The Ultimate Creamy Ranch Potato Salad: An Unforgettable Side Dish!

Get ready to fall in love with the easiest and most flavorful potato salad you’ve ever tasted. Our Ranch Potato Salad is a true crowd-pleaser, boasting tender red potatoes, generous amounts of sharp Cheddar cheese, perfectly crispy bacon, and a vibrant touch of fresh green onions. What makes this recipe truly stand out is its incredibly simple yet irresistible two-ingredient ranch and sour cream dressing, ensuring a creamy, savory experience every single time.

This delightful twist on a classic potato salad is guaranteed to be the star of any gathering. Imagine it served alongside your favorite summer meals, like this fantastic Burger Recipe, creating a symphony of flavors that will have everyone asking for seconds. Its rich, satisfying profile makes it an ideal companion to grilled meats, BBQ feasts, and backyard potlucks.

Contents

Ranch Potato Salad: A Flavorful Family Tradition

For many, this particular Ranch Potato Salad isn’t just a recipe; it’s a cherished summer tradition. Inspired by a beloved family recipe, it captures the comforting essence of a fully loaded baked potato – rich, creamy, and wonderfully cheesy. The addition of ranch seasoning takes this classic comfort food to an entirely new dimension, infusing every bite with an unmatched savory depth. This salad delivers a perfect harmony of creamy texture, savory notes, salty crunch from the bacon, and the tangy kick of cheese. It’s a dish we’re absolutely obsessed with, and we’re confident it will become a new favorite in your home too!

What makes this specific Ranch Potato Salad so special? It’s the ingenious combination of familiar flavors with a refreshing twist. Unlike traditional mayonnaise-based potato salads, our dressing combines cool, tangy sour cream with a zesty ranch seasoning mix. This creates a lighter, yet equally indulgent, creamy texture that perfectly complements the tender potatoes and savory mix-ins. It’s the ideal side for a hot summer day, offering a comforting coolness without feeling heavy.

The Secret to Perfectly Cooked Potatoes for Your Potato Salad

Achieving the ideal texture for your potato salad is paramount, and it all starts with how you cook the potatoes. We begin by placing our diced red potatoes in a large pot and covering them generously with cold water. This crucial step ensures that the potatoes cook evenly from the outside in, preventing the exterior from becoming overcooked and mushy while the interior remains undercooked. Once the water comes to a rolling boil, we add a generous amount of salt – a key component for infusing flavor directly into the potatoes themselves. Immediately after salting, we reduce the heat to a low simmer, keeping the pot uncovered. This gentle simmering action allows the potatoes to cook through without excessive agitation, which can otherwise lead to broken, mushy potato pieces – the bane of any good potato salad.

Expert Potato Boiling Tips for the Best Texture

Season the Water Generously: Don’t underestimate the power of salt! Adding a good amount of salt to the boiling water (we recommend about 1 teaspoon per 4 cups of water) is vital. This seasons the potatoes from the inside out, providing a foundational layer of flavor that elevates the entire salad. Bland potatoes will result in a flat-tasting salad, no matter how good your dressing is.
Always Start with Cold Water: As mentioned, starting potatoes in cold water is non-negotiable for even cooking. If you drop potatoes into already boiling water, the outside will cook much faster than the inside, leading to uneven texture and potential mushiness.
Monitor for Tenderness: Overcooked potatoes are the enemy of potato salad. Begin checking your potatoes for doneness after about 8-10 minutes of simmering. Use a fork to gently pierce a potato piece; as soon as it feels tender with slight resistance, they are ready. Remove them from the heat immediately to prevent them from becoming waterlogged or falling apart.
Choose the Right Potato: Red potatoes are an excellent choice for potato salad due to their waxy texture, which helps them hold their shape beautifully after cooking. Other waxy varieties like Yukon Golds also work well. Avoid starchy potatoes like Russets, as they tend to become grainy and mushy when boiled.

Essential Notes for Your Perfect Ranch Potato Salad

I typically leave the skins on the red potatoes. This not only adds beautiful color and a rustic touch to the salad but also contributes a bit of textural contrast. Furthermore, red potato skins are thin and delicate, making peeling an unnecessary step and saving you valuable prep time. They also retain more nutrients this way!
Prepare in Advance for Optimal Flavor: While this Ranch Potato Salad is incredibly easy, it does require some time for the potatoes to cook and cool, and for the flavors to fully meld. Planning to make it at least an hour before serving, or even a few hours ahead, is highly recommended. As the salad chills, the dressing penetrates the potatoes and the flavors deepen, resulting in a much more delicious and cohesive dish. Everything truly tastes better cold when it comes to potato salad, so resist the urge to rush the chilling process.
Thoroughly Drain and Dry Potatoes: After simmering, it’s critical to thoroughly drain your potatoes. Once drained, allow them to air dry for a few minutes or even gently pat them with paper towels. Any excess moisture clinging to the potatoes will dilute your rich, creamy dressing, leading to a watery and bland salad. This step ensures maximum flavor absorption and a perfectly creamy consistency.
Select a Quality Ranch Seasoning Mix: The quality of your ranch seasoning significantly impacts the final taste of your salad. While crafting your own homemade ranch seasoning is always an option, the beauty of this recipe lies in its quick and easy preparation. We’ve found that Hidden Valley Ranch® seasoning mix (not sponsored, just a genuine preference!) consistently delivers the best flavor balance. Other brands can sometimes lack the characteristic ranch zest or be overly salty, so choose wisely for the best results.

