Korean Potato Salad

In our home, a potato salad will almost always have hard boiled eggs and green onion in it, but in the case of this Korean Potato Salad, I’m adding finely chopped sweet pickles and rice vinegar too. We love potato salad in all flavours and varities, but this one is a personal favourite!

I was born and raised in Newfoundland. Do you know what that means? Among other things, it means that I know potato salad better than anyone! As a food blogger, it is my job to try recipes, and I’ve tried more potato salads that I care to count. To date, I have not found any potato salad that can beat a traditional Newfoundland variety, but this Korean Potato Salad comes very close!

My absolute favourite type of potato salad is the Vegetable Potato Salad. If you travel across the island, you will discover that just about everyone makes it just a little differently. But, there are a few constant staples. For example, almost all Newfoundlanders will use canned mixed vegetables in their potato salad. And, by doing so, they are right!

Some of them will add apples. But, I’d rather be trapped in a butterfly conservatory. Those of you who know me well can just imagine how horrifying that would be for me! Some people add raw onion. I love the flavour of onion, but not raw, and certainly not in a potato salad. Green onions will give you that onion flavour without the bitterness of raw onion. Some will add egg. I do. I love the texture and taste of eggs in a potato salad.

In essence, this Korean Potato Salad is almost a replica of a typical Newfoundland-style potato salad without the canned mixed vegetables. Instead, this one used fresh carrots, lots of chopped sweet pickles, and the mayo is mixed with rice vinegar to create the most delicious side!

MORE POTATO SALAD!

Lord Byron’s Kitchen has a lot of potato salad recipes. Yes, a good percentage of them are prepared in Newfoundland style, but some of them are not. So, basically, there’s a potato salad recipe here for everyone!

Inspired by classic Greek ingredients, with bright and fresh flavours, Greek Potato Salad is a great alternative to regular home style potato salad. Complete with feta, lemon, dill and pine nuts – who could resist!? For the serious dill pickle enthusiast, Dill Pickle Potato Salad is a creamy, dill-packed side dish fit for any summertime meal! Prepared with dill pickles, fresh chopped dill, and dill pickle juice too, this salad is very dilly indeed! Familiar Tex Mex ingredients can be found in my delicious Tex Mex Potato Salad. Doesn’t it just scream summer? Prepared with baby potatoes, black beans, corn, bell peppers, and a mayonnaise and sour cream-based sauce, this potato salad is sure to be a hit!

In terms of Newfoundland-style potato salads, I’ve got you covered there too! I’ve already mentioned my favourite of the three common types, Vegetable Potato Salad. It’s made with chopped hard boiled eggs, mashed potatoes, and green onions; it’s creamy, comforting, and oh so delicious! Mustard Potato Salad is very similar to regular potato salad, but with tang and zing from yellow mustard. Also, this one doesn’t have eggs. It’s a great way to update your regular salad with a new flavour profile! And, finally, there’s my Pickled Beet Potato Salad which is a sweet and creamy side dish paired perfectly with chicken or roast beef; a perfect summer potluck take-along side dish!

INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO PREPARE THIS RECIPE

The following is a list of the ingredients needed to prepare this recipe. For exact amounts and measurements, refer to the printable recipe card located near the bottom of this post.

• Hard Boiled Eggs – Peeled and diced.
• Potatoes – Use 5-7 medium-sized white flesh potatoes. You can easily double or even triple this recipe if you need to feed more than eight people.
• Carrots – Two averaged size carrots will do.
• Sweet Pickles – Traditionally, chopped cucumber is used in a Korean Potato Salad, however, sweet pickles add more flavour!
• Green Onions – These add a burst of freshness to the salad.
• Mayonnaise – You can use any mayonnaise, even the fat free stuff!
• Rice Vinegar
• Sugar – This is optional.
• Salt and Ground Black Pepper

HOW TO MAKE A KOREAN POTATO SALAD

Add the diced potatoes to a pot and cover the potatoes by an inch with cold water. Salt the water. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are fork-tender. Drain and set aside to cool. Repeat with the diced carrots. Once the carrots cooked, drain them and allow them to cool. Prepare the salad dressing by whisking together the mayonnaise, rice vineger, sugar, salt, and ground black pepper. Set aside.

Transfer the potatoes, carrots, sweet pickles, green onions, and eggs to a mixing bowl. Pour over the dressing. Using a large spoon, vigorously mix all of the ingredients together. Taste for seasoning and sweetness and adjust accordingly. You may serve the salad immediately, however for best results, transfer the salad to a bowl with a tight fitting lid and refrigerate for 4 hours before serving.

INCLUDING THE EGG YOLKS

Whenever I make an potato salad with hard boiled eggs in it, I tend to only use half of the egg yolks. Let me explain. All of the eggs are hard boiled and then roughly chopped. Before I chop them, I cut the eggs in half and remove the yolk from half the amount of eggs. The only reason I do this is that I don’t care for an extremely yellow salad!

I don’t mind a little yellow tint to the finished product, but I don’t want the salad to be completely yellow. Does it matter? Absolutely not! You can include all of the yolks in your salad, but if you do, keep in mind that your salad will be more yellow than the one you see in the photographs.

It’s all in my head, I know! But, how many times have we all heard the expression that we eat with our eyes first? Well, my eyes tell me that I don’t want to eat yellow potato salad. Ha! You do you, Dear Reader!

STORING AND REFRIGERATION

It’s important to let the salad chill in the fridge for at least four hours. This will allow the ingredients time to hang out and get to know each other! The vegetables and dressing will marry and all of the flavours will be exchanged and absorbed.

After for hours, the salad is ready to serve. Toss it again before plating just to freshen everything up. The salad does tend to settle a little bit. You can safely store this salad in your fridge for up to three days. Be sure to keep the salad covered at all times.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS

First and foremost, potato salad should always be served cold. I make potato salad at least four or five hours ahead of dinnertime and keep it covered in the fridge. I want it to be nice and chilled before serving it. Because this is a Korean-inspired potato salad, I would most likely serve it with other Korean-inspired dishes. Once simply cannot beat the combination of potato salad and fried chicken, so why not try this Korean-Style Fried Chicken recipe? It’s dripping with a sweet and spicy sauce! If fried chicken is not your thing, these Instant Pot Korean Beef Ribs would be another great option. Wings are also great with potato salads. Try these Korean Gochujang Chicken Wings! Or this Korean Pork Bulgogi!

Other sides that I would consider serving with this potato salad would be these Baked Cheese Corn, these Rice Cake Skewers, this Sesame Bean Sprouts Salad, or even some of this Soy Sesame Bok Choi with Spicy Mayo! Any of these sides or mains can be combined to make a delicious, hearty meal!

QUESTIONS?

If I have not answered all of your questions in the text above, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! You can contact me by sending me a message in the comments section further down the page. I will try my best to answer as soon as possible! You might reach me even faster by following me on Facebook and sending me a private message. Scroll down below the recipe card to find my Follow Me on Social Media box and never miss another recipe!