Craving a creamy, cool side dish with a burst of smoky, savory goodness? Look no further than Loaded Baked Potato Salad! Tender potato cubes are tossed in a tangy dressing and then loaded with crispy bacon, melty cheese, and fresh green onions.
It’s the perfect accompaniment to grilled burgers, barbeque chicken, or anything you throw on the grill.
Loaded Baked Potato Salad Recipe
Our Loaded Baked Potato Salad recipe combines the creamy texture and tangy taste of a classic potato salad with the toppings of a twice-baked potato. An easy method to turn a classic steakhouse side (minus the skin) into a make-ahead, popular potluck dish.
Loaded Baked Potato Salad Ingredients
- Yellow potatoes: Yukon gold is an example of a yellow potato. Russet potatoes can also be used, although it may have a mushier texture. You can make your potato salad with red potatoes for a firmer potato texture.
- Mayonnaise: Mayo provides a creamy base and richness to the salad, helping to bind the ingredients together.
- Sour cream: You can substitute plain Greek yogurt for similar results.
- White wine vinegar: Rice wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar are good substitutes in this recipe.
- Minced garlic: You can substitute ½ teaspoon of garlic powder if you don’t have minced garlic, but I prefer fresh garlic.
- Salt: Use regular table salt or kosher salt to season your salad.
- Cracked black pepper: Any freshly ground black pepper can be used in this recipe.
- Bacon: The best bacon is freshly cooked, cooled, and crumbled bacon. However, if you’re in a time crunch, you can use store-bought bacon bits instead.
- Sharp cheddar cheese: I like to use sharp cheddar cheese because it adds the perfect flavor and punch, but you could use medium or mild cheddar if you prefer. Colby cheese, mozzarella, or Monterey jack can also be used in a pinch.
- Green onions: Chopped green onions add a fresh, slightly sharp flavor and a pop of color to this dish. Finely chopped red or sweet onions can also be used, although you will want to use about half as much as you would green onions.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Loaded Baked Potato Salad
- Prepare The Potatoes: Bake, peel, and chop the potatoes into cubes.
- Make The Mayo Mixture: Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, white wine vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Coat and Combine: Toss the potatoes in the sauce to coat. Stir in the bacon, cheese, and green onions.
- Chill: Cover well and place in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours.
- Serve: Garnish and serve chilled. Enjoy!
How To bake potatoes for Potato Salad
Bake the potatoes at 400 degrees for 45-60 minutes, depending on size. Be sure to pierce them with a fork before baking and bake just until a fork can easily pierce them but take them out before they get mushy. I liked using the higher heat because the skin blistered and gave more flavor to the potatoes.
When peeling the baked potatoes, wait until they are cooled and then just remove the very outer layer. Any blistered parts underneath the peel should still be added to the salad for flavor. If a little bit of peel gets added to the salad it won’t hurt at all and some people even prefer a bit of peel in the salad on the potato cubes.
Serving Suggestions
Loaded baked potato salads belong at every summer barbecue, picnic, and potluck! Cool food is meant for warm-weather meals!
Serve your cold potato salad as a side dish with dinner, enjoy leftovers with lunch, or simply enjoy it straight from the spoon!
If you like your potato salad loaded, then you will love my Loaded Mashed Potatoes, Instant Pot Loaded Baked Potato Soup, and Loaded Tater Tots!
Tips & Variations
- Bake or Boil: You can use any leftover baked (or even boiled) potatoes for this recipe. Baking the potatoes gives them a fluffy texture and a slightly sweeter, more concentrated flavor compared to boiling. Cooling the potatoes before mixing them into the salad helps them maintain their shape and prevents the salad from becoming mushy.
- Serve It German Style: To make a German potato salad, swap the mayonnaise-based dressing for a vinegar-based sauce made with bacon drippings.
- Bacon Back-Up: You can use any kind of bacon you prefer, including turkey bacon, chicken bacon, or even vegan bacon. Tempeh, tofu, and seitan have a texture that’s meaty, chewy, and crispy at the same time—just like bacon!
- Vegan Version: With a few simple swaps, potato salad recipes can be made vegan, vegetarian, dairy-free, and suitable for most meal plans! Feel free to swap the bacon and dairy-based ingredients for your favorite plant-based substitutes.
- Revise With Ranch: Loaded baked potato salad recipes are easy to revise with your favorite fixings and dressings. My Ranch potato salad replaces the mayonnaise mixture with a creamy Ranch dressing made from Greek yogurt and a packet of Ranch dip mix.
Proper Storage
- To Store: Leftover Loaded Baked Potato Salad should be stored in the refrigerator like any potato or mayonnaise based salad. It is best used within 3-4 days.
- To Freeze: I do not recommend freezing this dish. There will be a drastic change in texture and a likely separation of the sauce.
Other Easy Summer Salads
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Loaded Baked Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 2½ pounds yellow potatoes baked and cooled
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1½ Tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 12 ounce (1 package) bacon cooked, cooled, and crumbled
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- ¼ cup green onions chopped
Optional garnishes:
- crumbled bacon, shredded cheese and green onions
Instructions
- Peel the baked, peeled yellow potatoes and chop into cubes.2½ pounds yellow potatoes
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, white wine vinegar, minced garlic, salt, and pepper until combined.½ cup mayonnaise, ½ cup sour cream, 1½ Tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- Gently toss the potatoes in the sauce until well coated.
- Add in the crumbled bacon, cheese and green onions and stir together gently until combined.12 ounce (1 package) bacon, 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, ¼ cup green onions
- Cover well and place in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours.
- Serve chilled, garnished with extra bacon, cheese and green onions, optional.crumbled bacon, shredded cheese and green onions
Jenn’s Notes
- To Store: Leftover Loaded Baked Potato Salad should be stored in the refrigerator like any potato or mayonnaise based salad. It is best used within 3-4 days.
- To Freeze: I do not recommend freezing this dish. There will be a drastic change in texture and a likely separation of the sauce.
- How to bake the potatoes: Bake the potatoes at 400 degrees for 45-60 minutes, depending on size. Be sure to pierce them with a fork before baking and bake just until a fork can easily pierce them but take them out before they get mushy. I liked using the higher heat because the skin blistered and gave more flavor to the potatoes. When peeling the baked potatoes, wait until they are cooled and then just remove the very outer layer. Any blistered parts underneath the peel should still be added to the salad for flavor. If a little bit of peel gets added to the salad it won’t hurt at all and some people even prefer a bit of peel in the salad on the potato cubes.
- You can use any leftover baked (or even boiled) potatoes for this recipe. Baking the potatoes gives them a fluffy texture and a slightly sweeter, more concentrated flavor compared to boiling. Cooling the potatoes before mixing them into the salad helps them maintain their shape and prevents the salad from becoming mushy.
- To make a German potato salad, swap the mayonnaise-based dressing for a vinegar-based sauce made with bacon drippings.
- You can use any kind of bacon you prefer, including turkey bacon, chicken bacon, or even a vegan bacon. Tempeh, tofu, seitan, have a texture that’s meaty, chewy, and crispy at the same time — just like bacon!
- With a few simple swaps, potato salad recipes can be made vegan, vegetarian, dairy free, and suitable for most meal plans! Feel free to swap the bacon and dairy-based ingredients for your favorite plant-based substitutes.
Yummy