Quick Tip: Ranch Dressing Beyond Potato Salad!

Don’t limit the magic of ranch to just this salad! Keep a bottle of your favorite prepared ranch dressing (not the dry mix) on hand. It’s an incredible flavor booster and can be used in place of regular mayonnaise for countless dishes. Try it in other pasta salads, as a sandwich spread, or even as a dip for fresh vegetables. It adds a delicious tangy, herby punch to almost anything!

Make Ahead and Storage Suggestions for Convenience

This Ranch Potato Salad is an excellent make-ahead dish, perfect for busy hosts or meal prepping. For the best flavor development, prepare the salad at least an hour before you plan to serve it, allowing ample time for it to chill thoroughly in the refrigerator. It can be made up to 4 hours in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. This extended chilling time allows the dressing to deeply infuse the potatoes and other ingredients, resulting in a more harmonious and robust flavor profile.

Leftover potato salad, when properly stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, will remain fresh and delicious for 3-4 days. If you prefer your bacon to maintain its ultimate crispiness (rather than softening slightly from being mixed into the salad), we recommend adding the chopped bacon right before serving individual portions. This simple trick ensures every bite has that satisfying crunch that perfectly complements the creamy potatoes.

More Potluck Favorites to Complete Your Spread

Looking for more delicious and easy-to-make dishes that are perfect for potlucks, BBQs, or family gatherings? Explore some of our other top picks that are sure to be a hit:

Creamy Broccoli Avocado and Berry Salad with a refreshing dressing.
Vibrant Greek Pasta Salad featuring a zesty Greek-inspired vinaigrette.
Decadent Oreo Fluff, a creamy and sweet dessert salad that’s always a crowd-pleaser.
Unique Macaroni Coleslaw Salad, a delightful potluck mash-up.
Refreshing Fruit Salad Recipe tossed in a bright citrus vinaigrette.

Finished side dish, deliciously dressed and inviting, ready for enjoyment.

Print Recipe

5 from 11 votes

Ranch Potato Salad

By

Chelsea Lords

This Ranch Potato Salad recipe is incredibly easy! It’s loaded with tender red potatoes, sharp Cheddar, crispy bacon, and fresh green onions, all tossed in a quick two-ingredient ranch and sour cream dressing.

Prep Time:

25 minutes

Cook Time:

15 minutes

Chilling Time:

1 hour

Total Time:

1 hour
40 minutes

Servings:

6
sides

Equipment

Large pot

Ingredients

2 pounds red potatoes cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups sour cream regular or low fat
1 (1-ounce) package
ranch seasoning mix
dry, see note 1 below
pepper
to taste
1-1/2 cups freshly shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
14 to 16 slices bacon
1 cup thinly sliced green onions

Instructions

Leave the peel on the red potatoes and cut them into uniform 1-inch cubes. Place the potato cubes in a large pot and cover with about 1 inch of cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then add salt (approximately 1 teaspoon per every 4 cups of water). Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low to maintain a bare simmer, and cook uncovered for 8–15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and can be easily pierced with a fork. Check frequently to prevent overcooking, which can lead to a mushy salad.
Carefully drain the cooked potatoes and rinse them under cold water to stop the cooking process and help them cool. Allow them to stand and dry completely before adding them to the salad. This step is crucial to prevent a watery dressing.
While the potatoes cool, prepare the dressing: In a medium bowl, combine the ranch seasoning mix (refer to note 1 below) with the sour cream. Whisk thoroughly until the mixture is smooth and well combined.
Cook the bacon until crispy, then drain off any excess grease. Once cooled slightly, chop the bacon coarsely.
Once the potatoes are completely cooled, transfer them to a large mixing bowl. Add the chopped bacon (see note 2 below for crispiness), freshly shredded Cheddar cheese, and thinly sliced green onions. Pour the prepared ranch and sour cream dressing over all the ingredients and gently toss until everything is evenly coated. Season with freshly cracked black pepper to taste.
Cover the bowl and refrigerate the potato salad for at least 30 minutes, or preferably 1 hour, before serving. This chilling time allows the flavors to deepen and meld beautifully.

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Quality Ranch Seasoning: For the most authentic and robust flavor, I personally prefer Hidden Valley Ranch® seasoning mix (this is not sponsored, merely a recommendation based on consistent results). Other brands can sometimes fall short in flavor or contain excessive salt. If you’re sensitive to salt or unsure, start with half a packet of seasoning and gradually add more to achieve your desired taste.

Note 2: Maintaining Bacon Crispiness: If you desire the bacon to remain exceptionally crispy (as opposed to developing a softer, chewier texture when mixed into the salad), consider sprinkling it over individual servings just before serving. Mixing bacon into the entire salad will inevitably cause it to soften as it absorbs moisture from the dressing.

Storage Tips: Leftover Ranch Potato Salad will maintain its freshness and quality for 3–4 days when stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. As mentioned in Note 2, if crisp bacon is a priority, add it just prior to serving any refrigerated portions.

Nutrition

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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