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Homemade Potato Salad for a Crowd

Published May 22, 2017 Updated May 22, 2017 13 Comments

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Potato salad is a side dish I think everyone should know how to make. Why? Homemade potato salad is simple, incredibly frugal and like so many things, homemade is more delicious than store bought.

Homemade Potato Salad Recipe - Whether you want to make potato salad for your family or for a crowd, check out this recipe with the party portions already figured out!

We were hosting a weekend workshop at church recently and I was in charge of food. Saturday lunch was going to be simple with sandwiches and fixings, chips and veggies, pasta salad and potato salad, and homemade cookies. I looked (briefly) at buying potato salad but changed my mind when I saw the price.

Our local grocery store had pre-made potato salad on sale for $2.49/lb. I could buy 10 pounds of potatoes for that same price! The answer was a no brainer. Homemade potato salad it was!

There are many  variations of potato salad but my favorite potato salad recipe is one with only five basic ingredients. It’s my Great-Grandma Hoffmeyer’s recipe so it is a time tested recipe that has been made for several generations and countless summer picnics.

Homemade potato salad is one of my favorite recipes to take to a summer cookout because it is a very frugal recipe to make. Plus, a bowl of potato salad goes a long way! I’m sharing my recipe – and crowd proportions – below.

Please note that the proportions are assuming you will be serving other foods (besides potato salad) as side dishes. I’ve made this potato salad for many large gatherings and have found the proportions to be accurate and more than generous.

This post may contain affiliate links. You can read more in my disclosure policy.

Ingredients:

Potato salad to serve 10 people (a family sized recipe)…

6 medium potatoes
5 hard boiled eggs
1 ½ cup celery, diced
½ cup onion, diced
1 1/3 cup mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste

Potato salad for 25 people…

5 pounds potatoes
1 dozen hard boiled eggs
3 cups celery, diced
3/4 cup onion, diced
2 1/2 cups mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste

Potato salad for 50 people…

10 pounds potatoes
2 dozen hard boiled eggs
1 bunch celery, diced
1 cup onion, diced
1 quart mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste

Potato salad for 75 people…

15 pounds potatoes
3 dozen hard boiled eggs
1 ½ bunches celery, diced
2 large onions, diced
1 ½ quart mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Peel, cube and boil potatoes in salted water until tender. Test by poking with a fork. While potatoes are boiling, dice onions and celery. Peel and chop hard boiled eggs.

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl while the potatoes are still hot. Stir in mayonnaise. Add more or less mayonnaise to taste. Season with salt and pepper.

Cool potato salad in the fridge until ready to serve.

Additional Notes:

The secret to this simple potato salad is that you must mix all the ingredients while the potatoes are still hot. It results in a delicious and creamy potato salad, with chunks and a tiny bit of a mashed potato feel.

The celery is optional but it does add a nice crunch. The onions are your other bit of crunch. Adjust proportions to your taste.

Salt and pepper your potato salad generously. You can always add more later, but potato salad does seem to soak up those basic seasonings.

If you prefer a bit of mustard flavor in your potato salad (as they do down South), simply squirt in a teaspoon or two of yellow mustard and stir well.

You can prep your eggs the day before by hard-boiling them and peeling them. I do this regularly. Then, I store them in a sealed container in the fridge until I’m ready to make the potato salad the next day. It’s so much easier to quickly chop up the eggs if they are already cooked, peeled and cooled.

When you are making a big batch of potato salad (10 pounds or more), I like to peel and dice my potatoes the night before. Be sure to use a sharp paring knife. This paring knife is my favorite, and at under $8, a bargain! Once they are diced, put them in a large pot and cover with salted water. Doing so will keep your potatoes from browning and again, save you time when you are ready to make the salad.

Whether you are making homemade potato salad for a crowd or for your family, you are sure to please with this five ingredient homemade potato salad. Do you have a favorite recipe to make when you are serving a crowd?

Homemade Potato Salad for a Crowd

This 5 ingredient potato salad is both easy and delicious. It includes party proportions so you can easily make this potato salad for your family or a large crowd.

