Authentic German Potato Salad Recipe [Bavarian] - Masala Herb (2024)

Published: Aug 13, 2018 · Modified: Feb 2, 2023 by Helene Dsouza

This German Potato Salad Recipe is a warm potato salad. It's commonly made in Bavaria (South Germany) and in West Austria.

I share an authentic recipe from our region.

📕 What is this German potato salad?

This potato salad is known as Kartoffelsalat or Erdäpfelsalat. Kartoffel and Erdäpfel both mean potato, the second is more commonly used in the Bavarian and Austrian language.

This potato salad is different from a conventional potato salad because hot vegetable or meat broth is poured over the cooked potatoes. The broth "seasons" the potatoes.

The South German potato salad is then served warm and never cooled.

Salad Bars in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland serve a warm potato salad and restaurants almost always have a warm potato salad on the menu. It's a staple.

Family grill-outsfrequently include a potato salad because it's easy to make it, and you don't need to refrigerate the salad.

🥔 Ingredients

Here is what you will need to make this potato salad from scratch at home. This is a quick overview, you will find the US and metric measurements in the recipe card below.

The main ingredients:

• potatoes - the soft kind, that cook through fast.
• shallots or mild onions - purple onions look great in the salad

To season:

• oil - normally Germans use sunflower or rapeseed oil, but you can use regular vegetable oil too.
• vinegar - apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar. You can use flavored vinegar too, such as my herb infused vinegar.
• salt and black pepper
• nutmeg - main seasoning, it rounds up the other flavors. Don't skip it!
• broth - vegetable or beef broth. You can mix a Maggie cube with water to make a broth.
• chives or parsley - freshly chopped

Use soft potatoes. You want the potato salad to soften and get a bit mushy, to take in flavors.

The hot broth softens the onions. Onions add a little bite to the salad dish.

🔪 How to make it?

Here is an overview of how to make this potato salad. The details are in the recipe card further below.

Step 1

Boil potatoes, peel, and cut them into thick slices.

Step 2

Add potato slices, cut onion, and seasoning to a salad bowl.

Combine vinegar and oil, pour over salad ingredients.

Step 3

Pour hot broth over the potato salad. Mix up.

Top with freshly chopped chives and serve up.

🍴 Serving

The German Potato Salad is often served with pork, meat, fish meals

You can serve the potato salad with Sauerkraut, Semmelknödel, and Sausage or with grilled pork sausages or hearty roast pork.

People in Germany and Austria serve the potato salad with a local pink meatloaf known as Leberkäse or Fleischkäse.

I also enjoy the potato salad with pan-fried, grilled, or baked fish such as with trout or carp.

You can also try to serve the potato salad with Wiener Schnitzel, instead of the common parsley butter potatoes.

But my all-time favorite way to enjoy this Bavarian Potato Salad is to serve it with cooked frankfurter sausage (Wieners) or the white sausage from Munich in Bavaria.

We frequently pass Augsburg in Germany, where we make a stop.

In that roadhouse buffet, they would serve the best Swabian (Bavarian) potato salad ever and some of the best frankfurter sausages.

The combination with a simple Semmel (aka Kaiser roll) is just divine!

🍱 Storing

Store the warm potato salad leftovers in an airtight container in your fridge for up to 3 days.

Keep it out before serving the salad, serve at room temperature for the best flavor effect.

➕ Dietary Plus Points

• Vegan (if you use vegetable broth)
• Gluten-free
• Lactose-free
• Nut-free

👁️ More Recipes from the Region

• Sauerkraut from scratch
• Cucumber Dill Salad
• Bratkartoffeln Fries

Dear Reader, did you try this recipe?

📖 Recipe