This potato salad with cooked ham, peas, hard-boiled eggs, tomatoes and pickled gherkins is a rich, creamy and easy-to-make cold dish, perfect for a quick lunch, a light dinner or a buffet. It is made with soft boiled potatoes, diced cooked ham, peas, hard-boiled eggs and fresh tomatoes, enhanced by the tangy flavor of pickled gherkins and the aroma of chives. Everything is dressed with mayonnaise and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, which make this potato salad creamy and flavorful yet balanced.
This is an easy and quick recipe; for me it’s like a complete meal, perfect to prepare in advance and serve cold or at room temperature. This hearty potato salad is great in every season: ideal for family lunches, picnics, buffets, aperitifs or day trips, and it can be easily customized with ingredients you have at home.
VARIATIONS
As VARIATIONS I suggest personalizing the potato salad with cooked ham by adding or substituting some ingredients.
– Mustard instead of mayonnaise: use 1–2 teaspoons of mustard mixed with the oil for a lighter, more aromatic dressing.
– Capers: add 1 tablespoon of desalinated capers for a stronger flavor.
– Olives: try green olives or Ligurian Taggiasca olives, sliced, about 60 g.
– Fresh parsley: finely chopped instead of chives or together with them for a fresher aroma.
OTHER ADDITIONS THAT, IN MY OPINION, WORK GREAT:
• Boiled carrots, diced
• Crunchy celery
• Mozzarella or scamorza, cubed
• Tinned tuna in oil or in water, well drained
• Sweet corn
This is a very versatile potato salad, perfect as a cold main course, a hearty side dish, or a refrigerator-cleanout recipe, since you can easily adapt it to what you have at home.
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Cooking time: 25 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 21 oz potatoes (about 3 medium)
- 1 1/4 cups peas (~7 oz)
- 2 tomatoes (firm and ripe)
- 4 hard-boiled eggs
- 4 pickled gherkins
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 5 oz cooked ham (diced)
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper
- to taste chives
Tools
- Salad bowls
- Small pans
Steps
Boil the potatoes with their skins on in salted water for about 25–30 minutes. Drain them, let them cool slightly, peel and cut into cubes.
Cook the peas if fresh, in lightly salted water for 8–10 minutes, then drain and let cool.
Boil the eggs for 9 minutes from when the water starts to boil, cool them under cold running water, peel and cut into wedges.Cut the cooked ham into cubes.
Cut the tomatoes into cubes, removing the seed liquid.
Slice the pickled gherkins into rounds or small pieces.In a large bowl combine the potatoes, ham, peas, tomatoes and gherkins.
Dress with olive oil, salt and a little pepper, and gently mix.
Add the hard-boiled eggs on top and finish with chopped chives.
Let rest for at least 10–15 minutes before serving so the flavors meld together.It’s a creamy, appetizing salad with lots of flavor!
Enjoy! Annalisa
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