Creamy Potato Salad Recipe
This Creamy Potato Salad recipe has so much flavor and it’s definitely a holiday-worthy side dish. Learn how to make potato salad that is 100 times better than store-bought.
We sure love potatoes around here and we sure get creative! It’s no wonder some of our most popular dishes are potato recipes, like our famous mashed potatoes, cheesy potato pancakes, and these crispy smashed potatoes.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
Potato Salad Recipe
This Potato Salad is loaded with fresh and crisp cucumber and radishes that make it lighter and supremely satisfying. The creamy dressing has a star ingredient that might surprise you; plain mustard. The flavor is subtle but adding it is GOLD in potato salad.
We love this for the holidays, particularly as a Christmas and Easter salad! Also, my son loved it, giving it two thumbs up (which is a big deal!).
Ingredients for Creamy Potato Salad:
Russet potatoes are our favorite for this salad because they are easy to peel and can be cooked 1-2 days in advanced, covered and refrigerated until ready to use.
The radishes, cucumber and celery and a crisp freshness to this salad that makes it so special for the holidays.
Hard boiled eggs add great protein and texture.
The Best Potato Salad Dressing:
Adding sour cream to the mayo makes it lighter and so creamy. Don’t be afraid of adding mustard. It is not potent in this recipe at all, but makes the salad next-level delicious. You might recognize this potato salad dressing as the same sandwich spread that we developed for our favorite Bakery sandwich.
Cook’s Tip: The Vidalia Chop Wizard makes it quick and easy to uniformly dice boiled potatoes and eggs (Amazon affiliate link).
Make-Ahead Tip: Once this salad is mixed with dressing and salt, it is best enjoyed right away or refrigerated up to 6 hours. You can prep your other ingredients ahead of time and stir in the dressing just before serving.
Garnish with chives and freshly cracked black pepper to pretty it up.
Creamy Potato Salad Recipe
Ingredients
Creamy Potato Salad Ingredients:
- 4-5 russet potatoes, 3 cups cooked and diced
- 1/2 English Cucumber, 1/2 cup diced
- 1 bunch radishes, thinly sliced
- 2 celery stalks, (1/2 cup) finely diced
- 4 hard boiled eggs, diced
- 3 Tbsp chives or green onions, finely chopped
- 1/4 tsp Black Pepper, or to taste
Potato Salad Dressing Ingredients*:
- 1/2 cup real mayonnaise
- 2 Tbsp sour cream
- 2 tsp yellow mustard
- 1/2 tsp salt, plus more to taste
Instructions
-
Place un-peeled whole potatoes in a medium pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, add 1/2 Tbsp of salt and continue cooking at a medium boil for about 25 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork. Do not overcook - potatoes should not be falling apart when pierced. Remove from water and set aside to cool completely to room temp then peel and dice just before adding to the salad. Potatoes can be cooked 1-2 days in advanced, covered and refrigerated until ready to use.
-
Stir together dressing ingredients and refrigerate until ready to use.
-
Combine all prepared ingredients in a large mixing bowl: diced potatoes, diced cucumber, sliced radishes, finely diced celery, diced eggs and chopped green onions. Toss gently to combine. Add all of the dressing, or add to taste. Season with more salt and pepper to taste and serve (I added an extra 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper). Garnish with more chives and freshly cracked black pepper to pretty it up.
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Creamy, dreamy and delicious! Everything about this potato salad is good! It’s definitely worth discovering and I hope you love it as much as we do!!
Is there a special side dish that always shows up at your holiday table? I’d love to hear about your holiday traditions in a comment below!
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
This potato salad is really tasty but too creamy for me. It was really soupy the next day even after stirring it. Maybe if cut down the mayo and sour cream a bit it would be better.. I will try your other potato salad.
Hi Lynn! I’m sorry to hear that. I don’t have an issue with it being too soupy from the amount of mayo or sour cream. Did you by chance use any substitutions? Be sure to let the potatoes drain really well and I hope you will have better results with another one of my recipes. 🙂
Hi Natasha, approximately how many pounds of potatoes doe you use?
Hi! I did not weigh my potatoes but a quick google search indicates each potato ranging from small to large could way between 0.30-0.60 lbs. I hope that helps.
