Czechs are the champions in preparing potato salad. Believe me, the Czech one tastes the best of all! We call our potato salad “bramborový salát” in the Czech Republic, and you’ll find it most often on the table during the Christmas season when the salad is served with fried carp or schnitzel.
What Is Czech Potato Salad?
Czech classic potato salad is made of boiled potatoes, eggs, root vegetables, dill pickles, and mayonnaise. In addition to salt and pepper, pickle juice and yellow mustard are mixed into the salad.
Potato salad is traditionally served at Christmas Eve dinner as a side dish with fried carp. Not only at Christmas but also on other festive occasions, potato salad appears on the holiday menu.
If you have ever tasted the famous Czech open-faced sandwiches, then know that potato salad can be spread on white bread and forms the basis of the “obložený chlebíček” sandwich.
Ingredients
To make Czech potato salad, we need:
- Potatoes; use all-purpose or waxy potatoes that hold together and don't fall apart when cooked. The potatoes should be cooked with the skin on, preferably the day before, and cut into the salad when completely cooled.
- Eggs; hard-boiled and cooled
- Dill pickles; in addition to the pickles we will need to season the salad with a little pickle juice
- Onion; finely cut
- Carrot; fresh carrot, boil it in water in advance, and cool it
- Parsley root; as with carrots: boil and cool it
- Pepper and salt
- Yellow mustard
In the Czech Republic, there are many variations of potato salad. Practically every homemaker has their own recipe. The one I am presenting here is tested in our family, contains basic ingredients, and is simple.
Instructions
STEP 1: Boil the potatoes in their skin and let them cool down completely, ideally overnight. Boil hard-boiled eggs, cool them, and peel them.
STEP 2: Clean the carrots and parsley root and cut them into 1-2 equal-sized pieces. Cook them in boiling water for about 5 minutes, then cool them quickly with cold water. The vegetables will be soft but not mushy.
STEP 3: Cut the potatoes, eggs, pickles, carrot, and parsley root into cubes about ⅓-inches in size. Peel and finely chop the onion.
STEP 4: Put everything in a large bowl. Add mayonnaise, pickle juice and yellow mustard. Season with salt and pepper and mix thoroughly.
Let the potato salad sit in the fridge for at least an hour before serving.
Serving
Czechs serve potato salad as a side dish, most often with fried breaded meat. Garnish the salad on the plate with a sprig of green parsley as a final touch.
Cook’s Tips
- For the potato salad, choose potatoes of roughly the same size to be cooked evenly.
- Some Czech recipes call for adding celery root or peas to the salad. Try it and see how the taste suits you.
- Store the salad in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap for up to 4 days.
Pronunciation
Curious how Czechs pronounce "bramborový salát"? I recorded a short audio clip to give you an idea! I'm a native speaker, so I guarantee an authentic Czech voice.
🥗 More Czech salads:
- Vlašský salát – ideal as a snack salad
- Pochoutkový salát – deli salad with mayo
Czech Potato Salad – Bramborový salát
Ingredients
- 2 lb (900 g) potatoes
- 2 carrot (mid-size)
- 1 onion (smaller)
- 1 parsley root (mid-size)
- 6 dill pickles (mid-size)
- 2 Tbsp pickle juice
- 5 eggs (hard-boiled)
- 6 Tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 and ½ Tbsp yellow mustard
- 2 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper (ground)
Instructions
- Boil the potatoes in their skin and let them cool completely, ideally overnight. Boil hard-boiled eggs, cool them, and peel them.
- Clean the carrots and parsley root and cut them into 1-2 equal-sized pieces. Cook them in boiling water for about 5 minutes, then cool them quickly with cold water. The vegetables will be soft but not mushy.
- Cut the potatoes, eggs, pickles, carrot, and parsley root into cubes about ⅓-inches in size. Peel and finely chop the onion.
- Put everything in a large bowl. Add mayonnaise, pickle juice, and yellow mustard. Season with salt and pepper and mix thoroughly.
Notes
- Makes 6 portions as a side dish.
- Let the potato salad sit in the fridge for at least an hour before serving.
- For the potato salad, choose potatoes of roughly the same size to cook evenly.
- Some Czech recipes call for adding celery root or peas to the salad. Try it and see how the taste suits you.
- Some Czech recipes call for adding celery root or peas to the salad. Try it and see how the taste suits you.
DISCLAIMER: Because I come from Central Europe, my recipes are based on metric units such as grams or milliliters. Check out how I convert metric units to the U.S. system:
Conversion chart
pz
This salad is excellent! Thank you so much for the recipe!
Petra Kupská
I thank you for your comment! This type of potato salad is one of the most festive dishes in the Czech Republic. Every time bramborový salát is served, I know it's a special day 🙂
kristena
I do mine like this, minus the root vegetables. I will try this!
Petra Kupská
Try it, and I'd love your feedback on how the potato salad tasted! Czechs use root vegetables quite a lot in cooking; vegetables like carrots or parsley are common and affordable in the shops here in the Czech Republic.
Crystal S.
I was so happy to find your blog today. In 2007-2008, I lived in Sokolov for one year teaching English. Enjoying the local food was one of my favorite parts of living in your beautiful country. I loved bramborový salát, the rohliky sandwiches I would buy for lunch at my school, smažený sýr, and the exquisite Christmas cookies prepared by my friends' families. I have looked at many Czech recipes over the years, but always had trouble finding websites or books that seemed authentic. Your recipes remind me so much of my time in Czechia that I feel homesick! Thank you for starting to publish this wonderful resource. I can't wait to try some.
Petra Kupská
Ahoj Crystal, thanks for the lovely message and for sharing your memories of the Czech Republic! I'm glad you enjoyed your time here. My kids also have native English speakers at school – both from the UK and the U.S. They are primarily young people and rotate after a year. Our kids love them; these teachers constantly enrich them with traditions from their country and tell them how life is elsewhere. I believe Czech cuisine is exciting, and thank you for confirming that. The dishes you listed are typical of Czech food. Moreover, you reminded me that we would soon start baking Christmas cookies, which Czech women make a month before Christmas 🙂 Sending warm greetings from Bohemia, Petra