The Best German Potato Salad
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
If you love German potato salad as much as I do, the first bite of this will bring tears of joy to your eyes. With crispy bacon and potatoes tossed in a scrumptious bacon and onion gravy (or dressing), this really is the BEST German potato salad!
So, I first found this recipe in one of my Grandmama’s old cookbooks that I inherited and tweaked it a little bit to come up with this heavenly warm German potato salad. The secret is all in the dressing. You see, it’s absolutely infused with flavor because the base is bacon. Did you know that bacon drippings are the most flavorful grease there is? Well, you take those bacon drippings and then you sauté some onions in it, then you add a little bit of this and that, flour to thicken it, some vinegar to splash it up a bit, and you basically end up with bacon gravy, but we’re calling it dressing in this post.
Before we dive in, I want to share another tip so you make the best German potato salad recipe EVER. Pay attention to the timing of when to pour the bacon gravy over the potatoes. See, when your potatoes are warm, they are absorbent. If you wait until they cool to pour your dressing over, they have formed a starchy film over them and they won’t soak it up, so it will just coat the outside. If you pour it while they are still warm, though, they’ll actually absorb part of the dressing and become infused with the flavor.
With crispy crumbled bacon and tender potatoes tossed in a delectably tangy bacon onion gravy, I just know y’all are going to love this potato salad as much as me. It’s a great side dish to bring to your next barbecue or potluck, but I’ve also included lots of serving suggestions below. Now, have a hanky handy, cos it’s time to make the best German potato salad you’ve ever tasted 😉.
What You’ll Need to Make the Best German Potato Salad:
Ingredients:
- Red potatoes
- Bacon (we use turkey bacon now and it’s still just as delicious).
- Sugar
- Flour
- Onion
- Salt
- Pepper
- Apple cider vinegar
How to Make The Best German Potato Salad
Wash your potatoes and then put them all in a pot (don’t peel them), cover them with water, and bring that to a boil over medium-high heat. You’re going to want to boil these until they are fork tender. I boil mine for about 20 minutes or so.
Drain your potatoes and then pour them into a large bowl to let them cool for just a few minutes so they can be handled without burning your hands.
Fry the bacon. Use your favorite brand and type!
**After you get the bacon cooked, remove it to a paper towel-lined plate, but don’t do anything with all of that lovely
in your skillet. If you don’t have a lot of grease due to using turkey bacon or another lower-fat variation, add a tablespoon or so of vegetable oil.When it’s cooled, chop the bacon into bits for the best German potato salad.
After you remove your bacon, add your chopped onion to that skillet and sautée over medium heat, stirring often until your little onion bits are all translucent and golden. Once your onions are lightly brown, remove the skillet from the heat.
Stir in the water, vinegar, sugar, flour, and salt and pepper to taste (I start with 1 tsp of salt and 1 tsp of pepper).
Return to heat and bring just to a boil (over medium heat) while stirring constantly. Once it comes to a boil, boil for one minute, while still stirring. It should look like this!
Remove the dressing from the stove eye or burner. Carefully slice your potatoes and place them in a bowl.
**They will break up a little bit and that is okay. Just do the best you can to carefully slice them and make an attempt at keeping them intact and their skin on.
Put the chopped bacon pieces in the bowl with the chopped potatoes.
Now, pour all of that warm thick dressing over them.
Stir carefully and well to coat all of your slices. This is the key, and doing it while the potatoes are warm makes a world of difference in the flavor of your potato salad.
Last step: serve this best German potato salad warm.
And… eat the potato salad. Eat all the potato salad.
Storage for the Best German Potato Salad:
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. To reheat, either bring to room temperature or gently warm in the microwave. Otherwise, you can totally serve it cold as well.
Recipe Notes
- Substitute almond flour and gluten-free bacon to make this a gluten-free recipe.
- Garnish your potato salad with chopped green onion and fresh dill, chives, or fresh parsley. It’s also not traditional, but you can garnish with some parmesan cheese too.
- While I prefer red potatoes, you can also use new potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes. Just try to avoid russet potatoes!
- For additional flavor, add 2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard and 1 tablespoon of minced garlic to the vinegarette.
- Substitute the white onion for red onion if you like.
- For a vegetarian potato salad, simply omit the bacon.
Recipe FAQs
What do you serve with German potato salad?
Serve this warm potato salad as a side dish alongside roast or barbecue meats. Think grilled chicken tenders, roast chicken, chicken schnitzel (try my chicken fried steak recipe or crispy breaded pork chops), or even beef brisket.
