This Ranch Potato Salad is bold, tangy and bursting with flavor! Tender red potatoes, crispy bacon and crunchy scallions are tossed with a creamy ranch flavored dressing. Potato salad is a cook-out staple – it’s perfect for parties and holidays and can be made ahead of time for planning purposes.
Why We Love This Ranch Potato Salad Recipe
One of the things we love doing is party planning. Whether it’s a backyard barbecue or a holiday gathering, parties are what we do. This Ranch Potato Salad is always on the list when we’re planning out a menu. It’s a little bit different from you classic potato salad recipe, so everyone raves about it, yet it’s still easy enough to make for any occasion.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Red potatoes: We like the creamy consistency of red potatoes for this potato salad but you can swap out yellow or russet potatoes as well.
- Bacon: Cooked until crisp and chopped. We like big, thick pieces of bacon instead of bacon bits.
- Scallions: Lots of chopped scallions for a mild onion flavor. Red onion could be substituted but it will have a stronger onion flavor.
- Ranch Seasoning: Dry seasoning packet found by the salad dressings.
- Mayonnaise: Regular, full fat mayo is best. If you’re looking to save calories (find a different recipe :) but really, you can swap out light mayonnaise or Greek yogurt, it just won’t be as creamy and rich.
- Sour Cream: Regular sour cream is best, but reduced fat can be substituted.
- Worcestershire Sauce: No swap outs for this one!
- Milk: Any kind of milk, we use whole. The milk helps to thin out the dressing.
How To Make
We’ll include step by step photos here with instructions, but for the full recipe head down to the recipe card at the end of the post.
- Make the Dressing: Whisk together the ingredients for the dressing first so that the flavors have time to blend together. You can even do this a day ahead of time.
- Boil the Potatoes: Cut the potatoes into similar size pieces. For larger potatoes that might mean in fourths, for smaller potatoes maybe just in half. You want the pieces roughly the same size so they are cooked to the right consistency at the same time.
- Drain and Cut The Potatoes: Once the potatoes are fork tender, drain them and let them cool slightly. Cut the potatoes into bite size pieces and place them into a large bowl. We like the heartiness of this ranch potato salad so we like to make the pieces on the larger side.
- Add Bacon, Scallions and Dressing: Add the cooked, chopped bacon to the bowl along with the scallions. Pour the dressing into the bowl and toss to combine. Start with half of the dressing, toss and then keep adding more to your liking. We like a little extra dressing in the salad because the potatoes will absorb some of the dressing as it sits.
Variations
Although we think this Ranch Potato Salad is delicious as is, you can switch it up a little bit too! You can use different potatoes like yellow or russet potatoes if you like. The dressing calls for mayonnaise and sour cream for tanginess, but you can use all mayonnaise if you don’t like sour cream.
Other ingredients to add could include celery, chopped hard boiled eggs, chives or shallots for another burst of onion flavor.
Can I Leave Out The Ranch Seasoning?
Of course! If this potato salad recipe caught your eye but you don’t love the flavor of ranch, you can simply omit it from the recipe. You might need to add a little more salt and pepper since you’re taking out the main portion of the seasonings, but it’ll still be delicious.
You can also try different seasoning blends that you like, even different sauces like bbq sauce. We use a barbecue and mayonnaise dressing for our BBQ Bacon Potato Salad, and even buffalo sauce like in this Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad.
How About A Few More Side Dish Recipes For Parties?
- Homemade Coleslaw
- Broccoli Salad (No Mayo)
- Campfire Potatoes
- Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
- Oven Roasted Corn on the Cob
- Creamed Corn with Bacon
Ranch Potato Salad
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 Servings 1x
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeRanch Potato Salad is one of our favorite BBQ party side dishes! This hearty and tangy potato salad recipe will stand up to any main course. Make it ahead of time and serve it at your next party!
Ingredients
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 packet dry ranch seasoning (1 ounce)
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (plus 1 tablespoon for boiling the potatoes)
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup milk
- 5 pounds red potatoes
- 1 pound bacon, cooked crisp and chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped scallions
Instructions
- Make the dressing by adding the mayonnaise, sour cream, ranch seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper and milk to a bowl. Whisk together until smooth and set aside while you boil the potatoes.
- Wash the potatoes and cut them in half or in quarters for larger potatoes. You want them to be about the same size so they cook at the same time. Place the potatoes in a large pot and fill with cold water, just to cover the tops of the potatoes. Add the tablespoon of salt to the water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat slightly and cook for 15-20 minutes until the potatoes are just fork tender. Be careful not to overcook the potatoes or they will end up mushy instead of creamy. Drain the potatoes and let cool slightly.
- Cut the potatoes into large, bite sized pieces and add to a large bowl. Add the bacon, scallions and the dressing to the bowl. Toss gently to combine, taste for seasonings and adjust if needed. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
Recipe Notes
Make Ahead: If you’re making this recipe ahead of time, reserve the bacon and add it right before serving so that it stays crisp.
Store: Store leftover potato salad in an air tight container or covered in a bowl with plastic wrap. This potato salad will keep for 4-5 days in the refrigerator. Make sure to toss the potato salad again before serving.
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