This recipe is similar to my mom’s: she always used Yukon Gold potatoes w/vinegar added when they were still warm as she believed the potatoes held up better without eroding much. And she separated the egg yolks and added them to the dressing and mixed until smooth. I’m going to try this one out as it also sounds amazing! Your recipes are always reliable!
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, LuAnn!
I add a little vinegar to my potatoes while they are still warm give the potatoes a nice pop. Then I add my dressing
Sounds good, thank you for sharing that with us, Linda!
I have never made potato salad before in my life, before tonight. I do consider myself a good cook, this was just something that I was never in love with so I never made it. OMG!!! I did add a potato and almost tripled the dressing but my husband and daughter both had wide eyes and instant approval…even raves…from those that don’t rave. This is incredible…thanks for putting more on my to do list!!!! lol
So glad to hear that, Erin. Thank you for sharing your experience.
I didn’t have sour cream so I replaced it with Ranch dressing. Also added a little fresh Dill because we love it. This is our new favorite potato salad!! It was delicious!!
I’m so glad that worked out, Karen! I’m so happy this was a hit!
I haven’t made this recipe yet but it sounds similar to my Grandma Pauline’s recipe her dressing is mayo/sour cream tsp apple cider vinegar and sugar to sweeten salt and pepper .. To the potatoes add celery green pepper onion top with sliced boiled eggs I have used this recipe for 51 years
YUM! Delicious! I was out of coriander but added chopped fresh parsley instead which gave it a lovely fresh taste Also decorated it with fresh parsley sprigs and sliced boiled egg shaped like a flower. Pleasing to the eye and the mouth!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Sharon!
This flavor combination is delicious!
I was rummaging through my fridge trying to use up ingredients & leftovers after hosting a get together. I had a bag of radishes and too much potato salad. I added one to the other and WOW! I will use this for the rest of my life.
Thank you!
That’s really awesome feedback, Brittany. Thank you for sharing that with us, great to know that you loved the recipe!
This is so similar to our old, back to grandmother – I’m 77, only difference is addition of sour cream. We however add a teaspoon of sugar. Love all your recipes.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Pam!
Natasha, Is it at all possible to add sweet relish to this as an additional ingredient, or should it just be left out completely? Believe it or not, this is my first attempt at making potato salad and I have seen other recipes that call for the sweet relish so I’m just wondering. Thank you as always. Bonnie
Hi Bonnie. I think it would be just fine to add this in if you’d like. It sounds delicious! Let us know what you think if you try it.
I chop a few sweet pickles – this gives potato salad a crispy bite also.
Yum! Thank you for sharing.
I made your potato salad for my grandsons graduation party for tomorrow. I can’t wait to see how it goes over. I’ll put the dressing on it in the morning as well as some egg slices with a sprinkle of paprika to dress it up. I love your recipes.
Yum! I hope it is enjoyed! Thank you for sharing.
Ever tried adding raw carrot circles?
It’s yummy too.
So enjoy your recipes.
I have not, but thank you for the suggestion, that sounds yummy!
I’ve also cut up and blanched small pieces of cauliflower. Used only half of the potatoes. Lower carb option. Tastes great!
Sounds good! Thanks for the review, Holly.
good day
i substututed the radish with a tin of green peas. this dressing is tops
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Jabulile!
I don’t like radish – what would be a good substitute?
I haven’t tried any substitution to advise. If you do an experiment, please share with us how it goes.
I made this last week for an Independence Day gathering and it was so good I’ve been asked to make it again for a dinner party this evening. This recipe reminds me of my grandmother’s of which I had yet to recreate until now.
That’s so great, Karen! It sounds like you have a new party favorite! I’m so glad it was a hit!
I love your recipes. On the creamy potato salad what do you recommend to make this keto, or less carbs friendly?
Thanks
Glad you enjoy them, Terry. I haven’t tried making a keto-friendly version of this recipe yet to advise. If you do an experiment, please share with us how it goes.
Hi there. Potatoes are definitely not kept, so probably wouldn’t be able to make it kept friendly. However you could use the dressing and the additional vegetables to add to blanched cauliflower. Keto – voila!
hi natasha, i believe you are in america do you have a recipe book on sale here in the uk?,iwould like to purchase one.also for the pot recipe could i use natural yoghart instead of sour cream ,thanks . from me jean in the uk xx
Hi Jean, I don’t have a cookbook yet but I am already working on it. What recipe are you referring to? Usually plain Green yogurt is a good substitute.