What is the difference between American potato salad and German potato salad?
The biggest difference between these two potato salads is the dressing. American potato salad includes a mayonnaise-based dressing and is served cold. Meanwhile, German potato salad is best served warm and includes a bacon and vinegar-based dressing. But spoiler, both salads originated in America. German potato salad was inspired by early German immigrants.
You may enjoy these other delicious potato recipes:
Loaded Twice Baked Potatoes Recipe
Sweet Potato Skins With Candied Bacon and a Spicy Basil Cream Sauce
Kielbasa Skillet with Potatoes
Ingredients
- 6-8 medium red potatoes
- 5-6 turkey bacon slices
- 1 chopped onion
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- 3-5 tablespoons flour
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Boil the potatoes whole, without peeling, until fork tender. Drain and allow to cool until you can handle them. Slice as thin as you can into a large bowl. Set aside.6-8 medium red potatoes
- In a large skillet, fry bacon until crisp. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate and reserve the bacon grease in the skillet. Crumble bacon on top of the potatoes in the bowl.5-6 turkey bacon slices
- Saute onions in bacon grease over medium heat until tender. Remove skillet from heat and stir in the water, vinegar, sugar, and flour (add flour a little at a time to your liking, you can always add a little more later). Also, add salt and pepper to taste (I start with 1 tsp of salt and 1 tsp of pepper).1 chopped onion, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1 cup water, 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar, 3-5 tablespoons flour, salt and pepper to taste
- Return to heat and bring just to a boil while stirring constantly. Boil for one minute, while still stirring. Remove from heat and pour over the bacon and potatoes. Carefully stir until well coated and serve warm.
I make this potato salad all the time. I make quadruple the amount and freeze it. I have friends who like it too, but don’t make it. So occasionally I give them some to add to their potatoes. It’s also nice to have sauce made already when company comes.
That is a great idea Sharon!!! Thanks for sharing!!
Sounds delish! Will have to try it when it’s just me and the hubby. Don’t want to spring something new on the rest of the clan at our gathering Easter Sunday. They are all pretty picky about my plain tater salad with mayo and a couple drops of mustard and a heaping spoon of sour cream.
Just wanted to tell you I love getting your recipes and love your stories.
Thank you Anita!! I am so glad you are enjoying the recipes and stories!! I hope you enjoy the potato salad when you get a chance to try it. 🙂
omg that looks so good and wouldn,t you know it being Good Friday here I can,t go buy me some bacon to make this. I will be at the shop first thing tomorrow. It is 8am Good Friday morning here and I am just about to get ready for church, have a happy Easter Christy
I hope you have a Happy Easter too Judi!!!
This recipe sounds wonderful. I grew up in Pennsylvania Dutch country (actually German heritage – “Deutsche “) and our German potato salad always included chopped hard boiled eggs. I was surprised no one else mentioned this.
Perhaps different areas made it differently? I am sure either way it is all good!! I will have to try it with the hard boiled eggs sometime. Thanks for sharing your way Carol 🙂
From near Milwaukee. We always made it with sliced boiled eggs
That’s how my Mom always made it also…I could kick myself, that I never paid enough attention, when she was making this particular dish, especially the dressing! A little of this, a little of that…..she and my Grandmother were wonderful cooks, nothing like home-cooked meals, to bring back great memories and happiness.
Yes we are German and I never had potato salad without hard boiled eggs. My Dad hates mayo so we never knew any other potato salad till we were much older.
Hi Christy:
Loved the recipe but the dish it’s in caught my eye. It’s Blue Heaven by Royal China. Mom (who passed away in February) had the complete set in the 60’s but over time several pieces “disappeared”. I am trying to pick up the missing pieces as time goes by but it was a nice surprise to see the potato salad in the Blue Heaven. Thank you for using it. Beautiful casserole dish.
I just did a search for these dishes and there are several sites that have them for sale…hope this helps!….smile
I love my pieces Harriet, I hope that you are able to find the missing ones that you are searching for. Now I will think of you and your Mom every time I use mine. 🙂
We had a similar recipe growing up but our salad always had celery seed. It was an unusual flavor but added something special.
I will have to try that Brenda, thanks for sharing your way!!
Celery seed, bell pepper, French dressing, yummy
+
Happy Easter Christy, was thinking of making mash potatos on Sunday. I will be making this salad, my husband loves red skin potato salad. He has German heritage in his family. Thanks for this great recipe.I always read all of your post.God bless.
Happy Easter to you and your family Liz!!! I hope you enjoy the potato salad!!