Loaded Baked Potato Salad
by Sommer Collier — on May 20, 2026 I can’t say no to a spring or summer barbecue with friends and family. My loaded baked potato salad is one of my top go-to dishes to bring and share! This crowd favorite is a fabulous pairing of two classic foods you usually find at most American cookouts. I make it with actual baked potatoes, crispy bacon, shredded cheddar cheese, and fresh green onions combined in a creamy mayo and sour cream dressing. And I make it ahead of time so it’s perfectly chilled and super flavorful. It’s no wonder why I keep getting those invites!
I love potato salad; it’s one of the most nostalgic homey recipes I can think of. As I’ve mentioned many times here on A Spicy Perspective, my mom makes the absolute best potato salad. In fact, her homemade potato salad recipe is one of the top versions on the web! However, we do like to mix things up on occasion, and today’s loaded baked potato salad is exactly what it sounds like… Baked potatoes, and all the fixings, including sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, chopped green onions, and crumbled bacon. It’s easy to mix, pop in the fridge, and pull it out anytime you need it. I love to make this recipe for potlucks and weekend gatherings. It disappears fast!
Table of Contents
Sommer’s Recipe Highlights
Everyone’s Favorites – Here we have the perfect marriage of two iconic South-by-Midwest foods… fluffy and tender baked potatoes with creamy and chunky potato salad. Together, you still get those textures and tastes you expect, but with a fun and delicious upgrade.
Make Ahead – As with nearly all potato salad recipes, this dish develops an even better flavor the longer it sits in the fridge. Like with my deviled egg potato salad recipe, I recommend chilling it for at least an hour after preparing. But if you have the chance to make it a day in advance, do so!
Super Side Dish – I mean, it’s a fabulous potato salad. You know what to do here! Serve it cold as a side dish with classic southern foods… Basically, any barbecued, grilled, or fried proteins. And loaded potato salad is always a great idea to bring as a dish to share at parties and gatherings. I even like to eat it by itself in a bowl for a ‘lil cool snack on a hot date.
Key Ingredients and Tips
- Potatoes – Russet potatoes are the best ones for baking and making potato salad. They are hearty enough to stand up to high heat without turning into mush. And they don’t have a strong taste on their own, making russets perfect for combining with bolder flavors.
- Bacon – I recommend using quality thick-cut bacon. Cheaper and thinner slices tend to either burn or fall apart, and really just don’t have the same taste.
- Mayonnaise and sour cream – I use both for a rich, creamy texture and slightly tangy taste. I think the sour cream is what really makes the baked potato salad have that true loaded baked potato flavor.
- Shredded cheese – Whenever possible, I suggest shredding cheddar cheese fresh from the block, rather than buying bags of shredded cheese. Those have other anti-caking ingredients that can alter the flavor.
- Green onions – Wash and slice the green tops, then discard the white section or save to use in another recipe. You can also use sliced chives, if you like, which have a milder flavor.
- Seasonings – Garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
How to Make
Find the full ingredient proportions, detailed instructions, storage tips, and a video tutorial in the printable form at the bottom of the post.
Wash and Poke – The first main step to make baked potato salad is to… You guessed it, bake the potatoes! I start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees, and get out a baking sheet and a fork. While the oven preheats, I scrub the outside of the potatoes to remove as much dirt as possible. Yes, I’ll be peeling the skin off, however, dirt on the potato skin can actually affect the flavor of the potato filling when baked.
After scrubbing and drying the potatoes, I place them on the baking sheet and use a fork to poke small holes in them. A few pokes on each side (so about 4-6) are good to release steam from the potatoes as they bake.
Bake Potatoes and Cook Bacon – Into the oven go the potatoes, and I cook them for about 1 hour, until the skins start to shrivel and the potatoes are slightly soft to the touch. While the potatoes are baking, I cook the bacon, drain the pieces on paper towels to remove excess grease, then chop them up into small 1/4-inch pieces.
Slice and Shred – Once the potatoes are out of the oven, I cool them on the counter while I chop onions and shred the cheese.
Make the Dressing – Next, I use a silicone spatula to combine the mayo, sour cream, and spices in a large mixing bowl that I’ll be making the entire potato salad in.
Peel the Potatoes – When the potatoes are cool enough for me to touch, I carefully peel off most of the skin, trying to leave the potato itself as intact as possible. Unlike other recipes, where I remove all of the peel for a silky and chunky salad, here I’m leaving on large portions of the skin to play with that true baked potato vibe.
