How to Make Potato Salad - 7-Step Classic Deli Recipe

Wash and scrub 2 pounds of Yukon Gold potatoes. Yukon Golds are waxy potatoes that hold their shape when boiled and develop a creamy (not fluffy) texture - exactly what you want for potato salad. Leave the skins on; the skin acts as a jacket and prevents the potato from absorbing water during cooking.

Place the potatoes in a pot with COLD water from the start. Turn the heat on and bring to a boil, then immediately lower to a gentle simmer. Cold-start cooking keeps the potatoes from rolling around the pan and losing their starch. Do NOT salt the water - the skins block the salt from getting into the potato, and the rinse step later would wash it off anyway.

After 20-25 minutes of simmering, lower 4-5 whole eggs directly into the pot with the potatoes. The eggs need 10-12 minutes to hard-boil. The potatoes need another 10-15 minutes after that point. They finish cooking at exactly the same time, so one pot does both.

Test the potatoes by stabbing one with a paring knife. A raw potato grips the knife - it won't come off. A properly cooked potato slips off cleanly when you lift the knife. An overcooked potato falls apart. You want the slip.

Drain the potatoes and eggs together. Run cold water over both for about a minute - enough to stop the cooking and make them cool enough to handle. Don't ice them down unless you're in a hurry; gentle cooling makes peeling easier.

Crack each egg against the side of the table. There's almost always an air pocket on one side of a hard-boiled egg - cracking helps the membrane separate from the white. Peel the eggs first (they're easier when slightly cool but not cold). Then peel the potatoes by rubbing the skin off with your hands or pulling with the tip of a paring knife.

Cut each peeled potato in half, then in half again, then into bite-size chunks. Drop them into a large mixing bowl as you go.

For the eggs, set aside 2 whole eggs for garnish slices. The remaining eggs get chopped using a chef's trick: place a wire cooling rack across the mouth of the bowl, hold an egg above the grid, and push it through. The egg falls through as cleanly chopped pieces in seconds, no knife or cutting board required. Repeat with the rest, then move the chopped eggs into the bowl with the potatoes.

Season the warm potatoes and eggs while they can still absorb flavor. Sprinkle a generous amount of kosher salt (the big flakes look like a lot of salt but aren't - they have more air volume than table salt), several cranks of black pepper, and pour about 1/4 cup of white distilled vinegar over the top.

White distilled vinegar is non-negotiable here. Fancy vinegars (sherry, red wine, balsamic) all bring their own flavor and fight with the mayo. Distilled is clean, acidic, and disappears into the dressing. Toss gently with a rubber spatula. The warm potatoes drink the vinegar.

Add about 1/3 cup of green olives with pimento (save a handful for garnish on top). The olives bring a salty pop and a small color contrast to the cream-and-yellow base of the salad.

Add 3/4 cup of Hellmann's mayonnaise (or Best Foods on the West Coast). Don't be shy - a dry potato salad is a sad potato salad. Do NOT use Miracle Whip; it's a completely different product (more sugar, more vinegar) and will make the salad taste wrong. Toss gently to coat every piece.

Taste a piece of potato. Adjust with more salt, pepper, mayo, or a splash of vinegar as needed. Potato salad always needs more salt than you think - the potatoes absorb it aggressively.

Spoon the finished salad into a clean serving bowl in a heaping mound. Garnish with the reserved sliced eggs (slice each in half across so you see the white-yolk ring), and stud a few whole olives across the top. Crumble a little of the egg yolk for color. Serve at room temperature for full flavor, or chilled for a make-ahead option. Keeps in the fridge 3-4 days.