German Hot Potato Salad

This recipe came from a long time friend’s mother who I meet my first year in a high school biology class. I first had this dish for dinner when I went with her family up to German Camp in Genoa City, WI. We made trips up there to play Fussball (Volleyball) tournaments with another German Club north of Milwaukee. Certain dishes help brings back good memories from other time when you were younger and life was just beginning. My friend Linda and I are still in touch with one another but she still lives in the Chicago area and I now Wisconsin.

I forgot all about this recipe until last January when we have a tailgate party at work to celebrate the playoff between the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears. A Wisconsin tailgate party must always have brats and potato salad. I was going to make an American Potato Salad for the party but some people also suggested that a German Salad would be good. So I made both and when it came to leftovers there was very little of this Hot German Potato Salad left. It was a hit and brought back a flood of memories. I hope it may do the same for you.

I salad calls for bacon; I used a center cut to reduce the fat and calories. The original just used plain white vinegar but I like it better with white wine vinegar. I kept the original proportions in the recipe used to make the sauce but I choose to double it since the potatoes absorbs most of it when not doubled. If using center cut bacon I found that not enough fat renders off and I needed to add about 1 tablespoon olive oil before sautéing the onions. The potatoes I used are from my sister’s garden and they are a fingering heirloom variety called Idaho Silver. I do not have the room in my garden to grow potatoes and my sister’s must grow at least 10 varieties or more so I buy them from her at the Viroqua Farmer’s Market.

German Hot Potato Salad

Ingredients
1½ lbs. boiled potatoes, cooked and cubed with skins on.
1 medium onion sliced thin
6 strips of bacon chopped fine
⅓ cup white wine vinegar
2 teaspoon flour
3 teaspoon sugar
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
¼ teaspoon white pepper
½ cup chopped parsley, optional
2 green onion stalks as garnish

Sauté chopped bacon until crisp, and drain off as much bacon fat as desired. Add chopped onions and sauté for about 2 minutes. Mix vinegar, flour, sugar, salt and pepper together well, add to sauté onions and cook until just slightly thick. Lastly add sliced potatoes and blend well. Remove from heat stir in parsley and green onion and serve warm.

Enjoy!