This potato salad recipe is simple to prepare and packed with a delicious combination of ingredients, including one key addition. It starts with the usual: creamy mayonnaise, zesty lemon, and a hint of vinegar, which make for a bright, balanced base.
However, it’s the addition of crispy pancetta (or bacon, if that’s your preference) that really elevates it. This recipe serves four to six and can be made in just over 40 minutes, including time to cool the potatoes. Sharing it with the BBC, Poppy O’Toole said: “This is a classic potato salad with optional crispy pancetta to jazz it up.
“Perfect for picnics and barbecues, it’s super simple and only takes about 20 minutes to put together.”
Potato salad recipe
Ingredients
- 1kg new potatoes, halved or quartered so that they’re all similar sizes
- 150g diced smoked pancetta or diced bacon
- Four spring onions, thinly sliced
- Two tablespoons of full-fat mayonnaise
- One lemon, zest only
- One teaspoons of white wine vinegar
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Place the potatoes into a large saucepan and pour in enough cold water to just submerge them. Sprinkle in a generous amount of salt.
Set the pan over a high heat and bring the water to a rolling boil. Cook the potatoes for around ten to fifteen minutes, or until they become tender enough to slide off a knife with ease when pierced.
Once cooked, drain the potatoes thoroughly and allow them to sit until they’ve cooled down to room temperature.
If including pancetta or bacon, add it to a frying pan while it’s still cold, then set the pan over medium-high heat. Fry the pancetta or bacon pieces until they’ve turned a deep golden colour and have become crisp. Remove them with a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to soak up excess fat. Do not discard the rendered fat left in the pan.
Reserve roughly one-quarter of both the spring onions and the pancetta or bacon for garnishing later. Place the rest of the ingredients – excluding the potatoes – into a large mixing bowl, adding a spoonful or two of the pancetta or bacon fat for richness. Stir everything together thoroughly, then season to taste with salt and black pepper.
Finally, gently fold in the cooled potatoes until evenly coated. Serve the dish topped with the reserved spring onions and crispy pancetta or bacon.