I just had to share this absolutely mouth-watering, succulent and savory cold-weather comfort food! It is perfection defined as far as the sweet and tangy, rich and delicious flavor combinations. The baby red potatoes melt in your mouth just as the salty bacon flavor crisps between your teeth. It will definitely have you coming back for more, so consider doubling the recipe!
Both sides of may family are German, very German. So, for this recipe, I had to choose authenticity over health consciousness and use real bacon grease… Try it before you judge it and you’ll be licking your lips and saying a hearty, “Yum!” To be as healthy as possible while also sticking to tradition, I did choose nitrate-free smoked bacon.
This is a somewhat uncommon dish in many of today’s culinary circles, so I would love to hear your reaction if you try it for the first time or in comparison to your family’s version of the recipe. This is a comfort food worth inheriting and passing on as part of your traditions!
- 4 cups diced red potatoes
- ½ to 1 pound of bacon
- 1 small yellow or white onion
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar (may substitute white vinegar)
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (or 2 teaspoons parsley flakes)
- Peel and dice the potatoes into bite sized pieces.
- Place the potatoes into a pot and fill with enough water to cover.
- Bring to a boil and cook for about 10 minutes, or until easily pierced with a fork but firm enough to not fall apart. Drain, return to pot and set aside.
- Use a pair of kitchen scissors or a knife and cut the bacon crosswise into small pieces.
- Place the bacon pieces in a large deep skillet over a medium-high heat. Fry until browned and crisp, stirring to separate the pieces as they cook.
- Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside.
- Finely chop or julienne the onion and add the onion to the warm bacon grease in the skillet. (You may remove part of the bacon grease if needed, since only about 1/4 cup is necessary.) Cook over medium heat until browned.
- Add the vinegar, water, sugar, salt and pepper to the skillet and stir as you bring the mixture to a boil.
- Turn off the burner, crumble in half of the bacon and stir in the parsley to the dressing.
- Pour the dressing over the potatoes and stir well while heating over medium heat. Finally, transfer the salad to a serving dish and crumble the rest of the bacon over top.
My Dad would love this Authentic German Potato Salad. He is German, and I am sure he misses his Mom’s cooking. My Grandmother was 100% German and she made the best German food I have ever tasted. I miss her meals. I will have to make this for my Dad!
Julie, thanks for sharing that special connection! Let me know if you make it for your dad and how it goes!
MMMMM. My husband is gonna love this so much.
Gloria Simms
We make German potatoes (as a breakfast food) but we’ve never topped them with bacon. I love this recipe! Thanks for sharing!
Yum!! I love the idea of serving this for breakfast… especially with the added bacon bonus!
Thanks for the recipe. I love European potato salad!
xo
Seriously? Yum. I’ve only had GPS once in my life, and that was at a ‘college dinner’ function, this has got to be WAY better. Pinned!
Let me assure you, it is AMAZING!! You definitely won’t be disappointed!
We LOVE German potato salad. In fact, I much prefer it to the heavy-on-the-mayo-and-mustard version people typically make. I’ll definitely be making this!
YUMMMMM…… pinned this so I can make it when I get my hands on some potatoes!
Love German Potato Salad!!! I’ll have to try your recipe!
Hi Kim!! I hope you do try it — It’s perfect for this time of year. Let me know how it turns out!!
I love this dish! I also come from a German family on my moms side and this was a favorite on the dinner table! I made this for my husband once and he loves it! I always look forward to going to my moms to have some of her famous potato salad! I also wanted to add that i use half a red pepper for some extra spice,if you like a little bit more spice!
Mmmmm, red pepper sounds like a fantastic addition!
This sounds great!! I am going to have to try it! I lived in Germany for 7 years and have been wanting Authentic German food lately but can’t seem to find it. Even the German restaurants food is authentic, at least it’s not what I remember. Lol, they can’t even do Jagger Schnitzel right. For some reason they want to put a white cream sauce on it rather than the brown mushroom gravy that I’m used to. So if you have a recipe for Jagger Schnitzel I would love to see it!!
Did you enjoy your time in Germany? I would love to visit… What were your favorite sites to see or things to do? I don’t have a recipe for that but I will ask my grandmother.
I loved it in Germany!! I went there right out of high school many years ago and was there for 7 years! I loved everything about it there! I got to see a lot while there, not only Germany but other countries also! I would love to go back! Just wished their currency was the Deutsche Mark rather than the Euro! Much better rate when it was the Mark! That would be awesome if she had one! I would love to attempt to make it at home since I can’t get it anywhere else! The Jagger Schnitzel and Pomme Frites was my favorite there!
Great, easy and amazing dish. Anything with bacon is a must have!!!! Thanks for the great recipe cant wait to try it soon!!
Love it, my grandmother and grandfather made that all the time.They were both from Germany, that’s the same way they made it, only a lot more! If you don’t have red potatoes you can use white ones, just peel them first.Try them at your next BBQ everyone will love them. I’ve been eating them for 69 years, not because I’m German but because they are so good.
Just made this tonight. I took a sample taste – cannot wait for dinner! It is amazing!! The perfect blend of tart and sweet, the onions browned in bacon grease….OH MAN! My girlfriend and I decided we may brown everything in bacon grease from now on. Thank you for sharing this recipe, it will be a regular in my menu planning.
I made this recipe to accompany our Labor Day lunch. It was a huge hit. Thanks for the recipe. 😀 I’m adding it to our family favorites cookbook.
Can you make this a day ahead? If so, any special directions? Thank you!
Very good but next time I think I would cut the sugar in half.