New York Deli potato salad is a simple side dish that combines thinly sliced potatoes with a vinegar brine, mayonnaise, and shredded carrot for garnish. This is the quintessential no-frills potato salad you’d find in most delis in the New York metro area and it’s a great side with sandwiches, burgers, and any warm-weather fare!
There are so many different ways to make potato salad but one of my favorites is this classic New York or more specifically Long Island deli potato salad.
The vinegar brine and thinly sliced and chopped potatoes are what give this that deli flavor that so many other potato salads lack.
While this is great as a side to deli-style sandwiches, like the Italian hero, tuna salad or chicken salad sandwich, it’s also perfect with grilled chicken and anything else made on the grill!
How to make it
Each number corresponds to the numbered written steps below.
- Place 3 1/2 pounds of New potatoes or Yukon Gold in a large pot and cover with water. Bring the potatoes to a boil and cook until almost fork-tender.
- Grate a 1/2 cup of onion. In a large bowl whisk together 1/4 cup of white vinegar, 1/4 cup of water, 1/4 cup of sugar, 1/4 cup of vegetable oil, 1 1/4 teaspoons of fine sea salt, 3/4 teaspoon of white pepper, and the onion.
- Once the potatoes are almost fork tender, drain them and run them under cold water to cool them enough to handle. Peel the potatoes, chop into smaller chunks, and slice them into 1/8-inch or thinner pieces. You can also use a mandoline for this step.
- Spread the potatoes out in a flat baking dish and pour the brine on top.
- Cover them with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. For even better flavor, let the potatoes sit for 2 days. Halfway through the refrigeration time, mix the potatoes to evenly coat with the brine.
- The next day you can drain any excess brine but you don’t have to go overboard. Place the potatoes into a large bowl with 3/4 cup of mayonnaise. Use a spoon to combine, adding more mayo until a smooth and creamy consistency has been achieved. Taste test and season with a bit more salt and pepper if required. Shred a 1/2 small carrot and add to the potato salad along with 3 tablespoons of flat-leaf Italian parsley for garnish.
Top tips
- The brine. The key to the NY deli flavor lies within the brine. It’s best to let the potatoes sit in the brine for 2 days, but definitely overnight, before mixing with the mayonnaise.
- Type of Potatoes. New potatoes or any small waxy potato work best since they won’t get mushy and will hold their shape. Yukon Gold (part waxy) are also fine to use when in a pinch. Avoid powdery/dry potatoes like Russet and Idaho since they will fall apart and turn to mush.
- Slice Potatoes Thin. Slice the potatoes very thin. That’s one of the hallmarks of a typical deli potato salad. If you’re not too proficient with a knife break out the mandoline but do be careful!
- Garnish. We added some parsley and shredded carrot for color and garnish, but often you’ll see this potato salad in the deli with no garnish. Ditto for New York Mac salad and coleslaw. The flavor really speaks for itself here!
- Pepper. We used white pepper in this recipe to keep the color of the potato salad uniform, however, you can certainly make your Long Island deli-style potato salad with black pepper.
More summer sides
- Deli-style German potato salad – with crispy bacon and a vinegar brine.
- Italian pasta salad – with salami, olives, and mozzarella.
- Spinach pasta salad – with gorgonzola and an easy vinaigrette.
If you’ve enjoyed this New York Deli Potato Salad Recipe or any recipe on this site, give it a 5-star rating and tell us about it in the comments below.
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New York Deli Potato Salad
Ingredients
For the brine
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup onion grated
- 1 1/4 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 3/4 teaspoon white pepper
Remaining ingredients
- 3 1/2 pounds New potatoes or Yukon Gold
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise plus more to achieve a smooth consistency
- 1/2 small carrot shredded, for garnish
- 3 tablespoons flat leaf Italian parsley for garnish
Instructions
For the brine and potatoes
- In a large bowl, whisk together all of the brine ingredients and set aside.
- Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Bring the potatoes to a boil and cook until almost fork tender.
- Drain the potatoes and run under cold water to cool them enough to handle. Peel the potatoes and chop into smaller pieces then slice them into 1/8-inch or thinner pieces. You can use a mandoline for this process.
