My favorite food at any yard party or barbecue is, hands-down, the potato salad.
While theres a line of losers waiting for cheeseburgers, Ive got 12 pounds of potatoes all to myself.
Its normally a side dish, but I think its time to change that.
Boost potato salad to main dish status by adding nuggets of salty meat.
Obviously, when everyone thinks of potato salad they immediately think of balance.
Thats why potato salad rocks.
The only missing element is a juicy bit of umami, and thats where salty meats swoop in.
Most packaged, cured, or smoked meats will work.
Youre looking for a meat that packs rich flavor.
Ensure the meat is fully-cooked first.
Most packaging will indicate if a product is fully cooked or requires cooking.Fryorbakebacon to your preferred consistency.
Let the meat cool for about 10 minutes so its easier to handle.
Cut the meat into bite-sized pieces, or about the same size as the potato chunks in your salad.
Add this to the rest of the potato salad ingredients as its being assembled.
The first time I saw sausage crumbles in Thanksgiving stuffing, I nearly lost my mind.
This salad provokes very much the same reaction.
Adding flavorful meat is also a little trick for cutting down the mayo measurement.
(Here are others.)
Assess, and adjust from there.
Salty meat potato salad is a side dish to none.
The potatoes are still the star, but now theyre supported by their long-time partner, meat.
Cut them again crosswise into bite-sized pieces.
Sear if desired and let cool completely.
In a large bowl, add the potatoes, celery, chorizo, and parsley.
Sprinkle on the salt, garlic powder, and black pepper.
Add the mayonnaise, dijon, and pickle relish.
Add half of the sliced eggs.
Add more mayo if its needed.
Top with the rest of the egg slices.
Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
