Mrs. McDaniel's Southern Potato Salad

3 pounds red potatoes
1 medium onion
1 cup real mayonnaise
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
2 teaspoons prepared mustard
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon celery salt or celery seed
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
1/3 cup sweet pickle relish
2 already hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped (about 2/3 cup)
3 to 4 stalks celery

Place 2 quarts water over high heat in a covered 6-quart pot. Bring to a boil. Meanwhile, wash potatoes and cut them into 1/2-inch pieces, leaving skins on. Add potatoes to pot, and cover just until pot returns to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-high, uncover and cook at a moderate boil until very tender, about 13 to 15 minutes.

Meanwhile peel a medium onion and grate it into a 3-quart or larger bowl until you have about 2 tablespoons grated onion and juice. Add to bowl. (Reserve remaining onion for another use.) To bowl, add mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, sugar, salt, celery salt, pepper, pickle relish, and egg and whisk until well combined. Rinse and dice celery, and add it to bowl. Stir to mix well.

When potatoes are tender, drain well and cool until warm but not hot. (You can rinse them with cool tap water to speed process.) Add potatoes to bowl. Stir well to coat with dressing. (It’s okay if some potato pieces break up.) Cover and refrigerate until cool, about 2 hours. Before serving, taste the salad and add more salt and pepper if desired.

The recipe comes from a seriously fine Southern cook, Janice McDaniel of Fayetteville, N.C. There are several secrets to success, but the main one is to mix the dressing with the potatoes while they’re still warm (but not hot), then don’t taste to correct the seasonings until the salad cools. Once cool, the entire dish mellows.

This salad just isn’t the same without real mayonnaise, and it’s definitely worth the calories. This recipe may be doubled if you’re serving a crowd.

Approximate Values Per Serving (10): 289 calories (58% from fat), 19 g fat (3 g saturated), 46 mg cholesterol, 4 g protein, 27 g carbohydrates, 3 g dietary fiber, 607 mg sodium

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