Try dijon rather than reg yellow mustard and bacon. I also add more celery so there is lots of crunch. The mix of sour cream and mayo is a great mixture!
Thanks for your comments and suggestion, Jacky!
Anything you make looks simple and tastes delicious.Love all your recipes.
You’re so nice! Thank you, Thouli! I’m so glad you’re enjoying my recipes!
I’ve been making this for about 55 years, the exact same way. This is how my mom and grandmother made theirs so it has been in our family for many years. It is delicious. I’m happy to see this as one of Natasha’s recipies also.
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review!
Me too. This is how many native Germans make their creamy potato salad. I lived there for several years and learned quite a bit. One more tip: I add a little pickle juice to it.. Tastes really good. Love all of your recipes Natasha.. I share with my students too.. all over the world.
Thank for the tip! I’m happy you enjoy my recipes.
Yummy, different take on my southern mommas recipe
Boiled Skin On Whole Potatoes(Peel when they cool)
Chopped Celery, Red Onions, Green Olives, Dill Pickles, Boiled Eggs (Optional Mom’s 6 Chickdees don’t like in recipe)
Dukes Mayo, Mustard and Dash of Tabasco Sauce/Salt/Pepper. We don’t have measurements but we mix until it looks like Mom’s.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Charlotte! I’m happy you enjoyed it!
I am making your asparagus casserole tomorrow and your spinach artichoke dip ~yum Thank you😊
I hope you love everything you try. Happy Easter!
Great recipe! As a variation on the sauce, you might try a mixture of 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1/4 cup Durkee’s Special sauce, 2 Tb of sour cream, and 2 Tb of horseradish sauce. It’s good on potato salad and as a dip for raw vegetables.
I’ll have to give that a try; thank you for sharing, Steve!
It’s close to what we grew up with. We always peeled potatoes first. I don’t care for mustard in any salad. I have found that Greek seasoning works well however
We love this salad! I’m happy you enjoyed it, Patsy! Thanks for sharing that tip with me!
I will definitely try this recipe 🙏 thank you Natasha for your lovely recipes…love from the tropical islands of Fiji 🌺🏝
I hope you love this recipe, Chichi! We look forward to your feedback! Fiji sounds lovely and warm!
I love potato salads…I will definitely try this one…. yummy yummy… Happy Easter. Leo
I hope yo love this recipe, Leo! Happy Easter!
Hi Natasha,
I would love to make a separate collection that is easy to find your awesome recipies and videos. (the videos really help me feel more confident that I can follow your directions! And you make them fun to watch!!!
Thanks, wendy coles
Hi Wendy, I have categories on my website and you can easily find the recipes that you are looking for by using the search field on my website. I hope that helps.
Yum! Potato salad is my idea of heaven – I’ll definitely be trying out this one! Thanks Natasha 😋
Sounds like a good plan, Deb. I hope you love it!
Definitely trying out this one!!
Sounds good, James. Enjoy and hope you love it!
I love potato salad and I am going to try this one for sure.
I’m so happy to hear that Donna! Thank you for that wonderful review!
Hi Natasha.
Thank you for sharing your Creamy Potato Salad recipe. Made it today and it was a hit!!
You are so welcome Mary. Thanks for giving it a try and for sharing your great feedback!
I thought I had the best potato salad until this recipe. I never liked radishes until now and would have never added cucumbers or sour cream with the mayo. But all of the added touches made it wonderful. It was also an “aha” moment using the Vidalia Chop Wizard to dice the potatoes. This made it look like restaurant quality. Thank you!
You are very welcome, Cheryl. I am so happy to read your comments. I hope you love all of the recipes that you will try!
I make my salad pretty much the same way, except I add Ring bologna and german Pickles to it
Yum! That sounds amazing!
I’m from San Antonio, TX and we have a German influence here. I’m Hispanic so we adapted this dish into our own cuisine. We make it a little different but it’s always a staple here with BBQ and other holiday dishes! I use mustard, mayo, sweet pickles, and boiled egg. I’ve never tried the other ingredients but I’d be willing!
Yum! That sounds amazing! Thank you for sharing that with me, Amy!
On the potato salad why not peel the potatoes first ?
