EGGY POTATO SALAD

We had some friends over this past weekend for a BBQ and decided to try our hand at potato salad. It is one of those quintessential summer BBQ dishes that we had yet to attempt. With so many recipes to choose from online we picked one that seemed fairly straightforward and worked in eggs, mustard and pickles...all things we wanted in our salad.

We have tweaked the original recipe to use whole eggs instead of just yolks as we dislike wasting egg parts along with a couple other minor changes to align to our tastes a bit more.

Ingredients 

2 3/4 pounds of potatoes* 
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt plus more
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sweet pickle juice from jar
1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper plus more*
4 large hard-boiled eggs (preferably from pasture raised hens)
1 tablespoon chopped chives
3 tablespoons chopped red onion
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
Paprika

*Note on the potatoes: The original recipe calls for about 8 medium red-skinned potatoes, peeled. Go with what looks good to you at the market. We went with multi-colored new potatoes, including some purple ones which were stunning. We also left the skins on for added nutrition and to lessen the work. 

Note on the pepper: Crazily enough, I do not love black pepper, it often has too much of a bite to me and takes away from the flavor of what I am eating. So we always leave it out and opt to let anyone who wants some add it to their portion. 

Directions

Place potatoes in a large pot. Add water to cover by 2", season with salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook until potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife, 20-30 minutes. Drain. Place potatoes in a large bowl and let cool slightly.

Meanwhile, whisk mayonnaise, pickle juice, Dijon mustard, sugar, 1/4 teaspoon pepper (if adding), and 1 1/4 teaspoons salt in a small bowl for dressing, mix in chives.

Chop eggs into small pieces. 

Using a large wooden spoon, coarsely smash potatoes, leaving some larger pieces mixed with some well-mashed pieces. The combination of the mashed and large (but bite sized) pieces gives it a really lovely texture. 

Add dressing and egg to potatoes and toss to coat. It is ok if the eggs bits get mashed up. Add onion and parsley; gently mix to incorporate. Season to taste with more salt and pepper, if desired.

When ready to serve, sprinkle with a light dusting of paprika. 

DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. In fact, it tastes better the next day! 

We will likely try adding some pieces of bacon to up the flavor even more next time.