Caesar Dressing Is Your Secret For A Next-Level Potato Salad

It doesn't get more classic than showing up to the summer picnic or potluck with a potato salad or ordering it as a side at your local diner or barbecue restaurant. But how do you revive a classic and think differently about a dish that's so tried and true? Toss in another classic condiment for the ultimate crossover. While potato salad can be delicious, some believe it to be lacking in seasoning and pizazz. With Caesar dressing, you add a richer, more savory flavor palette. It's the perfect way to ensure your potato salad doesn't get a bad rap for being bland.

Incorporating Caesar dressing adds a rich, garlicky twist on too-often one-note potato salad while helping to enhance the creamy texture everyone craves. You can take it a little easier on the mayonnaise called for in your recipe, as Caesar dressing usually has a mayo base that lends enough thickness and stickiness to coat the potatoes.

To put this Caesar potato salad together, you can go the quick and simple route by purchasing a good store-bought Caesar dressing, or venture to make your own Caesar dressing at home. It may seem like extra work, but the dressing can come together while you wait for your water and/or the potatoes to boil for the salad. And the flavorful result is well worth the hard work.

A good caesar dressing is made up of garlic, anchovies or anchovy paste, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, dijon mustard, salt, pepper, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Chop up those garlic cloves and anchovies real fine and combine them with your other ingredients and you're ready to bring all of the Caesar dressing flavor notes to your potato salad. The garlic, mustard, and Parmesan are there to give the distinct bite that defines Caesar dressing, while the Worcestershire and anchovies are the savory-salty bedrock. Your chewy potatoes will be practically begging to be slathered in all that flavor.

Now that you have your potato salad secret weapon on hand with Caesar dressing, don't count out a few other ways to help your potato salad go the distance. For all the mayo-phones out there, there are plenty of great ingredients to add to your potato salad that can replace mayo and shake up the usual potato salad recipe. You can swap out the mayo for another salad dressing favorite: ranch dressing. The silky ranch delivers in creamy texture while also adding extra seasoning that mayo lacks. Even a packet of ranch seasoning can upgrade your potato salad in a pinch. Great fragrant toppings like sliced green onions are essential for adding extra dimension to a potato salad as well.

As for texture, a soft, boiled potato can sometimes leave more to be desired. So why not try roasting your potatoes and bring a crispy contrast to your usual potato salad? Swap out the usual golden Yukons for baby red potatoes and keep the skin on when roasting in the oven. Now you have perfectly crunchy potatoes great for coating in that Caesar dressing. Sometimes shirking tradition in the kitchen can pay off, and it sure does with some Caesar dressing on hand for this twist on potato salad.