Loaded Baked Potato Salad
This Loaded Baked Potato Salad ain’t your regular potato salad. It’s creamy, cheesy, and full of all the favorite toppings that make a loaded baked potato so good. We’re talking crispy bacon, sharp cheddar cheese, boiled eggs, sweet pickle relish, and a creamy dressing that pulls it all together. Oh, and I’ve got a little shortcut to make it even easier!
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: Loaded Baked Potato Salad
- Main Ingredients: 32-ounce package frozen Southern hash browns, eggs, hard-boiled and chopped, bacon strips, cooked crispy and crumbled, shredded cheddar cheese, mayonnaise, yellow mustard, sweet pickle relish or diced sweet pickles, salt and pepper to taste
- Why You'll Love It: This Loaded Baked Potato Salad recipe is creamy, tangy, and packed with crispy bacon, cheddar cheese, eggs, and sweet relish. Made with a shortcut, it delivers all the flavor of a classic potato salad recipe with a whole lot less work.
The Easy, Cheesy Potato Salad You’ll Want to Make All Summer
If you ask me, no backyard BBQ or church potluck is complete without a good potato salad on the table. From my German potato salad to my mashed potato salad, you could say I enjoy veering away from the traditional every once in a while. This loaded baked potato salad is another fun twist on a classic, and it’s always a hit wherever I take it.
But the really great thing about this version? Instead of peeling and chopping pounds of potatoes, I take a little shortcut with frozen hash browns. It cuts the cooking time way down, but the end result tastes every bit as comforting as a batch made from scratch. It’s hearty, it’s easy, and if it’s your first time trying it this way, I think you’ll be hooked.
Recipe Ingredients
- Frozen Southern hash browns
- Eggs, hard-boiled and chopped
- Bacon strips, cooked crispy and crumbled
- Shredded cheddar cheese (or sharp cheddar cheese for more bite)
- Mayonnaise
- Yellow mustard (honey mustard and Dijon mustard would all work)
- Sweet pickle relish (or diced sweet pickles)
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Variations to Try
- Garnish: Add chopped green onion or freshly chopped chives.
- Make it creamy: For extra creaminess, add ¾ cup of sour cream or plain Greek yogurt.
- Add crunch: Add a cup of chopped celery for extra crunch.
- Extra tang: A tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, white vinegar, or lemon juice will do the trick.
- Add heat: Spice it up with a sprinkle of red pepper flakes.
How to Make Loaded Baked Potato Salad
1. Cook the Potatoes
Start by placing your potatoes in a large pot and covering them with cold water. Bring it to a boil over medium heat and cook for just 2–3 minutes, until you can easily poke them with a fork.
Tip: Don’t boil the potatoes too long! 2 to 3 minutes is plenty. You want them tender but not falling apart, since they’ll soak up dressing as they chill.
Once they’re done, drain them well in a colander.
2. Mix the Base
Now transfer potatoes to a large bowl. Stir in the cheddar cheese until it melts slightly into the potato mixture.
Then add your mayonnaise, mustard, and relish, stirring until combined.
3. Add the Good Stuff
Go ahead and stir in the eggs, crispy bacon, salt, and black pepper. Give it a taste and add more seasoning if needed – this is your salad, after all!
4. Chill
Pop it in the fridge, covered, for a few hours or overnight.
Trust me, the wait is worth it. The flavors meld together beautifully, and it tastes even better the next day!
My Top Tips for this Potato Salad
- Don’t overcook. Boil the hash browns for just 2–3 minutes. You’re looking for tender potatoes, not mush.
- Mix while warm. Adding cheese to the warm potatoes helps it melt slightly into the potato mixture, making the whole salad extra creamy.
- Chill before serving. Like any good potato salad, this one needs a couple of hours in the fridge for the flavors to come together. Cold potato salad always tastes better the next day.
- Personal preference. Feel free to add favorite toppings like green onions, fresh chives, or even a little creamy sour cream if that’s your style.
Storage
Store leftover potato salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Note that potato salad doesn’t freeze well, as the creamy dressing tends to separate, so fridge storage is your best bet.
Loaded Baked Potato Salad FAQs
Yes, frozen hash browns are my shortcut here, but you can swap in red potatoes, russet potatoes, Yukon Golds, or even baby potatoes if you’d rather boil your own. Just cut into bite-sized pieces and cook until fork-tender. The frozen hash browns are simply a time-saver.
Absolutely! This potato salad will last in the fridge for up to 5 days, so you can make it multiple days in advance and let those flavors marry together in the fridge.
Homemade potato salad can easily be the start of the show as a side dish, so I recommend serving it with a simpler main meal, such as grilled chicken tenders, Crockpot beef ribs, maple-glazed pork chops, or slow-roasted beef brisket.
