When Nat King Cole sang his song of summer cheer all those years ago, he mentioned most of the staples.
Soda, pretzels, beer, drive-ins, bikinis, picnic baskets were all in the hazy, crazy lyrics. But Nat forgot one — potato salad.

Potatoes are one of my addictions. Regular visitors to this Web log have read homages to products manufactured by Coors, Heinz and M&M. Thankfully, I have pretty much ended my affiliation with Breyers, and quarts of calorie-packed fudge twirl ice cream.

Fall and winter are reserved for giant kettles full of mashed potatoes, loaded with light cream cheese, butter and any seasoning I can shake out of my spice rack. But now that summer is on the move again, I splurge on potato salad instead.
Sorry, no store-bought stuff for me. Some delicatessens I have wandered into over the years really whip up a nice salad, but they usually cost $4 or $5 a pound. And I’ve noticed the big markets use too .... much ... mayonnaise!

This weekend, I’ll spend part of an expected rainy Saturday clearing out the garage and then making about five pounds of potato salad. If Jules Winfield was the foot massage master in “Pulp Fiction,” then I am the potato salad king in my section of Albany. Along with meat loaf, scrambled eggs, shrimp, chili con carne and deviled eggs, the dish is on my short list of specialties.

Bought a bag of russets Thursday night at Price Chopper, and am prepared to load a giant bowl with hard-boiled eggs, celery, onions (all chopped), mayonnaise, mustard (both stirred) and a few dashes of Italian salad dressing. And any seasoning I can shake out of my spice rack.
There is no recipe. As a bachelor, I have no need for trivial parts of the cooking process. But I can spill a secret or two about my “Festival Potato Salad,” words I have used to describe my creation to friends, relatives and myself. First, nods of appreciation to people who really know their spuds.

Mary Holck, who used to write for the old Gazette, made an excellent potato-and-egg salad that formerly showed up in the office for our annual Christmas lunch. I swiped the Italian dressing jazz in my non-existent formula from Mary.

And Phyllis Burns Sharp of Greenwich, whose daughter Judith Patrick is the newspaper’s city editor, makes a potato salad I could eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. Creamy, smooth and all-around fantastic, and I am always appreciative when Phyllis gives Judy a big bowl of her celestial mix for news room mongrels.

Now, Phyllis should not take this as a hint to send Judith off with a special order of potato salad. Not really ... not unless she really wants to ... as these Web logs should not be used for personal gain. Although, Phyllis ... it has been a while.

In my kitchen, sometimes, I use Yukon gold, other times, reds. I usually peel most of the volunteers, but will leave “jackets on” for a bunch to add extra flavor.
I’m starting to use a Crock-Pot for the cooking process. Boiling is faster, but my friends in the culinary arts department at Schenectady County Community College say some taste goes down the drain with the water. I’ve found a dry cooking method gives me a more robust russet.

I use a dozen hard-boiled eggs, Eggland’s Best. And I chop celery and Vidalia onions into small pieces (sometimes bits of fresh red pepper), so they blend a little better with the avalanche of salad mustard and mayonnaise that holds everything together. The spices and herbs are the big keys — I’ve used the Simon and Garfunkel quartet — parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme — plus garlic, pepper, paprika, basil, oregano and chives (if the latter is fresh). I like tumeric in the mix, for a little taste and a lot of light yellow color.
No salt. There’s enough punch in every “Festival” batch without salt. I suspect there are too many calories in every 12-ounce serving anyway. So leaving out white granular makes me feel a little better. No “Bacos” either, those little chips of fake bacon. They’re better with my scrambled eggs recipe, which also does not exist on paper.
I generally use two steel serving spoons to toss everything together, but that might change Saturday. I now have a hand-held mixer in my arsenal of kitchen weapons, and we’ll see if all those spices and mustard slow down the beaters.

Making potato salad during the summer saves me time later on, at dinner. When steaks, hamburgers or chicken go on the grill at 8, 9 or 10 at night, I just have to worry about the fire. The salad will be chilling out, as the hipsters like to say.
And the “Festival” salad is an excellent companion for my “Temple of Doom” chili, which is chock full of sausage, beef, beans and a generous fistful of curry.
The potatoes generally stay healthy and safe inside my experienced refrigerator for a couple of days. That’s all the time I need for morning, noon and night servings.

If anyone has any tips on potato salad, I sure hope they will post them. I am open to any new variations or advice. Some people say any mayo will do, some say it has to be Hellman’s. I used to be a Mrs. Filbert’s man myself, but can’t find my old favorite on store shelves any more.

All mail will be answered. We potato salad fans have to stick together!