I like the spots of color they add to the dish, plus they’re thin enough that they’re usually quite tender. If you prefer to peel yours that should also be fine too. Let us know how it goes to Chris.
Why peel at all. Most of nutrients is in peelings.
This potato salad is the BEST! I always make Olivye version since I grew up with it, and I do love it. But this version is sooo good I think it is my new favorite. The radishes and cucumbers make it taste refreshing! Thank you for another great recipe Natasha!
You’re welcome, Natalija! Isn’t it delicious! I’m so glad you enjoyed that!
Sounds awesome. I highly recommend you make a slurry of 2 Tbs of vinegar with 2 tsp Of sugar and add it to the potato salad at the end. This will substantially increase the wow factor. Trust me.
I’ll have to try that. Thank you for that tip.
I like to add the dressing to warm potatoes. It penetrates the potatoes and doesn’t sit on top of the potatoes.
Good idea – thanks for sharing!
Great recipe thankyou! Made this last night for a dinner party. Radishes & celery are a great addition. I used red potatoes & equal amounts of sour cream & mayo. I made my mayo which has Dijon mustard so didn’t add mustard to dressing. Delish. Will definitely be making this again
I’m so glad you enjoyed this Josie! Thank you for the wonderful review!
Hi Natasha, would you say I can use dijon mustard instead of the yellow one? I love your recipies so much and can’t wait to try this potato salad!)
Hi Yulia, I prefer the flavor profile with the yellow mustard better but you can substitute if you prefer dijon.
I only had honey mustard available and the salad was absolutely delicious. The crunch of the radishes and cucumbers was wonderful. Thank you for the excellent recipe.
You’re welcome, Nikki! I’m so glad you enjoyed that!
I made this tonight and excluding the eggs and added some freshly chopped dill. LOVE it! Never thought of putting radish and cucumber in my potato salad but I am definitely sold now! Can’t wait for the family to try it tomorrow.
That’s just awesome!! Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Billy!
Delicious salad, thank you, first time I add radishes to a potato salad, what a good idea!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Anna!
Dear Natasha, this is the best potato salad. I had to try it right away so improvised using 4 large red potatoes, cooked with your wonderful instructions. Made half amount of dressing with mayo and 1 T heavy cream with 1 tsp lemon juice. Yellow mustard and salt. Omitted veggies and sprinkled smoked paprika over the top. Delicious but will make again using all the ingredients. A huge thank you.
You’re so welcome Elaine! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe!
This is what I do to my macaroni salad during the summer, I call it garbage salad, everything in it but the kitchen sink, perfect side ’cause it has fresh veggies. Will have to try this with potato salad, son is a purist, so I will make a small amount. Thanks
I hope you enjoy that Pat!
I abhor cucumbers so I add some diced dill pickles instead and make the rest very similar to yours and its delish.
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
I’ve never made potato salad with radishes or cucumbers. I do always add olives. I love the saltiness. When making the dressing it’s also good to add either vinegar or pickle juice. I always have dill pickles too.
Thank you for sharing that with me, I will have to give that a try!
This is my fav. Pot. Salad. My moms is just like this the only addition that we add to it is slivered green peppers, amazing, we call this garden potato salad
That sounds lovely! Thank you for sharing That with me!
So delicious, I make 1.5X the dressing and save some to refresh for the next day because the potatoes soak in so much of it. Good as new.
That’s a great idea, Samantha! Thank you for sharing that with me!
Looks great. Roughly how many grams(of the finished product)is a serve?
Hi Jasmine, this serves 8 as a side dish. I haven’t measured it by volume, however.
This looks and sounds incredible. It looks tasty.
Thank you! I hope you get to enjoy that soon!
The pop of color and taste from the radishes is so good! I love the extra flavor the mustard gives this dressing!!!
That’s my favorite part! Thank you for the wonderful review, Jocelyn!
Oh your potato salad is beautiful. Perfect for any Christmas dinner.
I think so too! Thank you for that great review, Becky!
I love that you put radishes in this potato salad!! Thanks for the recipe
It’s a surprising but great way to add a pop of flavor and color to the salad without being overpowering. The potato salad dressing melds the salad in a most amazing way!
This salad recipe is the best. We love potato salad all year long and adore making this recipe.
Thank you Alli! I’m so happy to hear that!
Would yukon gold potatoes work in place of the russet? I love yukon gold potatoes.
