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About the Recipe
This potato salad is my go-to side dish anytime I want to impress friends with something delicious and maybe different from what they're used to. It's a staple in my family and we normally serve it alongside chicken katsu, rice and miso soup.
Incredibly easy to make and with very few ingredients!
Ingredients
3 large potatoes (any kind of large potato. I tend to use either baking or russet)
15cm cucumber
200g-300g Kewpie mayonnaise (japanese mayo)
Salt
White pepper
Fusilli pasta (optional)
Canned tuna (optional)
Equipment
1 large pot
1 large bowl
1 small bowl
Potato masher
Peeler
Sieve/strainer (optional if you can strain water from potatoes without using this)
Mandolin slicer (optional)
Preparation
Step 1
Peel and cut the potatoes into equal sized cubes. The size doesn't matter but note that the smaller the potatoes are cut, the less time they take to boil.
Step 2
Boil the potatoes in a large pot. This should take about 8-10 minutes depending on how big you cut your potatoes. You will know they are ready if you are able to poke the potato with a fork and it easily goes through.
Make sure the water just about covers the potatoes. You shoud also watch them as they boil and adjust the heat of the stove accordingly. Potatoes have a lot of starch and tend to boil over the pot.
Step 3
While you are waiting for your potatoes to boil, thinly slice your cucumbers (alternatively you can wait for your potatoes to boil and then do this step). You can use a mandolin or, if you don't have one, just thinly slice them with a knife as best as you can.
Optional: you can also julienne carrots (carrots cut into thin sticks)
Step 4
Put your cucumbers (and carrots if you have them) in a bowl and sprinkle a generous amount of salt. Toss the cucumbers (and carrots) in the salt.
The purpose of the salt is to remove the water from the cucumbers (and carrots). You will need to squeeze out the water later!
Step 5
Once your potatoes have finished boiling, strain them and put them in a large bowl. Using a masher, mash the potatoes until they meet your desired mashed potato texture.
Some people like large chunks of potatoes in their mash, others don't. Mash them as you like!
Step 6
Add your kewpie mayonnaise. The amount you add is really dependent on the amout of potatoes. Add a lot of mayonnaise in the beginning, mix and then taste. It should taste creamy and have a tang.
It's difficult to describe exactly how much mayonnaise to add. Ultimately, it is a lot. Sometimes I use almost the entire 500g bottle. Sometimes I only use half. I can only recommend tasting as you go. You shouldn't be able to taste the potato but it shouldn't be an overpowering strong mayonnaise flavour either.
Step 7
Add about a pinch of salt and a sprinkle of white pepper. Mix.
Again, it's all to taste. Add a bit of each first and then taste. Sometimes you will need more salt, sometimes more white pepper. Just be careful! Too much salt will make it taste extremely salty and too much pepper will make it too spicy and overpower the taste.
Step 8
Squeeze the cucumbers (and carrots if you have them) until you have squeezed out most of the water. Then add them to your potato salad. Mix.
Just squeeze the cucumbers (and carrots) as hard as you can with your hands. It doesn't matter if all the water can't be squeezed out.
Optional: Step 9
You can also add cooked fusilli pasta (follow instructions on how long to boil on packet) and canned tuna.
For the pasta, just strain the water after it has cooked and add it into the salad. Mix.
For the canned tuna, drain the excess water or oil from the can before adding your tuna into the salad. You will need to add more kewpie mayo. Again, add to taste.
Step 10
Taste your potato salad. If needed, add more salt, white pepper or kewpie mayonnaise and mix.
Tip: if you can't really taste anything, it most likely needs more mayo. If you can taste the potato and mayo blend but it tastes a bit bland, add a bit more salt. If you think it needs a bit more of a kick, add a small sprinkle of white pepper.
Step 11
Serve and enjoy!
To bring out the taste, I recommend placing the potato salad in the fridge for at least an hour before serving.
Meal Prep Factor
Can I keep...
1) the mashed potatoes (without mayo etc.) overnight?
YES! I would recommend mashing them first before keeping them in the fridge for no more than 24 hours. Once you are ready to continue, just carry on with the rest of the recipe.
2) the potato salad overnight?
YES! You may keep potato salad for as long as three days as long as they are covered (preferably in an airtight container) in the fridge.
How I Like It
My favourite foods to serve with potato salad:
1) Chicken katsu
2) Potato korokke (although it is a lot of potato!)
3) Tempura
Do you have any favourite foods to eat with potato salad?
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