Crab Boil Potato Salad Recipe: Summer Sides

I'm not sure how it happened, but this Memorial Day weekend I was able to take a break from cooking and enjoy some spicy, smoky love from other peoples' kitchens. (Thanks Jeffbignerd and Liza Jane!)

Which was nice, because I think I burned myself out this week. (Cooked till 1:30 am to stock a friend's fridge w/"reheatables" on top of the usual hours spent grilling, entertaining, and cooking for the week. Noooo more simmering! Noooo!!)

In return for Jeffbignerd and Liza Jane's generosity, I did offer some of my favorite Summer Sides.

To me a good summer side can be served cold or room temperature, nicely complements the rich and spicy grilled flavors of the season, and it may be a "classic" but it has some unexpected flavors, too. This potato salad falls into that category. I use spicy crab boil to add some earthy, spicy flavors to the potatoes as they cook, and then toss everything with the usual potato salad staples. Serve it with steak or burgers, and enjoy!

Crab-Boil Potato Salad:

10 medium Red Skin Potatoes
1 package Crab Boil dry (not liquid) seasoning
2 cups chopped boiled Egg
2 cups sliced Green Onion
1 cup diced Celery
1/2 cup diced Red Onion
1 cup Mayonnaise, divided
2 Tbs. Creole Mustard
Cayenne Pepper, Salt, Pepper
1. Peirce the skins of the potatoes on 4 sides with a fork or a sharp knife. Add the potatoes and the crab boil packet to a large pot, add a large pinch of salt, and cover with water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and boil until the potatoes are soft. (Approx. 15 minutes). I like my potatoes super-starchy, so I boil them until I can crush them easily with a fork and then refrigerate the potatoes to firm them up for mixing later.

2. Drain and cool the potatoes. Chop the potatoes into bite-sized cubes and add to a large mixing bowl. (I peel some of the red skins off of the cooked cubes if they are loose, until I have the desired skin-to-potato ratio for my potato salad). Cut open the mesh bag holding the crab boil spices, and add 3 Tbs. of the loose spices to the potatoes.

3. Add everything but the mayonnaise, cayenne, salt, and pepper to the mixing bowl with the potatoes and the crab boil spices. Add the mayonnaise, 1/4 cup at a time and stir. Keep adding 1/4 cup mayo until the potatoes reach your desired creaminess. (I prefer my potato salad to be a little drier and starchy, instead of pretty and glossy, but that's up to you. If you want starchy, crush some of the potatoes as you stir...mmmmcrushed potatoes soaked in mayo.....) add salt, pepper, and cayenne to taste. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, and serve.