- Place the potatoes in a flat baking dish then pour the brine on top. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or for even better flavor wait 2 days. Halfway through the refrigeration process mix the potatoes to evenly coat them with the brine.
For the potato salad
- The next day, drain the potatoes of excess brine.
- Place the potatoes into a bowl and mix with 3/4 cup of mayonnaise to start. Add more mayo until a smooth creamy consistency has been achieved. Taste test and season with a bit more salt and pepper if required, but you shouldn't need much. Garnish with carrot and parsley. Enjoy!
Notes
- The key to getting that New York deli flavor is the brine. If you can wait let the potatoes sit in the brine for 2 days before mixing with mayo. This is how most delis do it.
- White pepper can be used for appearance.
- Leftovers can be saved for up to 5 days and taste even better after a few days.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe was absolutely delicious! User error on my part and messed up the potato cooking time and they were crunchy/raw in the center lol! I will have to try again and boil potatoes longer. I was afraid they would be mushy so I only did 15 minutes because they were smallish. The flavor was spot on for NY deli potato salad that I love! Eager to try macaroni salad!
We’re so happy you loved it, Christine!
New York Deli salad is now one if my very favorite potato salad recipes. Be sure to use red potatoes. It does get better if you can let it sit for at least 24 hours or longer.
So happy you enjoyed!
I have been following you since, almost, the moment you started!! Congratulations!!
We’re so happy you liked this recipe and appreciate you following along with us!
I can’t thank you enough for this recipe (and your website in general). Grew up in Huntington but have lived in a few different states now, and potato salad outside of NY has been consistently disappointing. Decided to give this a try and made 5lbs for my gf and her Midwestern family. It came out incredible – I hadn’t had potato salad that good in years and was brought back to my summers on LI with my family, and it might have convinced my gf’s family that this is the only way to go with potato salad!
We’re so happy you loved it, Brian, and that it reminded you of home! Thanks for the comment!
Hey Brian, another potato salad lover from Huntington now living in Delaware here looking for a good recipe! Glad to hear it met your expectations, I will definitely try it!
I have been following you more than a year now. So happy to have you helping me cook great food. I’m only sixty five years old , but I made three exceptional salads yesterday. My husband was totally pleased with all of them. Made egg salad, Mac and potato. No complaints or criticisms. What? I wasn’t sure if this was my husband . My adult Son loved them also, and he ate the salads last night still brining in fridge. I am happy. I found the best food that I was able to prepare at home. Long ago I worked at a deli(in NJ)for about 6 years, we bought all our salads and packaged them in containers. We did make gravy for hot roast beef, and sauce for meatballs,I never learned how to do that. Do you a recipe for those? Used to buy a lot of prepared food at the stores, now money is tight and I like to cook anyway, plus your recipes taste so wonderful. Thanks for doing what you do!!!!!
Hi Lee, we’re so happy you’ve been enjoying the salad recipes. We do have a few meatball recipes here on the website – use the search function to search for meatballs.
I made the potato salad and it brought me right back to my school days in Brooklyn
There was a deli on the corner of our school and every Friday my sister and I would go and get a bologna and potato salad on a hero sandwich for 25.cents. it was delicious
This potato salad tasted exactly the same. It was yummy
So happy you loved it, Janet!
Thank you! This is exactly what I was looking for. I grew up on Long Island but have been living in Texas for the past 30 years. Every year when I visit, I would load up on all the good food, including potato salad. However, a couple of years ago, my favorite Delicatessen changed ownership. The potato salad was awful. I’ve been raving to my Texas friends how good New York Deli potato salad is. Now I can make it myself so they can try it out. This recipe was perfect and absolutely delicious
We’re so happy to hear that, Jennifer! Thanks for the comment!
Trying the recipe today. Instead of grating the onion, I just threw half a small onion (appx 1/2 cup to my eye) into my Vitamix with everything else in the brine and blended it. I’m really hoping this works, because honestly the onion grating is the one piece of this recipe that would make me not want to do it very often.
I really enjoy your channel. I particularly appreciate the way that you unpretentiously and simply present your content. Keep it up!
Lloyd Harbor, L.I.
We hope you love it, A!
