German Potato Salad
This is as close to my German mother-in-law's instructions as possible. There's no written recipe and I learned to make it by watching her. I finally decided to attempt calculating the quantities of the ingredients and I think I've come pretty close to a great copy of hers.
Ingredients
- 10 medium red potatoes about the size of a child's fist
- 6 eggs boiled and chopped
- 1 cup dill pickles chopped
- ¾ cup scallions diced
- 1 pound bacon cooked and chopped
- ½ cup pickle juice or red wine vinegar
- ¼ cup reserved bacon grease
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Put the potatoes in a large pot, cover with water, and generously salt it. Cover, place over high heat and allow to come to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.
- While the potatoes are cooking, boil the eggs and cook the bacon.
- When potatoes are cooked through, pour the water off and put the potatoes in a large bowl. Cut them into approximate bite size pieces in the bowl. As you mix other things in, they will break down even more so don't cut them too small to start.
- Add the eggs, pickles, scallions, and bacon to the bowl and stir to combine. Pour the pickle juice or red wine vinegar over the ingredients along with the bacon grease and stir. Season generously with salt and pepper.
Notes
There are many versions of German Potato Salad just like there are many versions of the mayonnaise-based potato salad that is on most picnic tables in America. This particular version is what I've watched my mother-in-law make for many years and that we all enjoy.
This is a "loose" recipe! You should feel free to make it your own! However, it should be a bit tangy from the pickles and juice (or vinegar) and it MUST have bacon and its grease. It is a German recipe, after all, and they are big fans of pork!
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!