Made this recipe? You’re my kind of people! Leave a star rating and a comment below, so I know how it went. I read every single one!
Ingredients
- 1 32-ounce package frozen Southern hash browns
- 3 eggs hard-boiled and chopped
- 5 bacon strips cooked crispy and crumbled
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons yellow mustard
- ⅓ cup sweet pickle relish or diced sweet pickles
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place cubed hash browns in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once potatoes reach a boil, boil them for two to three minutes and then drain in a colander.1 32-ounce package frozen Southern hash browns
- Place in a large bowl and stir in the cheese. Add mayo, mustard, and relish, and stir again. Add in bacon, eggs, salt, and pepper. Stir.3 eggs, 5 bacon strips, 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, ½ cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons yellow mustard, ⅓ cup sweet pickle relish, salt and pepper
- Refrigerate for several hours or overnight before serving.
Christy, I believe I have that same colander. I got mine from my mother-in-law. It’s my go to colander in the kitchen even though I have newer ones.
I love mine too Alice!! I am not sure why I think this one works better than the newer ones, but in my mind it does!!
Christy, I have made a quick potato salad by using a couple of cans of diced potatoes. Pretty cost effective as they are usually on 50 cents a can. after it all marinates it is yummy. I have had people brag on it before and I think if you only knew what I used.
I love the idea of using hash browns. I look forward to using this recipe, except I really prefer dill pickle relish when I make potato salad. Thanks for this.
I never heard of adding cheese to potato salad but you’ve got my taste buds yearning for some now. I prefer using dill relish in my potato salad but have also used sweet relish. I love all the helpful tips people submit. I use onion, celery and only Hellman’s original mayo in mine
I use dill relish also. When I was a kid, the only type of potato salad we made was the mashed kind. That type looks just beautiful, and we always made it in the shape of meat loaf. All the beautiful colors you put into it makes it look like a work of art.
If you are having trouble with your potatoes turning to mush, add just a tiny splash of vinegar to the water as you cook them. Seals the outside of each potato cube , but they are tender and fluffy inside.
Thanks Christy for recipe. Can’t wait to make!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Southern style hash browns…. I LOVE that! My husband’s favorite is potato salad, but it often gets replaced with macaroni salad because of all the scrubbing, peeling, chopping involved… Is he ever gonna be happy when I make this!! Thank you Christy! Thanks to your mama for asking for a short-cut… LOVE it!!
Cristy, I am surprised your are still advertising for Wal mart after their poor choice to sever their business contract with Paula Deen. I didn’t watch the woman’s TV show because her southern drawl gets on my nerves, however, having said that, I have also said many times that I have no doubt she is the top chef on Food TV which I have silenced forever since their decision was made. I don’t know of anyone, at anytime, that has been judged on something they said thirty years ago.
I don’t have a prejudiced bone in my body. I have always respected all people and always will. I actually have only heard the n word from a young man who worked with my father who happened to be black, and on some music recordings. I didn’t like the sound of the word, it just sounds dirty. It’s sort of like buck which is the only other word I hate. When people talk about bucks in terms of money, it makes my skin crawl. I think of the word in totally different terms, as an animal resisting ,or something jerking. Last night I went to the computer to look the meaning of the n word and while it wasn’t nice, I couldn’t imagine it could cause such a furor. I also heard whiles called a cracker the other day, but was not offended by that either. I just consider the source of any comment and move on. There are some people I like better than others, but it is because of their likes and dislikes. I think we are all pretty much the same. I am drawn to anyone who loves to cook since that has been a lifelong passion of mine. The same goes for music. I love and appreciate all kinds of music with few exceptions and enjoy having a dialogue with those who happen to have the same interest.
I have pledged personally to never spend a penny with any company who I fell has used faulty logic in persecuting Paula Deen. I have returned two very expensive gifts I purchased from Wal Mart and Target, and they will never see one cent of my money again. I will also never buy another book published by Randon House or their associates. I have never like Smithfield products or Home Depot so that will not be a problem.
My point is, that in my own small way, I will support Paula Deen by avoiding any Company that has judged her (in my opinion) terribly unfairly. I thought the statute of limitations ran out after eight years on anything other than murder. I certainly would not want to be judged on anything thirty years ago because life is a learning experience and I’m sure there would be room for criticism. I spend every day trying to know more, and be a better person than the day before.
The only way I know to suppost Paula is to avoid those who have judged her unfairly. If I believe in a cause, I will go out of my way to defend a position, and I intend to exercise that right in this situation.
Get over it Ann! Who cares if shes using a bag of Walmart potatoes! Find a hobby besides nitpicking!