Mashed Potato Salad
Y’all, let me tell you, this Mashed Potato Salad is like a big ol’ hug from the fridge. It takes everything you love about classic potato salad and makes it even easier by starting with frozen hash browns. Yep, no peeling and chopping raw potatoes until your arm falls off. Just boil, mash a lil,’ and mix in all that creamy, tangy goodness.
If you’re a fan of creamy comfort, you’ve gotta check out my Loaded Baked Potato Salad, The Best German Potato Salad, and Creamy Cucumbers Salad!
It’s got the eggs for richness, mustard for a punch, mayo for that creamy texture, and sweet pickles because… well, sweet pickles belong in potato salad if you ask me. This is the kind of dish that shows up at family reunions, church picnics, and backyard cookouts, and somehow, the bowl always comes back scraped clean.
Before You Get Started
- Don’t over-mash the potatoes. Lumps make this salad extra good.
- Chill time is key! This needs a good few hours in the fridge to let the flavors come together.
- Keep it sweet. Sweet pickles really do make the difference, but dill lovers can swap if they like.
Recipe Ingredients
- Pepper
- Cubed frozen hash browns
- Boiled eggs, chopped
- Diced onion
- Chopped sweet pickles (or sweet pickle relish)
- Mayonnaise
- Sweet pickle juice
- Yellow mustard (or Dijon mustard for extra tang)
- Salt
How to Make Mashed Potato Salad
1. Cook the Potatoes
Place hash browns in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook for 10 minutes, or until tender. Drain well.
2. Mash
Transfer potatoes to a large bowl and mash lightly with a potato masher. Leave it lumpy. This ain’t mashed potatoes, it’s potato salad!
3. Make the Pickle Relish
In a blender or small food chopper, pulse the chopped onion and sweet pickles until very finely minced.
4. Mix it All Together
Add mayonnaise, pickle juice, mustard, minced pickles and onions, salt, and pepper to the potatoes. Stir until combined, then gently fold in the chopped eggs.
5. Chill
Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. Enjoy!
Storage
Store leftover potato salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Recipe Notes
- Potato swap: I’m just using hashbrowns to make life easier, but you can use regular potatoes instead. Just chop them into small cubes before following the instructions. I recommend Yukon Gold potatoes.
- Add celery: Many mashed potato salad recipes include 1/2 cup of diced celery, so feel free to chop that up when you finely dice the onion and sweet pickles.
- Use leftover potatoes: This is a great recipe to use if you have leftover roast potatoes or leftover mashed potatoes.
- Onion swap: Feel free to swap the yellow onion for sweet onion, red onion, or green onion.
- Other substitutions you can make? Swap yellow mustard for Dijon mustard, add a tablespoon of vinegar for extra tang, and swap half of the mayonnaise for 1/2 cup of sour cream or Greek yogurt instead. You can also use Miracle Whip for a sweeter, zingier salad dressing flavor.
Recipe FAQs
Can I make this ahead of time?
Yes! In fact, it’s better the next day after all those flavors have had a chance to mingle.
Do you have to put eggs in a potato salad?
The short answer is no. I don’t believe Thomas’ mashed potato salad had eggs in it but personally, I just love boiled eggs in potato salad. If you love them, be sure to add them in. If you don’t, feel free to leave them out. For me, they just make it extra special.
Can I use dill pickles instead of sweet pickles?
So, since posting this recipe, I’ve heard from A LOT of people that… a) feel confident Thomas’s used dill pickle instead of sweet pickle or b) can’t bear the thought of sweet pickle in a potato salad and prefer dill. So I just wanted to pop in and reiterate that this is my version of the recipe and as a person who really, really loves sweet pickles, that is what I naturally used. You, of course, are welcome to substitute dill if that is what you prefer. There is a good chance that is what Thomas’s used since they served dill pickle spears with some of their entrees. Just go with whatever cranks yer tractor.
What do you serve with mashed potato salad?
This is a great side dish to pair with so many different main meals. Here are some recommendations:
- Butter Roasted Chicken
- North Alabama-Style Pulled Chicken
- French Dip Sandwiches Recipe (With a Twist)
- Baked Ham With Easy Brown Sugar Glaze
- Slow-Roasted Beef Brisket in the Oven
How do you make Amish potato salad?
Add diced celery and 1/4 cup of granulated sugar to this recipe and you have Amish potato salad.
Ingredients
- 1 32-ounce package cubed frozen hash browns
- 4 boiled eggs, chopped
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 1/2 cup chopped sweet pickles
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1/3 cup sweet pickle juice
- 1 heaping teaspoon yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Place hash browns in a large pot and add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, allow to cook for ten minutes or until tender.1 32-ounce package cubed frozen hash browns
- Drain potatoes and place them in a large bowl. Mash all of this up a bit with a potato masher, but leave them lumpy.
- Place chopped sweet pickles and chopped onion into a blender, chopper, or small smoothie blender and pulse a few times until very fine, almost like a relish.1/2 cup diced onion, 1/2 cup chopped sweet pickles
- Place mayonnaise, pickle juice, mustard, finely minced pickles and onions, salt, and pepper in the bowl with the potatoes. Stir until well mixed, then stir in the chopped eggs just until incorporated.4 boiled eggs, chopped, 1 cup mayonnaise, 1/3 cup sweet pickle juice, 1 heaping teaspoon yellow mustard, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- Cover and refrigerate for several hours or until cold. Enjoy!
Do you thaw the hash browns before cooking or cook them frozen?
Start boiling them frozen. Hope you love the recipe!
We are not pickle fans in our house but this looks so good I may try it and not tell anyone there are pickles
I made this mashed potato salad today and it is delicious! The only change I made to the recipe was I left out the pickle juice and added a splash of white vinegar to offset the sweetness of all the pickles. Thank you for the recipe…I will definitely be making it again!
That is wonderful to hear, thanks for sharing this. Warms my heart.
I’m with you on the pickles. To me, ANY potato salad is better with sweet pickles – or sweet pickle relish, as my Mom made it. She also used a LOT of mustard, which is my favorite condiment, and I still do that too!!
This sounds like something different to try instead of the traditional.
Mashed Potato Salad, I have never tried this before. This sounds yummy. I enjoyed your comment on Sweet or Dill relish. As my grandma use to say, “Whatever floats your boat”. This G-Grandmother prefers Dill Relish. Have a safe and memorable Memorial Day Weekend.
I want to try this recipe because it uses hash browns, rather than regular potatoes. I love sweet pickles best, too!
I can’t wait to try this! I have never had a mashed potato salad. Amazing. Thank you so much fir the recipe.