This looks so yummy, I cannot wait to try it.
Thank you!
I haven’t tried those in this recipe specifically but I think that could work! If you experiment I would love to know how you liked this recipe!
Im in love! I cant quit eating this salad… I love the potatoes and all the crunchy radishes and cucumbers… . I really like how much lighter this potato salad is compared to my other ones!
Thank you Michele! I’m so glad you like it 🙂
I recommend making 1 1/2 times the dressing while potatoes are cooking. Allow potatoes to cool slightly, only until they can be handled, cubing as you go. Pour dressing over warm potatoes so the flavor can be absorbed in, then I mix in remaining ingredients & chill well. Then your only problem is to stop eating!
Thank you for sharing that Karen!!
Could i use red potatoes instead of russet?
Also, what is the best way to make hard boiled eggs to they peel easily and i don’t destroy them?
Thanks!
Hi Alyson, That would still work, but the cook time for the potatoes may vary based on the size and variety of potatoes used. We have a tutorial on how to boil eggs at the bottom of this post 🙂
Bonjour Natasha,
Je suis du Québec et votre recette me fait de l’oeil. J’ai très envie de l’essayer. Une petite question: croyez-vous que replacer la ciboulette par de l’aneth pourrait être un choix pertinent. Ou encore, un mélange d’aneth et de ciboulette?
Merci pour vos belles et délicieuses recettes. J’aime beaucoup votre blogue.
Bonne journée.
Hi Hope, I do think both would work great in this recipe. I love the idea of using both 🙂
Love it – I just made it and I must say it is the best potato salad ever
delicious delicious delicious
Awesome! I’m glad you love the recipe Kasia! Thanks for sharing your outstanding review!
This one’s a keeper! Left out the sour cream and that makes this recipe in keeping with our GF, DF, and low fodmap diet. I prepped everything ahead of time and mix up portions with dressing when we’re ready to eat.
I’m glad to hear the recipe is a success. Thanks for sharing your great review with other readers Kitti!
How many radishes are a bunch? Some have ten and some have four. lol
Hi Rebecca, my bunch had 10 medium radishes (see photo towards the top).
I just made this today and it was the first time I have ever made potato salad. It was delicious. Will definitely be making it again.
That’s great to her Rebecca! Thanks for sharing your great review with other readers!
I tried it and loved it. Very refreshing and light.
That’s great Jess! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Potato salad never looked so beautiful!
Leann, thank you! It tastes as good as it looks 😬.
Thank you, Natasha! I’ll definitely try this.
You’re most welcome and I hope you love the recipe! 🙂
Natasha, I made this salad and it was amazing, I did have some leftover and the next day it was not that great because dressing got watered down, recommend eating it same day 🙂 Thank you for your recipes, always a hit.
Alona, thank you for the great review 😬. Salad is best when eaten the same day.
This looks delicious!
I’m making this right now for Our Easter family gathering. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Thank you and I hope you have a wonderful Easter!! 🙂
I cant wait to give this a try! My mom makes the same exact recipe! Will it be any different if i don’t add the mustard to the dressing?? Hopefully she will be surprised and will love it!!!! Thanks.
Hi Olga, the mustard is not too strong in this recipe but it adds so much great flavor. I hope you do give it a try – if you’ve never added mustard to potato salad – I think you will be pleasantly surprised. The recipe will still work without it but the mustard sure does add great flavor.
My husband and his polish family have been eating potato salad this way forever. I always thought it was kind of strange but now that I see you make it that way maybe I am the strange one. LOL
Ha ha! That’s awesome!! Polish and Russian cuisines do have quite a few similarities 🙂
Hi Natasha,
What type of mustard do you recommend for this salad?
Hi Nella, sorry I totally did not specify. Fixed! This was regular yellow mustard but it would also work with dijon mustard if that is what you have – the dijon will give it a very subtle spicier kick. Both work well 🙂
I am very excited to try potato salad, as I have never made it. I will make it on Easter Day for my family.
I hope you love it and have a wonderful Easter!!
The one picnic dish I can’t get enough of! Creamy, delicious potato salad. Thanks for sharing!
You’re so welcome!! I hope you love this version 🙂
This looks so good! I’m definitely making this for my Memorial Day BBQ
I hope you love it!! This would be perfect for Memorial Day! 🙂