Potato salad a staple of summer picnics

As we settle into our summer routines, we'll be eating outdoors more often.

One of our favorite picnic dishes is potato salad. Of course, the best potato salad is the one your mother makes, but if you don't have her recipe, here are basic instructions for making potato salad from the editors of Cook's Illustrated magazine:

Boil unpeeled, low-starch, red-skinned potatoes in unsalted water, cool slightly, and then cut with a serrated knife to minimize tearing of the skin. While the potatoes are still warm, drizzle them with vinegar and
season with salt and pepper. When cool, add the mayonnaise and other seasonings.

Here are recipes from Kentucky cooks who jazz up their salads with a variety of additions.

Bluegrass potato salad
5 medium potatoes, cooked, peeled, and diced
1 small onion, chopped
6 hard-cooked eggs, grated
1 cup finely chopped celery
Hellmann's mayonnaise
Ketchup
Mustard
1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted and salted, optional
Combine potatoes, onion, eggs and celery with enough mayonnaise to hold
the mixture together. Add enough ketchup and mustard to create a creamy
color. Garnish with almonds, if desired. Serve immediately, or
refrigerate.
– Adapted from Bluegrass Winners

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In the South, some cooks make potato salad that includes sweet pickles.

Southern potato salad
6 to 8 medium (2 pounds) potatoes
1 cup thinly sliced celery
1 medium (4 ounces) sweet red pepper, seeded and slivered
4 small scallions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup sweet pickle relish
3/4 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons sweet pickle liquid
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
Pepper to taste
Scrub potatoes and cut each in half; do not peel. In a saucepan barely
cover potatoes with boiling water; boil until tender when pierced in
center with a fork, about 25 minutes. Drain at once. Cool slightly. With
the help of a small knife, strip off skins and discard. Cut potatoes
into 1/2- to 1- inch cubes; turn into a large bowl; add celery, red
pepper, scallion and pickle relish; toss together.
In a small bowl whisk together mayonnaise, pickle liquid, salt, mustard
and pepper; pour over potato mixture and stir lightly to coat. Cover and
chill for at least a few hours to allow flavors to blend.