Blue Cheese Potato Salad

This blue cheese potato salad recipe is loaded with the tangy creaminess you expect from a potato salad but with an incredible blue cheese and bacon twist. We used Greek yogurt instead of mayo so the blue cheese could shine. And loaded it with chives and parsley for the most delicious cookout side dish around.

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In This Post

• 📖Why This Recipe Works
• 🧾Ingredient Notes
• ⏲️How to Make Blue Cheese Potato Salad
• 💭Blue Cheese Potato Salad Variations
• 👩🏻‍🍳 Expert Tips
• 🌡️Storage and Making Ahead
• Side Dish Recipes for Cookouts
• 💬Frequently Asked Questions
• 📖 Recipe
• ⭐Reviews

I love a classic potato salad, along with a cherry tomato salad and grilled corn ribs, it is my go-to summer side dish. So if I am going to change it up, I need the recipe to be flavorful and special.

📖Why This Recipe Works

This is why I love this red white and blue potato salad. It has all the texture elements of the all-American potato salad but with a tangy twist. The creamy blue cheese dressing and green onion flavor complement each other.

Many specialty potato salad recipes roast their potatoes, but creamy dressings don't play nice with greasy roasted potatoes. Instead boiling our baby red potatoes is the way to go.

Crispy bacon tops off our delicious recipe!

🧾Ingredient Notes

Red Skinned Potato Salad

Red potatoes- This recipe uses small, skin-on red potatoes. Any small round waxy potato will work but you want to avoid the larger russet style potatoes. The starch level is too high for this recipe.

Bacon- You want super crispy bacon. Avoid any varieties that are sweet, maple-flavored, etc. Remember cooking bacon for a recipe is not the same as cooking to eat on its own. You want it a tad crispier.

Celery- Make sure it is fresh and crispy to give the potato salad a nice crunch.

Scallions- We use scallions rather than raw white onion so the potato salad has a nice onion flavor but we don't overwhelm the blue cheese, which is obviously the star of the show. The white and light green parts go in the salad and I reserve the dark green parts for garnishing the salad.

Fresh Herbs-Chives and parsley are responsible for giving the salad its aromatics. You can play around with the combination of herbs and the portion. If chives aren't available using all parsley words fine but you might want to through in a few extra green onions.

Blue Cheese Dressing

Greek Yogurt- Thick, creamy, and tangy. Don't use fat-free yogurt as it tends to have a bland flavor. You can also substitute sour cream.

Apple Cider Vinegar- Vinegar gives a little hint of acid that all potato salads need. You can also substitute white wine vinegar or red wine vinegar.

Blue Cheese- It may be tempting to use that beautiful block of creamy blue cheese sitting in your fridge but the drier blue cheese crumbles are easier to work with, not to mention less expensive.

I like the gorgonzola crumbles but any type of blue cheese will work.

See the recipe card for exact quantities.

⏲️How to Make Blue Cheese Potato Salad

Blue cheese potato salad follows the same general directions as a traditional potato salad, so there should be no big surprises here.

Step 1- Crisp your Bacon

The bacon should be nice and crispy. I prefer to chop my bacon before cooking it rather than crumble it afterward. Drain on a paper towel to removed excess grease.

Step 2- Boil the Potatoes

Cut your potatoes into bite-size pieces. You want them between half and one-inch dice. Depending on the size of your potatoes this may be in half or quarters. I typically use baby potatoes for this recipe.

Place potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring them to a boil and cook for 8-10 minutes or until tender.

Drain the potatoes and allow them to cool to room temperature. You can throw them in the fridge for a bit to speed up the cooling process.

Step 3- Blue Cheese Dressing

While the potatoes are cooling make the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk the yogurt, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Then stir in the blue cheese crumbles. I like to reserve back a tablespoon or two of cheese for garnishing the top.

Step 4- Mix

Place the potatoes in a large bowl. Add bacon, scallions, celery, and herbs. Gently toss to combine.

Pour the dressing over the salad and gently stir to combine. Chill about one hour before serving. Garnish with extra herbs, onions, and bacon.

💭Blue Cheese Potato Salad Variations

You might think that this is a one-and-done recipe. But you would be wrong, here are some of our favorite variations on this unique potato salad recipe.

Vegetarian Blue Cheese Potato Salad

This should be obvious but... leave out the bacon. The bacon is great but if I don't have it on hand or we have veg-heads coming over for a cookout we leave it out. Blue cheese potato salad is still amazingly tasty without the bacon.

Blue Cheese and Caramelized Onion Potato Salad

This is my favorite variation! Leave out the scallions and substitute caramelized onions.

Thinly slice a medium white or yellow onion. In a medium saute pan melt 1 tablespoon of butter with 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until they begin to brown slightly about 3 to 5 minutes.

Turn the heat all the way down and cook until the onions are brown and caramelized. This will take 30 to 40 minutes. You will need to stir frequently to prevent burning. Allow the onions to cool, chop the onions, and add to the blue cheese dressing.

Steakhouse Entree Sized Potato Salad

This is a great way to use up leftover potato salad. For each person spread 2 cups of spinach on a dinner plate, add one serving of the blue cheese potato salad, 6 to 8 cherry tomatoes cut in half, and top with grilled flank steak or a seared bavette steak. You could also top with grilled chicken.

Mustard- Blue Cheese Potato Salad

Omit the apple cider vinegar in the blue cheese dressing and instead add 2 tablespoons dijon mustard.

👩🏻‍🍳 Expert Tips

• Start the potatoes in cold water. This will ensure that the potatoes cook evenly. You don't want the outside to crumble before the center is done.

• Don't forget to salt your water. It really makes a difference. I typically do about 1 teaspoon of salt for 2 pounds of potatoes.

• The potatoes will continue to cook while they are cooling. They are "done" when they barely fork tender.

• To save time on this recipe I cook the bacon and the potatoes at the same time. While they are cooking I prep the remaining ingredients.

• Season to taste right before serving so the flavors have time to meld.

🌡️Storage and Making Ahead

The potatoes will absorb whatever liquid you put on them. To make the potato salad ahead of time add 2 tablespoons of milk to half of the dressing to thin it out. Pour that half the dressing on the potatoes and save back the bacon. When ready to serve, add the remainder of the dressing and the bacon.

Blue cheese potato salad should be stored in an airtight container and kept in the refrigerator. It will keep for 3 days.

Side Dish Recipes for Cookouts

Here are a few of our favorite recipes for your next backyard BBQ (P.S. they are all gluten-free too!).

💬Frequently Asked Questions

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📖 Recipe