Potato salad is one of the very popular side dishes that you can take with every possible meal. Besides, it is a good appetizer the may fill your stomach much as you need. Because, apart from boiled potato, this salad contains some other necessary ingredients for preferred taste, such as pickles, yogurt, mayonnaise, pepper, salt, sugar, mustard, etc. Though it is commonly prepared at home, sometimes it is not possible to take all that you have prepared at one go. And this is quick and easy to go bad. So now you have to see that, what will you do with the leftover salad for further use? Is it possible to freeze them? How long you can keep it in a freezer?

Too many questions, one answer- Yes. And obviously, after this, there is one last question remains- How? Let’s start a journey in search of this answer.

Can You Freeze The Potato Salad?

Can You Freeze The Potato Salad
Let’s make one thing clear; you cannot freeze potato salad for a longer period. Because, the ingredients that may commonly be added in a potato salad such as mayonnaise, yogurt, do not allow the dish to be kept in a freezer for a longer term. Despite that, you may still find some ways which help you to make it possible Let’s find out.

How to Freeze Your Potato Salad?

If really you want your leftover potato salad to be frozen, you need to put it in a freezer immediately after preparation. Freshly made salads last longer during freezing. Now you need to follow the steps and these are-

Using Freezer-Safe Container

Generally, you use to take a bowl to prepare potato salad, but if you want to store that in a freezer you should never put that bowl with the potato salad inside of it. In place of that, you are recommended to use an airtight or freezer safe container.

This kind of container doesn’t allow moisture to come in contact with the salad and in this way you can keep your salad fresh for a longer period. But you should keep 2 inches of space between the salad and the lid of the container to expand the frozen salad. Besides, you also need to keep the record when you freeze your potato salad so that you may get the idea of how long your potato salad can last in the freezer.

Cooking Potatoes Before freezing

Cooking Potatoes Before freezing
This is the most important point that must be handled carefully if you’re really want to keep the leftover potato salad in a freezer. People often do mistake and put the potatoes directly into the boiling water. Instead, you need to put the potato in cold water and then you may take the water to the boiling point and after the water boiled, reduce the heat of the oven to simmer the potatoes. In this way, you’ll get perfectly cooked potatoes not too soft and firm enough only to allow you to freeze the leftover potato salad for a longer period.

Seasoning Potatoes Before Freezing

This is one of the most important things that need not be forgotten. This needs to add salt in the water. But in most cases, people use to add salt once after the water is cold. This is the wrong way and instead of doing that you should add salt while cooking the potatoes. This allows the potato to absorb the salt and this made proper seasoning the potatoes and also provides more flavor to the potatoes.

Boiling Potatoes at the Right Amount of Time

While cooking the potatoes one thing you must keep in your mind and that is, you cannot undercook or overcook the potatoes as it may affect the taste of your salad badly. It is tested that duration of 15 minutes for boiling in salted water is perfect for potatoes used for making potato salad. You can check the potatoes by using a fork to see if it is rightly boiled for your potato salad or not. Apart from this, one thing you must remember that the duration of boiling depends on the type of potato you’re using. If you’re using Yukon Gold potatoes it will take 20 minutes for cooking, but as for Russet potatoes, 10 minutes is just enough.

Add Dressing to Your Potato Salad

Add Dressing to Your Potato Salad
One more important thing is the dressing of your potato salad before freezing. Both the improvement of taste and the duration of freezing depend upon this. The temperature you need while dressing depends on the ingredients that you’re going to apply for dressing. If you’re using mayonnaise you need to cool your potatoes for at least 30 minutes before adding the dressing. But as for vinaigrette, you need to add it when the potatoes are still warm.

Some Other Vital Things to be Followed

  1. On freezing point, mayonnaise is an ingredient that will break up. As a result, the creamy layer of your potato salad may be gone. But anyway it is safe and good to eat. One more thing, as the commercial mayonnaise contains the preservatives, it is better than homemade which can make your salad last longer.
  2. You should avoid keep open your freshly made potato salad to the room temperature or to the open air for too long to keep the salad free from bacteria.
  3. Properly cleaned and tightly closed container should be used for freezing.
  4. In this way, you may keep safe your potato salad from bacteria affect. Besides that, before you seal the container you have to see there is no air left inside it.
  5. If you want faster freezing, always try to keep a small portion of potato salad inside the freezer. This also helps you take out the right amount of salad easily from the freezer.
    If you don’t want your potato salad to be rotten early, always try to keep the container near the inside wall of the freezer. This provides quick freezing and your potato salad is found in better condition even after a longer time.

After following all the aspects of freezing potato salad for a longer time, one thing I must say, freezing is one of the easiest ways to extend the life of potato salad.

But one thing I must say, it is always good to have a fresh potato salad rather than a frozen one. Because the later lost its natural flavor and texture once it is frozen. But if you follow the things described above still can make your potato salad better in taste and flavor. So without thinking too much just use a Vegetable Peeler of any of the best brand to prepare the potato salad for yourself and rest of the family.