Even though I know it’s not officially summer yet according to the calendar, it feels like summer to me now that it’s Memorial Day weekend. We have had lots of sunny, beautiful days here in Washington and are taking full advantage of it. Summer calls for eating outside, BBQ’s with friends and family, and enjoying the sunshine. Potato salad is an easy side dish for summer BBQs, but I wanted to jazz up the traditional potato salad a bit with bacon, gorgonzola cheese, and jalapenos.
This potato salad has a mayo base, with two kinds of mustard for extra flavor and creaminess. It gets some delicious crunch from red onion and jalapenos, crispiness and tons of flavor from bacon, and just a hint of something extra with gorgonzola cheese. These ingredients come together for a potato salad that packs a punch, with a touch of heat, that’s anything but ordinary.
We will be celebrating our Memorial Day weekend with a BBQ with friends on Sunday. Kevin is a grill master and I love to put together the side dishes; you better believe this potato salad has made the cut! On Memorial Day itself, we are starting a new family tradition of taking the boys to a national cemetery to lay flowers on the headstones of our fallen service members. Since Kevin and I are both veterans (he still serves in the National Guard) and have both deployed in service of our country, it’s important to us that our kids understand the true significance of Memorial Day. I think it’s wonderful that people celebrate the day by enjoying good food and maybe a cold beer or two; those are the freedoms that our military have died to protect. But I also think it’s important to remember that we are the land of the free because of the brave, and it’s important for our kids to understand that too.
However you celebrate the weekend, I hope you enjoy the unofficial start of summer surrounded by loved ones and good food! I’ll be making this potato salad for our BBQ and I hope you do too.
- 4 lbs small red potatoes
- 12 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped
- ½ cup chopped red onion
- 4 oz gorgonzola cheese
- 1½ cups mayonnaise
- 3 tbsp. Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp. yellow mustard
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
- Place potatoes in a large pot of salted water, ensuring they are covered. Bring to a boil and cook until tender. Drain and set aside to cool.
- Once potatoes are cool, chop into pieces that are no larger than 1 inch in size. It's ok if the peels start to come off, I put them in the salad anyways. Place the chopped potatoes in a large bowl.
- Add bacon, jalapenos, red onion, and gorgonzola to the bowl.
- In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, yellow mustard, salt, and pepper. Add to the potato mixture.
- Mix gently with a spatula to combine. Taste and add more salt if desired.
- Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Turned out very good. We had a gorgonzola potato salad at an Ingles grocery store when we were out of state on a camping trip and couldn’t wait to get home and make. I couldn’t find many recipes but used this one and also looked at the grocery store’s ingredients. Added a clove of garlic, used 1/4 cup sour cream in place of some mayo, and garnished with bacon and scallions. Definitely will make again!
That sounds like a great substitution! I’m so happy you like this recipe, I’m so picky when it comes to potato salads and had to come up with my own recipe that I actually wanted to eat!