Irish Potato Salad

This Irish Potato Salad has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #FireUpTheGrill #CollectiveBias

Potato Salad is one of those dishes that is guaranteed to be served at BBQs nationwide during the warm summer months. Although I can admit to picking up a tub of pre-made potato salad in the past {to save on time, of course...}, it's not my top choice. I'd much rather make a delicious batch of fresh potato salad from scratch since it's less expensive, better tasting and easily customized. This recipe for Irish Potato Salad was inspired from a family favorite of ours, Warm Potato Salad. The Warm Potato Salad is an Irish dish which consists of warm potatoes topped with herbed mayo. Simple and delicious! So, I took the essence of the Warm Potato Salad and created a base for an extraordinary potato salad that will have people asking you for this recipe. In addition to the herbed mayo and potatoes, this Irish Potato Salad is loaded with bacon, cabbage, celery, onions, pickles and cheese. A fabulous flavor combination that was an instant hit at our most recent bbq!

Since the creaminess of this potato salad comes from mayonnaise, it totally matters which one you choose! I like to use Kraft Mayo with Olive Oil, it's a great tasting mayonnaise that is half the calories and half the fat of regular mayonnaise. {It's also my go-to when making sandwiches!}

Since this recipe was inspired by a favorite Irish dish of ours I decided to use herbs that are popularly used in Ireland, such as parsley, thyme, sage and rosemary. I love the flavor that fresh herbs add to a dish, so that's what I went with for this recipe. If dried is all you have, they can certainly be used as a substitute!

Just put the mayo, herbs and a few other key ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. After a couple hours in the fridge this Herbed Mayo will be ready to use!

One tip I would give for making potato salad is to mix all the ingredients with the mayo before adding in the potatoes. It ensures an even mixture and lessens the chance of breaking/smashing up the pieces of cooked potatoes. Also, make sure the pickles used are crunchy. {Nobody wants soggy pickles!} I prefer to use Claussen pickles, they are packed fresh and never heated - plus their flavor is amazing. Seriously amazing!



And I realize that cheese is not a classic ingredient in potato salad. But c'mon, it's cheese! I used Kraft Shredded Triple Cheddar which consists of Vermont white cheddar, both sharp & mild cheddars with a touch of cream cheese. This has easily become my favorite bagged shredded cheese to turn to. So much delicious flavor and creaminess!

We enjoyed this fabulous Irish Potato Salad with grilled hot dogs, baked beans and ice-cold lemonade. Everything tasted great together, plus it was fun and refreshing to have a new potato salad recipe to enjoy. I can't believe we are about half way over with summer - I am totally going to miss the bbq cook-outs and eating outdoors! If you are looking for mealtime inspiration during this grilling season, make sure to check out Kraft's online digital cookbook that is full of classic and new summertime recipes.

Irish Potato Salad
{PRINTABLE RECIPE}
yields approximately 10 cups
Ingredients
1½ cup Kraft Mayo with Olive Oil
2 tablespoons rosemary leaves
2 tablespoons parsley leaves
2 tablespoons thyme leaves
3 sage leaves
1 garlic clove
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 tablespoon mustard
8 cups potatoes, peeled and cubed
½ cup bacon bits
¼ cup chopped green onions
¼ cup chopped white onions
2 celery stalks, chopped
¼ cup chopped dill pickles {I love fresh, crispy Claussen Dills!}
2 cups chopped cabbage
½ cup Kraft Shredded Triple Cheddar Cheese
Directions
1 In food processor combine mayo, rosemary, parsley, thyme, sage, garlic, salt, pepper, sugar and mustard. Process until smooth. Place in airtight container and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
2 Place cubed potatoes in stockpot, cover with water. Place on stove, over medium-high heat and bring to boil. Cook until potatoes are fork tender, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and rinse with cool water to stop any additional cooking. Set aside.
3. Mix together mayo mixture, bacon, onions, celery, pickles, cabbage and cheese until well incorporated. Carefully {to avoid too many from being crushed or breaking} stir in potatoes, let chill for a couple hours to allow flavors to meld together.
4. Serve and enjoy!

I was able to find everything for this Irish Potato Salad at Walmart, from the produce in the Walmart Fresh Market to the delicious cheese in the dairy section!