German Potato Salad
The southern German version: warm waxy potatoes sliced and soaked in a hot dressing of stock, vinegar, and mustard, with no mayonnaise anywhere near it. The potatoes have to be dressed while they're still hot, because that's the only moment they'll drink up the stock and turn creamy on their own.
Ingredients
- 1000 gpotatoes, waxy
- 250 mlvegetable stock
- 1 pcsonion
- 15 gmustard, medium-hot
- 40 mlred wine vinegar
- 60 mlsunflower oil
- 5 gsugar
- 15 gchives
- 2 gblack pepper
- 5 gsalt
Method
- Boil the potatoes whole and unpeeled in salted water until a knife slides in with slight resistance, 20 to 25 minutes. Cooking them in their skins keeps them from soaking up water and falling apart.
- While they cook, finely dice the onion and bring it to a simmer in the vegetable stock. Let it bubble for 2 to 3 minutes so the onion softens and loses its raw bite.
- Whisk the mustard, red wine vinegar, sugar, salt, and black pepper into the hot stock. Taste it: on its own the dressing should be noticeably sharp, since the potatoes will mute it.
- Drain the potatoes and peel them while they are still too hot to hold comfortably — use a fork and a knife. Slice them into rounds about 4 mm thick on a board, then tip the whole lot into a wide bowl.
- Pour the hot dressing over the warm slices and fold gently. This is the step that decides the dish: warm potatoes absorb the stock and turn creamy at the edges, cold ones just sit in a puddle.
- Let the salad stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, folding once halfway through. It will look wet at first and then tighten as the stock is drawn in.
- Fold in the sunflower oil and most of the chives, taste and adjust with more vinegar, salt, or a splash of stock if it seems dry. Serve lukewarm, scattered with the rest of the chives.
FAQ
The southern version is dressed with hot stock, vinegar, and mustard, and eaten lukewarm; the northern version is a cold salad bound with mayonnaise, often with pickles, apple, or egg. Both are authentic, but they taste nothing alike.
Waxy ones, sold as salad potatoes or labelled festkochend. They hold their shape when sliced and folded. Floury baking potatoes break down into a mash the moment the hot dressing goes on.
Almost always because the potatoes were cold when dressed. Cold starch won't absorb the stock, so the dressing pools at the bottom instead of going into the potato. Dress them hot, and loosen a dry salad with a little warm stock before serving.
Lukewarm is traditional and tastes best. It keeps for 2 days in the fridge, but take it out well before serving and let it come back to room temperature — straight from the fridge the flavours are flat.
As written it's vegetarian and vegan, since vegetable stock replaces the beef broth many traditional versions use. For gluten-free, check the stock and the mustard, as both can contain wheat depending on the brand.
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