Newfoundland Potato Salad

This is not the chunky potato salad you grew up with. Newfoundland-style salad is made with smooth mashed potatoes as the base, folded with cooked green peas and a mix of cooked diced carrots, turnip, or whatever was on the supper plate the night before. Bound with mayonnaise and chilled, it lands somewhere between creamy potato salad and the side salad you’d call “Jiggs dinner leftovers."

Every Newfoundland kitchen has a slightly different version, but the through-line is clear: use up what’s in the fridge, make it cold and creamy, and serve it alongside cold meat or fish cakes for a simple island lunch.

Kitchen Tips

• Use leftover mashed potatoes rather than freshly made. Cold, firm mash folds more cleanly into the other ingredients, while hot mash turns the whole salad to soup as the butter melts into the mayo.
• Drain the cooked peas and mixed vegetables thoroughly before folding in. Excess water from the veg thins the mayonnaise and leaves the salad watery at the bottom of the bowl.
• Chill for at least an hour before serving. The flavors need time to mingle, and salad served cold tastes markedly better than room-temperature potato anything.
• Finish with a hefty crack of black pepper and chopped chives or green onions for color and bite the plain recipe lacks.

Variations

• Stir in chopped pickles or sweet relish for a brighter, tangier salad closer to classic deli potato salad.
• Fold in cooked diced beets for a pink Newfoundland-style salad that is a holiday table staple in some outports.
• Add chopped hard-boiled eggs and crisp bacon for a more substantial lunch-worthy salad.