start to assemble the recipe.
- Peel, cube, and rinse the potatoes to a uniform size, about ¾ inch cube so they all cook at the same rate.
- Measure the mayonnaise, Creole mustard, and relish into separate small bowls or measuring cups.
- Finely chop the yellow onions, celery, and parsley.
- Finely chop the green onions and separate the white from the green parts.
- Measure the relish.
- Mix the Herbs and Spice Blend into a small prep bowl.
Boil the Potatoes and Eggs
The only "cooking" required in this recipe is boiling the potatoes and eggs.
- Place the chopped potatoes and the eggs in a stockpot filled with cold water. Over high heat, bring the water to a heavy boil.
- Let the eggs boil for 10 minutes (after the water starts to boil), then remove the eggs to a bowl of cold water and ice.
- Check the potatoes at that time and continue boiling (if needed) until the potatoes are soft and falling apart. Drain in a colander and set aside to cool.
To Prepare the Eggs
- Place the eggs in a pot of cold water and place over high heat.
- Once the water has come to a boil, let the eggs boil for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes of boiling, remove the eggs to a bowl of cold water and ice.
- Allow the boiled eggs to sit in the ice water for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Crack the eggshell on a paper towel in several places, then peel the egg under running cold water.
- After removing all the shells, rinse the egg and pat dry with a paper towel.
- Finely chop the eggs and set aside.
Lagniappe Tip: The potatoes should be soft and mashable. Test the potatoes after 5 minutes with a bamboo skewer and cook until they are soft and breaking on the skewer.
Build the Potato Salad
What happens in this step? Now that all the ingredients are prepped, it's a matter of mixing in the "dry" ingredients followed by the "wet" ingredients.
- Place the cubed, boiled, and drained potatoes in a large glass bowl.
- Use a wooden spoon or spatula to smash the potatoes almost completely, leaving some chunks.
Lagniappe Tip: Adding the "dry ingredients" separately gives peace of mind that all the ingredients will be evenly distributed throughout the potatoes and eggs.
- Add the chopped eggs, yellow onions, celery, white parts of the green onions, relish, and Herb and Spice Blend.
- Mix thoroughly to evenly distribute each ingredient.
- Next, add the mayonnaise and Creole mustard
- Combine thoroughly so that the mayonnaise and mustard are evenly distributed throughout the potato salad.
Lagniappe Tip: Before serving, taste for seasoning and add more mayonnaise, mustard, kosher salt, or Herbs and Spice Blend as needed.
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Serving Suggestions
Scoop the Cajun Potato Salad into a pan or serving bowl. Garnish the top with chopped parsley or green onions (green parts). Serve as a side dish.
Here are some other great side dishes perfect for a BBQ or any family gathering:
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Recipe
Cajun Potato Salad
Here's What You Need
- 2 ½ pounds Yukon gold potatoes See Notes
- 3 eggs hard boiled, peeled and chopped
- ½ cup yellow onions chopped very fine
- ¼ cup celery chopped very fine
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup Creole mustard
- 2 ½ Tablespoons Sweet Relish
- ½ cup green onions green and white parts separated; sliced finely
- ½ tablespoon parsley chopped
Herb and Spice Blend
- ½ teaspoon Creole seasoning
- 1 ½ teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
Here's What You Do
- Peel and cube the potatoes. Boil for 5 to 10 minutes until the potatoes are soft and falling apart. Drain in a colander and set aside to cool.
- Hard boil the eggs. When they have cooled, peel and chop them finely.
- Prepare the remaining ingredients by chopping the vegetables finely, and separating the white and green parts of the green onions.
- Place the peeled and cubed potatoes in a large glass bowl. Use a wooden spoon or potato masher to smash the potatoes almost completely, leaving some chunks.
- Add the chopped eggs, yellow onions, celery, white parts of the green onions, relish, and Herb and Spice Blend. Mix thoroughly.
- Next, add the mayonnaise and Creole mustard and mix well to combine thoroughly.
- Taste for seasoning and add more mayonnaise, mustard, kosher salt, or seasonings as needed.
- Place the Potato Salad into a serving bowl and garnish with chopped parsley or green onions (green parts)
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Estimate
It's Me!
Louisiana is a wonderful place where the rich cultural heritage enriches and entertains. I'm Dave Howson, aka Sweet Daddy D. I'm glad you found my website and I look forward to exploring the cultural mosaic of Louisiana with you…
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Patrick Toups
I made this and it was very good.
Sweet Daddy D
Thanks, Patrick. I appreciate you giving my recipe a try.
Sweet Daddy D
I know you'll love this recipe.