Deborah Roberts’s Southern Potato Salad

Any time there’s a need for potato salad, Deborah jumps in immediately, and for good reason. Her recipe, an homage to her mom, Ruth Roberts, should be in the Potato Salad Hall of Fame. I’ve learned to stand back and let her do her thing, then offer up my services as taste tester.

Read our interview with Al Roker here, and get the recipes for his spicy cracker jacks and bourbon apple pie milkshake.

Ingredients

Roberts’ Family Southern Potato Salad (Yield: 6 Servings)

3 large russet (Idaho) potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
3 large eggs
½ cup mayonnaise
⅓ cup sweet pickle relish
1 tbsp. yellow mustard
3 tbsp. finely diced celery
1 tbsp. finely diced onion
2 tsp. diced jarred pimientos
1 tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Paprika, for garnish

Preparation

Put the potatoes in a pot and add water to cover by at least 2 inches. Cover the pot and bring the water to a boil. Carefully add the eggs with a slotted spoon, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the potatoes are soft but still hold their shape, about 15 minutes.

Remove the eggs from the pot with the slotted spoon and cool under cold running water. Drain the potatoes and place in a large bowl. Peel and chop 2 of the eggs and add to the potatoes. Add the mayonnaise, relish, mustard, celery, onion, pimientos, salt, and pepper and gently mix to combine. Peel the last egg and slice it. Lay the slices of egg on top of the potato salad and sprinkle with paprika. Serve, or cover and refrigerate for up to 4 hours.

Advice from Uncle Al: To save time, Deborah efficiently combines the cooking of the potatoes and eggs in one pot.

Excerpted from the book Al Roker’s Recipes to Live By: Easy, Memory-Making Family Dishes for Every Occasion by Al Roker and Courtney Roker Laga. Copyright © 2024 by Al Roker. Reprinted with permission of Legacy Lit, an imprint of Grand Central Publishing. All rights reserved.

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