How-To

• For a potato salad that doesn't end up mushy, use waxy potatoes, which keep their shape better than starchy baking potatoes.
• For even cooking, make sure the potatoes are cut into uniform pieces.
• For a hint of sweetness, add a pinch of sugar to the vinegar mixture. For extra tang, sub in sour cream for some of the mayonnaise.
• For warm-weather picnics, make a no-mayo version: replace the mayo in my basic recipe with 1/2 cup olive oil whisked with 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard.
• For balanced flavor, keep your mix-ins simple (but still be creative). I like celery and hard-cooked egg. Take it easy on salty and acidic ingredients (combining, say, pickles, capers, and olives would be too much).

Mix-and-Match Mix-Ins (add after salad cools)

• Sliced celery
• Diced red onion
• Sweet pickle relish
• Chopped pickles
• Slivered green olives
• Capers
• Chopped herbs
• Chopped hard-cooked eggs
• Crumbled bacon