The 6 Best Potatoes For Potato Salad—From Fingerlings to Russets
Know your spuds.
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Potato salad is a classic summer side. And the stereotypical diced potato and mayo dressed dish is just the beginning. Potato salads can be deliciously drenched in herby vinaigrette, prepared German-style with garlic and herbs, created with a zesty ginger sesame dressing, or even coated in barbecue sauce. Whether you’re going creamy or acidic, you can also change up the flavor, texture, and style of your favorite potato salad recipes by swapping potato varieties. Here are some of the best potatoes for potato salad:
Fingerling Potatoes
Long and lean (like a finger), fingerling potatoes cook quickly and have a thin skin that’s easy to chew. This waxy potato is low in starch and high in moisture, meaning it works particularly well in an acid-based potato salad, as it won’t get too mushy and can soak up a nice vinaigrette. Due to their small size, fingerlings also require a lot less knife work—just a quick slice down the middle (hot dog style) yields a great bite-sized piece of potato that looks aesthetically appealing in potato salads.
Related: Easy Potato Salad Recipes You'll Want to Serve All Year Round
Adirondack Blue Potatoes
Speaking of aesthetics, these purple-hued potatoes are an excellent potato salad option. Found in plenty of grocery stores, farm stands and even home gardens (seeds and starter plants are available throughout the Northeast), Adirondack blues are great to steam or boil, the first step of potato salad. These potatoes also have a lower glycemic index than white potatoes, and the anthocyanins in the spud are great antioxidants to include in your diet.
Yukon Gold Potatoes
Truly the gold standard of American potatoes, Yukon Gold is your typical oval-shaped, gold-hued potato that can be a workhorse in any recipe. The inside is also yellow-hued and buttery, and cooked Yukon Golds have a creamy interior. They’re not super starchy, and hold their shape well if you’re dicing them for potato salad. Their naturally rich texture is also a grand balance to tangy potato salad dressings, or a nice enhancement for creamier dressings.
Related: How to Grill Potatoes for a Perfect Side Dish
Russet Potatoes
An iconic potato in its own right, the Russet Potato has its own emoji. The dusty brown-skinned, oblong potato can be quite hefty, and cooking just a few Russets can result in quite a big portion of potato salad. The potatoes are super starchy and dry, and definitely work best in mayo-based salads. Some people prefer to remove the skins, while others will leave them on. Russets are quite neutral in flavor, so they can take on whatever seasonings they’re dressed with.
Red Potatoes
A classic at cookouts, clambakes, and in chowders, red potatoes are summer tubers, and for good reason. Stock up on these waxy potatoes for potato salads—they hold their shape nicely and the skin is delicate. Red potatoes can also be cubed or sliced into wedges for various styles of potato salad, and they’re also known for being particularly nutritious: Red potatoes are high in fiber, B vitamins, iron, and potassium.
Related: 51 Potato Recipes That Are Comfort Food at Its Finest
New Potatoes
Arguably the cutest of all potatoes, new potatoes are tiny round potatoes that are harvested early, retaining their petite shape. Also called baby potatoes, these little guys cook rapidly and keep their shape, and they’re super easy to pop in your mouth. New potatoes are perfect for a potluck or picnic potato salad, because they can be kept whole and the exterior waxy skin won’t soak up all the dressing before you serve the dish. New potatoes are also sweeter, which makes them a fan-favorite in potato salads.
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