The best. I add a little stone ground mustard as well. TY
Exactly what I’ve been searching for – a real NY deli potato salad. I may cut down slightly on the sugar next time, but otherwise terrific.
So happy you enjoyed, Andrea!
Closest recipe I’ve found to Ernie’s delicatessen that we’d get when visiting my grandmother in Queens and I’ve been looking for a long time!!!
Thanks……
This recipe is AWESOME! Deli’s aren’t something in Seattle, but I worked at one in New Haven in the 80’s. Theirs was a midwest American kind of potato salad with eggs and celery, good but not like this kind that the Orange St deli down the street made. Gonna fire up the flat top, make me some steak and cheese’s (white American, none of that “whiz” crap) and have this potato salad as a side to take me back to those simpler days!
Wow! Awesome recipe⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️! Thanks James! A real crowd pleaser👍
Thanks so much Carol! We’re so happy you enjoyed!
Hi James! My grandparents owned and operated a german delicatessen on Seneca Avenue and Gates Street on the Queens/Brooklyn border. My Grandmother used 50 lbs. of white rose potatoes boiled and then stacked on a wooden board until the top potatoes cooled enough to handle. She and a helper peeled the potatoes and chatted away. My grandmother had a hand slicer that fit on the top of a large pot with brine and grated onion. She ran each warm potato across the slicer and they dropped into the brine. She said it was important to slice the potatoes while warm. Into to fridge the pot went and came out the next day and Hellman’s Triple X mayo was added. I wish I knew where to buy those delicious white rose potatoes, but Yukons are very good. Memories and delicious smells!
This is the potato salad recipe I have been searching for over the years. Since finding it last year I’ve made it about half a dozen times and people just freak out over it (and accuse me of buying it at a local deli here in Northport, Long Island!) Thanks for sharing the recipe and your knowledge/experience working at local delis, much obliged.
I made it again today for the holiday weekend and it was such a hit. Keep up the great work that you and Tara do.
We’re so happy you enjoyed, Mick!
Exactly right! A few tips: use your blender to grate the onion. Just place a cut up onion into the blender, add the water that goes into the brine, and push the grate button. You may have to pulse it off and on but much faster than hand grating. If you only have yellow potatoes (but not Idaho) before you cut them, put them in the freezer for 15-20. Then cutting is much easier and you can get very thin slices. Also, if using a mandolin to slice, slice only 3 times then flip potato around (front to back not bottom to top) slice 3 times, flip potato around slice 3 times, etc. This way the potatoes won’t crumble as they are apt to do when there’s constant pressure from one direction on them.
I’m in heaven!! I lived in Northport,Long Island,NY for 30 years so I knew good deli salads.
For the past 30 years I’ve been in Mount Pleasant,South Carolina and I sure do miss those salads. I was thrilled to come across your recipes for NY potato and macaroni salad so I got busy and made the potato salad. I freaked! Just the way I remember it,sooo good. Tomorrow I’ll try the macaroni and probably freak again! Thanks a million I agree the brine is the key.
We’re so happy you enjoyed the recipe, Nancy! Thanks for the comment and hope you love the macaroni salad as well!
This recipe is spot on NY deli potato salad. Wish I could give it 10 stars. ⭐️
We are so happy you loved the recipe, Nina!
My mother used to make pretty good potato salad but I could never get it just right. I love potato salad but it wasn’t worth the time and energy to make it if it was just so-so. But I found this deli potato salad recipe and it is incredible. The best potato salad I’ve ever had. The brining makes all the difference.
Thank you, thank you, thank you… I’ve been looking for this old school Long Island Deli Potato salad recipe for soooo long. You nailed it. It tastes just like the potato salad from the old deli that was on Manetto Hill Road in Plainview where I grew up. Going to do the Deli coleslaw and Macaroni salad next.
Hi Rosemary, thanks for the comment and so happy this recipe resonated with you. Hope you love the coleslaw and mac salad as well!
Could you use the mandolin on the potatoes before you cook them? I’m thinking that would be so much easier and, cooking time would take next to nothing.
Hi Chris, you can, however slicing them after they’re semi-cooked prevents them from becoming water-logged. Hope you enjoy!