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Ingredients

    To serve 10 people (a family sized recipe):
  • 6 medium potatoes
  • 5 hard boiled eggs
  • 1 ½ cup celery, diced
  • ½ cup onion, diced
  • 1 1/3 cup mayonnaise
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • To serve 25 people:
  • 5 pounds potatoes
  • 1 dozen hard boiled eggs
  • 3 cups celery, diced
  • 3/4 cup onion, diced
  • 2 1/2 cups mayonnaise
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • To serve 50 people:
  • 10 pounds potatoes
  • 2 dozen hard boiled eggs
  • 1 bunch celery, diced
  • 1 cup onion, diced
  • 1 quart mayonnaise
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • To serve 75 people:
  • 15 pounds potatoes
  • 3 dozen hard boiled eggs
  • 1 ½ bunches celery, diced
  • 2 large onions, diced
  • 1 ½ quart mayonnaise
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Peel, cube and boil potatoes in salted water until tender. Test by poking with a fork.
  • While potatoes are boiling, dice onions and celery. Peel and chop hard boiled eggs.
  • Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl while the potatoes are still hot.
  • Stir in mayonnaise. Add more or less mayonnaise to taste. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Cool potato salad in the fridge until ready to serve.
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Hello and welcome! Check out how we're thriving when our income has been cut in half, take a look at some of my custom, Biblical books (with free printables) or learn how to build a stockpile that works for your family. You can sign up for blog updates with my email newsletter here. Thanks for stopping by!

Filed Under: All Recipes, Side Dishes

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  1. Kathy says

    September 14, 2018 at 9:29 pm

    So glad I found this recipe. I'm making potato salad for a church fundraiser this weekend and decided to make it instead of buying it. I have chickens so the eggs were free and all I had to buy was the potatoes. The picture looks exactly like mine....no celery though. I was raised on celery salt so that covers two items at one time. Printed this off so I don't have to search like crazy next time. Thank you!
    Reply
  2. Linda says

    May 23, 2018 at 5:10 pm

    So thankful to find your recipe. I am making potato salad for a very large group (150) and figure it will take me all day. I did a dry run test first making the smaller serving and my husband loved it. I did add celery seed and some pickle relish but other than that, stayed true to your recipe.
    Reply
    • Kristen says

      May 24, 2018 at 9:43 pm

      You are very welcome, Linda! Have fun chopping potatoes and mixing up the potato salad. I hope it's a hit!
      Reply
  3. Laurie says

    March 30, 2018 at 9:13 am

    I came looking for larger proportions because I always forget how much to make for a party. Thank you! This was my great grandmother’s recipe, too! I’ve never seen it anywhere else! My daughter still requests great-grandma’s coleslaw and potato salad for her parties because everyone loves them.
    Reply
    • Kristen says

      March 30, 2018 at 9:26 am

      You're welcome, Laurie! I'm glad I could help remind you! :-) It is a simple recipe but so good. I agree with your daughter. It's one of my favorites too!
      Reply
  4. Beth says

    November 4, 2017 at 4:51 am

    This recipe is very much like my mother’s (and now my) potato salad, minus the celery. I particularly dislike celery, so add a little more finely chopped onion. I also sprinkle some dried parsley and grated boiled egg over the top, which makes it look more appealing!
    Reply
    • Kristen says

      November 11, 2017 at 2:13 pm

      Ha. I hear you on the celery, Beth! I'm not really a fan either but I make do in my potato salad. I think this goes to show that some old recipes are truly classics! I love the idea of sprinkling more diced eggs and parsley on top. I'm going to have to try that next time!
      Reply
  5. Our Home Of Many Blessings says

    July 3, 2015 at 11:26 am

    Yummy! Thank you for sharing! We have a large family of 9 so this will work out perfectly!
    Reply
    • Kristen says

      July 3, 2015 at 1:28 pm

      Good! I'm glad. It really is a simple and delicious potato salad! I hope you and your family enjoy it!
      Reply
  6. Kate @KateMovingForward says

    July 2, 2015 at 11:10 pm

    This looks a lot like my mom's potato salad recipe! Hers is a bit chunkier, I think but she dices everything very finely. I'm not really a fan of most potato salads because I don't like mustard and mayo.
    Reply
    • Kristen says

      July 3, 2015 at 1:28 pm

      It's a really simple recipe. I'm not a fan of mayo either. I use it only for potato salad (and just enough to mix it together) and tuna. That's it. I do like mustard - but not in my potato salads.
      Reply

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  1. 20 Recipes that Use Hard-Boiled Eggs says:
    April 20, 2019 at 8:05 am
    […] Homemade Potato Salad for a Crowd from Joyfully Thriving. […]
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