When soaring outdoor temperatures and outdoor cooking collide, the casualty can be classic mayonnaise-dressed side dishes.

I love grilled foods alongside homemade, well-seasoned, all-American potato and macaroni salads. No factory-made versions with their preservatives, thickeners and fake flavors, please.

However, mayonnaise-based salads — homemade or store-bought — tend to get a bad rap when served in summer’s swelter. But the notion that mayonnaise, more than other foods, is a source of food-borne illness simply doesn’t hold up to scientific scrutiny. Simply put, mayonnaise is no more prone to propagating harmful bacteria than many other “potentially hazardous” foods, and it may even be safer than some.

Mayonnaise doesn’t deserve its dangerous reputation

Highly acidic ingredients, including vinegar and lemon juice, coupled with pasteurized eggs and salt, essentially render commercially made mayonnaise and similar dressings inhospitable to bacteria that cause food-borne illness. A seminal study published in 2000 by the National Library of Medicine concluded that several bacteria, including salmonella and E. coli, die when inoculated into mayonnaise and dressings.

Containing raw eggs, homemade mayonnaise likely gave rise to the belief that this condiment is a catastrophe waiting to happen. Homemade mayonnaise also may not contain enough salt and vinegar to counteract the growth of harmful bacteria, according to the Association for Dressings and Sauces.

Recipes that commonly mix mayonnaise with low-acid foods — think chicken, ham, cooked potatoes and even cooked pasta — are the larger contributors to food-borne illness, particularly taking into account the chance for cross-contamination and some cooks’ poor hygiene. To reduce some of those risk factors, food-safety experts advocate using commercially prepared mayonnaise in both home and restaurant kitchens.

Whether or not foods contain mayonnaise, temperature control is key this time of year, when dishes may be left for a gathering’s duration in hot, open air. Remember: Cooked, ready-to-eat foods should be kept at 40 F and colder or 140 F and hotter. Above 90 F, pathogens in food double in fewer than 20 minutes and can increase tenfold in about an hour. 

There’s no sidestepping some guests’ skepticism about consuming mayonnaise-based dishes from an outdoor buffet. So I tend to skip potato and macaroni salads when I’m contributing to a potluck in favor of dishes packed with colorful, flavorful produce and fresh, vibrant herbs, lightly dressed with citrus juice and heart-healthy oil.

These recipes liven up summer’s picnic, potluck spreads

My signature summer salad is a stunner on any potluck spread. A kissing cousin of rice pilaf, Wild Rice Salad Olivo marries so many gems of Mediterranean cuisine in a single dish. Sundried tomatoes, roasted bell peppers, Kalamata olives and pine nuts — all exotic delicacies in 1990s coastal Oregon when my mom and I spied this recipe in a Bon Appetit magazine.

Although the ingredients are more affordable and commonplace today, you may be tempted to skimp, using canned black olives instead of Kalamata or fresh tomatoes and bell peppers. Please don’t. The flavors will be seriously lacking. I have substituted jarred roasted peppers, but they’re never as good as home-roasted.

My mom and I adapted the recipe to include white rice, both for reasons of cost and visual interest. I often add crumbled feta or goat cheese, and I’ve made the salad without one or more (but not all) of the fresh herbs.

When you want assurance that your dish won’t be duplicated at a potluck, Wild Rice Salad Olivo is the one to bring. I have yet to see anyone serve a similar dish at any casual gathering in Southern Oregon. This recipe serves about eight people as a stand-alone side dish or about 20 if presented potluck style.

No less distinctive is Summer’s Sweet Potato Salad, which balances the warmth and slight bitterness of allspice with astringent lime juice and cilantro. Err on the side of more allspice than less to achieve the recipe’s Afro-Caribbean sensibility that pairs particularly well with Jamaican jerk chicken or Cajun-style blackened fish.

Because cooked grains and potatoes are classified as “potentially hazardous foods,” in restaurant-industry parlance, these salads still need to be stored as close to 40 F as possible, in a chilled bowl or on a tray of ice. Promptly return leftovers to the refrigerator. 

Wild Rice Salad Olivo

1 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice
2 cups uncooked white, basmati or Thai jasmine rice
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow or orange bell pepper
24 oil-packed, sundried tomatoes, coarsely chopped
24 pitted Kalamata olives, quartered
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup minced, fresh Italian parsley
1 small bunch fresh basil, cut in chiffonade
Several sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only, minced (optional)
1/2 cup feta cheese crumbles
Juice of 4 large lemons
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (optional)
1/2 teaspoon paprika (optional)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Simmer the wild rice in 6 cups salted water until rice splits, and white interior is visible, for about 45 minutes. Drain. Cook the white rice in about 4 cups of lightly salted water until fluffy. Allow rices to cool.

Roast the peppers either under a high broiler or over an open flame, turning until all sides are blackened. Place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest for about 10 minutes and peel off blackened skin. Remove stems and seeds. Cut peppers julienne.

Combine rices and peppers in a large bowl with the sundried tomatoes, Kalamata olives, pine nuts, herbs and cheese. Stir.

Combine the lemon juice, vinegar, spices and salt and pepper, to taste, in a liquid measuring cup. Whisk in the olive oil. Drizzle vinaigrette evenly over salad and serve. May make a day in advance. Stores well, refrigerated, for several days.

Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Summer’s Sweet Potato Salad

1 russet potato, peeled
1 sweet potato, peeled
2 ears of corn, cooked, kernels cut off
1 cucumber halved lengthwise, seeded and chopped
1/2 red onion, peeled and chopped
1 stalk of celery, diced
1 or 2 jalapeno chiles, diced (see notes)
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
4 tablespoons lime juice (see notes)
1 small garlic clove, peeled and minced
1/4 teaspoon to 2 teaspoons ground allspice (to taste)
6 tablespoons canola, grapeseed or avocado oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves or mint leaves (optional)
2 tablespoons crushed peanuts (optional)

If boiling the potatoes, quarter them and simmer in a pot of water until tender. Be careful not to overcook, or salad turns to mush. Allow to cool slightly and dice into bite-size pieces. Alternatively, cut potatoes into bite-sized pieces and steam or roast until tender.

In a large bowl, toss cooked potatoes with the corn kernels, onion, celery and jalapenos.

In a smaller bowl, whisk together the mustard, lime juice, garlic and allspice. Add oil in a steady stream, whisking continuously to emulsify. Mustard will help the dressing emulsify. Taste. Add the salt and pepper as needed.

Pour dressing over potatoes and vegetables and fold gently to blend. Top with the chopped cilantro or mint and crushed peanuts, if desired.

Makes 8 to 10 servings.

NOTES: Use up to 2 jalapeno chiles according to taste. Remove seeds and membrane to reduce heat. Key limes, if available, will add a more intense lime flavor.