Curried Potato Salad

Add extra savor to a summertime fave

Summer means cook-outs. And cook-outs call for potato salad. QED, no?

But you don’t have to make the same old spud salad next time. Dish up this curry creation instead.

Curry and potatoes are a perfect pair (just look at any Indian restaurant menu for proof). Curry sharpens the potato-y goodness while adding sensational flavor all its own.

So don’t settle for old-school side dishes. Be curr-ageous.

Recipe: Curried Potato Salad

This dish is flexible. Feel free to add or subtract ingredients (and alter ingredient quantities) to taste.

Once the potatoes are cooked, it takes about 20 minutes to make this potato salad. We like to chill it for a couple of hours before serving, but dish it up immediately if you wish.

This recipe serves about 6 as a side. It’s easy to double or halve the recipe to suit your needs.

Leftovers keep for a few days if refrigerated in an airtight container.

Ingredients

• ~2½ pounds potatoes (cut into ½-inch cubes), cooked and still warm (see our Potato Salad Basics Recipe for notes on what type of potatoes to use and how to cook them) 
• 1 yellow or red onion (about 1 cup when diced)
• 2 to 3 ribs celery (to taste)
• ~¼ cup cider vinegar (or a bit more to taste; see Step 4)
• ~¼ to ½ cup reserved liquid from potato cooking water 
• 1 to 1½ cups mayonnaise (or half mayo plus yogurt or sour cream; to taste)
• 1 tablespoon curry powder (or to taste; see Notes)
• ½ teaspoon turmeric
• 2 teaspoons cumin 
• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste; very optional)
• ¼ cup minced cilantro

Procedure

1. Cook the potatoes using the Potato Salad Basics Recipe. When the potatoes are done, drain them (reserving about ½ cup of their cooking liquid). Return the drained potatoes to the cooking pot, cover it, and let the potatoes sit for about 4 minutes. 
2. While the potatoes are cooking, peel and dice the onion (¼-inch dice are about right; maybe a bit larger). Add the chopped onions to a bowl that’s large enough to hold the cooked potatoes.
3. Wash and string the celery. Cut it into thin slices (or dice it), then add it to the bowl with the onions.
4. Add about ¼ cup cider vinegar to the bowl, along with the salt. Once the cooked potatoes are ready to use (Step 1), add them to the bowl. Toss the potatoes gently with the other ingredients. Add more cider vinegar or some of the reserved cooking liquid (from Step 1) if necessary. Let the potato mixture sit for 10 minutes, tossing gently a couple of times. (This gives the potatoes time to absorb the liquid – and its flavor. So watch how the potatoes are absorbing the liquid, and add a bit more if necessary.) 
5. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, curry powder, turmeric, cumin, and cayenne (if using). Taste, then adjust the spices to your preference (and add salt if necessary).
6. Wash and dry the cilantro, then chop it roughly.
7. When the potatoes have absorbed all (or almost all) the liquid, add the mayo mixture and the chopped cilantro. Toss all the ingredients together until the potatoes are lightly coated with the mayo mixture. Taste, then adjust the seasoning if necessary. 
8. Serve right away or chill the potato salad in the fridge for an hour or two.

Notes

• We often garnish this potato salad with additional diced onion and chopped cilantro.
• Don’t have cilantro on hand? You could substitute parsley.
• This recipe makes a mild-tasting dish. For more curry goodness, double the amount of curry powder. And do use the cayenne pepper.
• You could also add some chopped jalapeño peppers if you want more heat. A couple should do the trick.
• Diced red bell pepper would be another nifty addition to this salad.
• We sometimes like to add mustard (maybe 2 to 4 tablespoons) to this dish. Either Dijon or ordinary yellow ballpark mustard works pretty well. Just add it to the mayo in Step 5.
• You could also add chopped hard-boiled eggs to this salad.
• We use kosher salt for cooking. It’s less salty by volume than regular table salt (the crystals are larger and more irregular, so they pack a measure less tightly). If substituting table salt, start with about half the amount we recommend. But always season to your taste, not ours.
• There are lots of potato salad recipes around. In the US, mayonnaise-based potato salads are probably the most common. Cooks often substitute yogurt or sour cream for some or all of the mayo.

Curry On

“I cayennen’t say enough about this dish,” said Mrs. Kitchen Riffs. “Yum!”

“You’re just trying to curry favor,” I said.

“More like currying flavor,” said Mrs K R.

“Aw, this dish is just small potatoes,” I said.

“Nix the false modesty, spud slinger,” said Mrs K R. “Take a bow. Then dish up seconds.”

Cumin right up.

You may also enjoy reading about:
Cauliflower Potato-Style Salad
Potato Salad Basics
American (Mayonnaise) Potato Salad
French Potato Salad
German Potato Salad
Mustard Potato Salad
Horseradish Potato Salad
Chipotle Sweet-Potato Salad
Potato and Green Bean Salad
Hard-Boiled Eggs
Or check out the index for more