Creamy Japanese Potato Salad

Close up shot of colourful Japanese potato salad on a plate.

Creamy Japanese Potato Salad

Try this easy Japanese potato salad recipe with crispy bacon and kewpie mayonnaise! It's bright, colourful, full of flavour and guaranteed to disappear fast. Perfect as a side for BBQs or add to a homemade bento lunchbox!

Course Salad

Cuisine Japanese

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Total Time 30

Servings sides

Calories 215kcal

Author Wandercooks

Cost $5

Ingredients

2 potatoes washed, peeled and diced
1 slice bacon diced
3 cucumber mini Lebanese, about 10cm long, thinly sliced
1 carrot thinly sliced into whole or half moons
1 egg boiled and sliced
3 tbsp Kewpie mayonnaise
pinch salt
pinch pepper

Instructions

Place the carrots in a microwave-safe bowl and cover with water (or steam on the stove). Microwave for 2 1/2 minutes on high and drain, stopping to check every 30 seconds. Test to see if they are soft enough before draining.
1 carrot
Next, place the cucumber slices in a bowl and sprinkle with salt. (This will extract the liquid, leaving the cucumber nice and crunchy). After 5 – 10 minutes, rinse the cucumber thoroughly 2-3 times to remove all the salt. Squeeze them gently to remove any excess water and pat dry with a paper towel.
3 cucumber, pinch salt
Add the bacon in a medium frying pan over medium high heat and fry until cooked. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
1 slice bacon
Bring the potato pieces to the boil in a large saucepan and cook until tender. Remove from the heat and drain and allow to cool slightly. Place the potato in a mixing bowl and mash gently with a fork to retain texture.
2 potatoes
Add in the cucumber, carrot and stir through the potatoes. Add the bacon (set aside 1-2 tsp for garnish), egg, salt & pepper to season and finally - the star of the show - Kewpie mayonnaise. Combine everything carefully without breaking up the egg too much.
1 egg, pinch salt, pinch pepper, 3 tbsp Kewpie mayonnaise
Garnish with remaining bacon pieces and an optional drizzle of extra Kewpie serve immediately or pop in the fridge, covered, until ready.

Video

Notes

If you don't have microwave, you can steam or boil the carrots on the stove until soft.
This goes great as a bento filling.
To save time, you can boil the potatoes first while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
Can I make Japanese Potato Salad ahead of time? You can make this salad ahead of time, just be sure to store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The flavour is best when eaten immediately, or max within a few hours.
Can you make Japanese Potato Salad without Kewpie? While you can easily substitute Kewpie with regular mayonnaise, it really is what makes this taste different to a regular potato salad. If you really can't find it, we'd recommend you try and make your own, so you can still replicate the flavour as close as possible.
You can replace the bacon with ham for a lighter option that doesn't need to be cooked.
For more filling ideas, you can also add onion, tuna, wasabi and even apple!

Nutrition