Best Vegan Potato Salad Recipe

What would summer look like without a classic potato salad to grace your gatherings?  Dreary, indeed!   So, we set out to create a healthier potato salad that will shine on your table even as a side dish, and we’re sharing all of our top secrets and tips for ensuring maximum flavor when it’s served.  

Healthy for ALL Diets

This “back pocket” recipe packs all of the essential summer flavors in every single bite.  It’s creamy (but no mayo or oil!), loaded with veggies, and vegan to boot, because we wanted to create a classic potato salad that everyone can enjoy, whether you are bringing it to a summer cookout with guests of every dietary stripe (gluten free, dairy-free!), or serving it in your own backyard to your nearest and dearest.  Break out that red and white checkered tablecloth and let’s celebrate summer with this iconic side dish, made more healthy thanks to JOI.

A Healthier Dressing

The first secret to lightening up your potato salad is in the creamy mustard dressing.  We found that combining equal parts whole grain dijon mustard and JOI plant base retains all of the richness and flavor of the traditional recipe, while remaining oil free and egg free! The creaminess of the JOI plant base cuts through the tang of the mustard really nicely, and, after the mixture is thinned out with a splash of water, it’s the perfect potato salad dressing.  Ditch mayonnaise and keep your salad dairy-free in favor of this alternative.  And you don’t even have to worry about a mayo or sour cream-based salad spoiling in the sun!

Dress WARM Potatoes

Here’s the next secret to elevating your potato salad:  make the dressing while your potatoes boil, and toss them with half of the dressing while they are still fork tender and warm.  Pop the dressed potatoes in the refrigerator to cool.  The warm potatoes will soak up the flavor of the dressing to a greater extent than once they have cooled. Reserve the remaining dressing for tossing with the crispy vegetables you will add later, once the dressed potatoes have cooled. 

Add More Vegetables and Herbs

In addition to a tangy, delicious dressing, this potato salad is brimming with summer vegetables and herbs! Dill, parsley, and chives brighten up the salad. Crisp radish, onion, and celery add crunch, freshness and texture. Another tip:  try adding or swapping your favorite summer vegetables….peppers, cucumbers, or even corn, perhaps?  Chopped dill pickle adds a crunchy, sour note if that’s your bag.  Swap out red onion with scallions or green onion if you prefer.  The possibilities are endless; just build upon your back pocket potato-plus-dressing combination and find a new formula every time you make this delicious salad.  And don’t stop at the vegetables...play around with the herbs as well.  Mint and cilantro could be a fresh alternative for a change, for example.  Basil would offer a more “earthy” take on this salad, or choose chopped tarragon for a French flair.

Make it Ahead

For the final secret:  make it a day ahead!  This salad becomes more flavorful and delicious as it rests, because the dressing absorbs throughout and all of the flavors meld.  If you have time the day you are serving the salad, consider reserving the herbs and adding them prior to serving, rather than overnight, so that they remain fresh.

Build your Table from Potato Salad

Consider building your table around this leveled-up classic.  Looking to add another cold salad or two?  Consider making our Street Corn Salad or Broccoli Slaw.  If you’ve got the grill going, make our Grilled Vegetables with Whipped Avocado Dip.  Cold Sesame Noodle Salad add bulk and flavor to the table, and for dessert Grilled Peaches with Cashew Vanilla Drizzle are sure to be a hit.  These dishes will be all the fireworks you need to dazzle your guests all summer long! 

A Recap of all those TIPS and SECRETS:

1. Lighten up the dressing with JOI plant base + dijon
2. Dress your potatoes when warm
3. Add more veggies!
4. Use the basic recipe as a starting point, then get creative swapping out veggies and herbs
5. Make it ahead of time for ease and to maximize flavor

[[ recipeID=recipe-8kpzkoaxn, title=Potato Salad ]]

Best Vegan Potato Salad Recipe

Serves 6

Ingredients 

• 4 cups of baby potatoes
• ½ red onion, chopped
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped
• 4-5 radishes, sliced 
• ¼ cup chopped dill
• ¼ cup chopped chives
• ¼ cup chopped parsley 
• ⅓ cup whole grain dijon mustard
• ⅓ cup JOI plant base (cashew or almond)
• ¼ cup water 
• 1 teaspoon salt 

Instructions

1. Chop the potatoes in half (or smaller if you are using larger potatoes), so that you have about 1-inch chunks of potato.
2. Add the potatoes to a pot and cover with water.
3. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. 
4. Cook for approximately 10 minutes until potatoes are fork tender.  When ready, remove and drain the potatoes. 
5. While the potatoes are cooking, make the dressing.  In a small bowl (or blender bowl) combine the mustard, JOI, and water. Whisk (or blend) to combine.
6. As soon as the potatoes are drained, in a large bowl combine the potatoes and half of the dressing.  Cool in the refrigerator.
7. Once the dressed potatoes are cool, add the celery, onion, and radishes and the remaining dressing and toss together gently.  Add the dill, parsley, and chives prior to serving if you have time. Toss gently.
8. Enjoy topped with extra parsley if you have mixed in the herbs in advance and rested for a few hours or overnight.