Dice and Add to Bowl – Now I chop the potatoes into even 3/4-inch chunks. I want the pieces to be big enough so they hold shape (a bit crumbly is fine), but not so big that they aren’t fork-friendly. And keep them as uniform as possible! Then I add the chunks to the bowl.
Mix and Chill – I use my silicone spatula to gently mix the potato pieces in with the creamy base. Take care not to smoosh the potatoes! Next, I add the shredded cheese, chopped bacon, and green onion slices to the bowl, and carefully stir again.
Then I cover the bowl, either with a fitted lid or a layer of plastic wrap, and pop it in the refrigerator. As I mentioned before, the salad is best after chilling for at least an hour. (Same here, potato salad, same here.)
Expert Tips
Most potato salads require boiling the potatoes, but here we are baking them. Baked potatoes just as you would when you’re making, well, baked potatoes… But then, when it’s time to make the potato salad, you need to chop the potatoes. Here you can decide how much peel you want in the potato salad. You can leave it all in, or you can peel part of the peels off for a slightly smoother texture. I do like at least some of the peels to be left on, so you have the quintessential baked potato texture.
In a pinch, you can use packaged bacon bits in this recipe. However, if you take the time to cook and chop thick-cut bacon it’s so much better. I like the brand Wright’s bacon, and I love to make the bacon in the oven ahead of time so it’s quick to chop and throw in the bowl.
Finally, you absolutely must cool the potatoes long enough, so they don’t melt the cheese when it’s added. Be patient, it’s worth it!
Serving Suggestions
Baked potato salad, like most potato salads, is always welcome at barbecues and potlucks. I often make it with Southern-style main dishes like –
- BBQ Chicken Skewers
- Baby Back Ribs, or try my quick and easy recipe to make ribs in an air fryer
- Smoked Pork Butt
- Chopped Brisket
- Spatchcock Chicken (with Coca Cola)
It’s also a terrific flavor boost paired with delicious yet humble hot dogs and hamburgers.
Storage Notes
Keep the salad in a sealed container and in the fridge for up to 4 days. But I think tater dish tastes best in the first couple of days of making it. Much longer, and the potatoes soften a bit more than I personally like.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nope, you don’t peel the potatoes before baking them in the oven. I peel (most of) the skin off the cooked potatoes after they’ve cooled. But again, feel free to remove however much of the potato skin you like.
Be sure to cover the bowl well when it’s in the fridge, otherwise the potato salad can dry out quickly. If it does seem a bit too dry, I suggest combining a tablespoon each of mayo and sour cream, and gently mixing into the salad. You might need one more round of mayo and sour cream after that, but be careful to not add too much moisture, or you’ll wind up with sad, soggy salad.
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More Side Dish Recipes
Loaded Baked Potato Salad
Video
Ingredients
- 3 pounds russet potatoes
- 10 strips thick-cut bacon cooked and chopped
- 1 ½ cups mayonnaise
- 1 ½ cups sour cream
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese off the block
- 1 cup chopped green onions 1 bunch
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Wash the potatoes and set them on a baking sheet. Poke the potatoes with a fork on several sides, then place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 55-60 minutes, or until the biggest potato is fork-tender all the way to the center. Remove from the oven and allow the potatoes to cool.
- Meanwhile, cook the bacon, remove it from the bacon grease, and chop roughly. Chopped the green onions and shred the cheddar cheese.
- Set out a large bowl. Combined the mayonnaise, sour cream, garlic powder, 1 ½ teaspoons salt, and ½ – 1 teaspoon ground black pepper. Whisk until smooth.
- Once the potatoes are cool enough to peel, peel off as much, or as little, skin as you like. I usually peel off about half the skin. Chopped the potatoes into ¾ inch chunks. It's OK if they're a little crumbly.
- Add all the potato chunks to the bowl. Then add the chopped green onions and chopped bacon. Gently fold the ingredients together until the dressing covers all the potatoes. *If you want, you can save a little bit of the bacon, green onions, and cheese to garnish the top.
- Add the shredded cheese. Gently folded again until the cheese is well incorporated. Then garnish the top if you have extra toppings, cover, and chill for at least 2 hours.
- As with all potato salad salads, this dish develops an even better flavor the longer it sits. If you have the chance to make it a day in advance, do so!
