Tangy vinegar and sharp mustard make this more of a German-style potato salad, which is a refreshing change of pace from the sweet mayo-based versions at most grocery stores here in the States. No sugar added or needed thanks to the sweetness of the caramelized onions!
Bacon and caramelized onions really deserve a place as one of the perfect food duos, right up there with peanut butter and jelly. Salty vs. sweet, crispy vs. velvety soft, meat candy vs. veggie candy… and I’ve made myself hungry just thinking about it.
Better go sneak another bite of potato salad, just in case. Extra bacon please.
Smashing the potatoes as you mix makes this extra creamy, so don’t be afraid to really dig in there!
I can’t pretend this isn’t one of the more complicated potato salad recipes – caramelizing onions and frying bacon and cooking potatoes all take some time – but I can promise it will be totally worth it. Any of these steps can be done ahead of time and the potato salad will keep for several days in the fridge if it lasts that long!
Caramelized Onion & Bacon Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 2 T. butter
- 2 large sweet onions thinly sliced
- 2 T. whiskey (optional)
- 2 lb. red potatoes roughly chopped
- 8 oz. bacon cooked & diced
- 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 T. dijon mustard
- 1/2 t. salt
- 1/4 cup green onions sliced
- 2 T. chives minced, plus more for garnish
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over low heat. Add the onions and cook low & slow until deeply caramelized, about an hour. Scrape the bottom of the pot often; adding whiskey helps deglaze the skillet and adds a wonderful flavor.
- While the onions are caramelizing, cook the potatoes & bacon.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook potatoes until tender, about 20 minutes, then drain and transfer potatoes to a large bowl.
- Lay bacon slices evenly in a large skillet. Bring the skillet up to heat and cook not quite until crispy, then flip bacon and cook the other side. Chop the cooked bacon and add to the potatoes.
- Add caramelized onions, vinegar, mustard, salt, green onions, and chives to the potatoes. Mix well until completely combined, mashing some of the potatoes as you go.
- Garnish with remaining chives and serve hot or at room temp.
Print Recipe
This was delicious and ready to make. The only trouble I had was that the onions did not turn brown at the end of the hour. I had my electric range set to its lowest setting. After an hour the onions were only translucent so I turned it up to number 4 of 10 and then the onions turned brown rather quickly. They wound up cooked perfectly. I added the whiskey and it did enhance the flavor although you would never guess there was any booze in the potato salad. I had my doubts about the apple cider vinegar but it balanced the onions just right. This was a hit at the church pot luck and I will make it again.
So glad the onions turned out well! It can be tricky to say how long caramelization will take for different ranges, so it’s good to know it may take longer. Thanks so much for the helpful feedback!