Healthy potato salad (NO MAYO) that is easy to make, nutritious, and super flavorful! Made with fingerling potatoes tossed with pesto sauce, fresh lemon juice bright spices, sweet tomatoes, artichokes, fresh mozzarella, and basil leaves, it’ll become your go-to side recipe for every occasion. Serve it warm, cold, or at room temperature! It’s Gluten-free and Vegetarian!
Summer is here! Yay! To celebrate the barbecue season, I came up with this quick, easy, and healthy potato salad without mayo.
It is a true feast for the eyes... and palate just like our Brazilian Potato Salad with Mayonnaise which has a creamy dressing.
Table of Contents
- 1 What is potato salad?
- 2 Where was potato salad created?
- 3 No Mayo Potato Salad Recipe
- 4 Ingredients and Substitutions
- 5 How to Make Healthy Potato Salad
- 6 The Best Potato for Potato Salad
- 7 Tips for Potato Salad without Mayo
- 8 Variations
- 9 What to Serve with
- 10 Frequent Asked Questions
- 11 Storage
- 12 Can I freeze this no mayo potato salad?
- 13 Other Salad Recipes
- 14 Healthy Potato Salad (No Mayo)
What is potato salad?
Potato salad is a worldwide popular side dish made of cooked, chopped potatoes, vegetables, seasonings, and a dressing.
There are many versions of potato salads in the world, ranging from the old-fashioned American, potato salad with mayo which is served cold to the traditional German, vinegar-based salad which is served warm.
The ingredients may vary but many hard-boiled eggs!
Where was potato salad created?
The potato salad was invented in Germany. However, the potato is native to the Peruvian-Bolivian Andes.
After Spanish explorers discovered the potato in South America, it was brought to Europe by Spanish merchants.
From there, the German potato salad recipe spread and was likely brought to the United States by European and German immigrants in the early 19th century.
It makes the perfect side dish for summer!
No Mayo Potato Salad Recipe
Our Healthy Potato Salad is made with mixed fingerling potatoes tossed with pesto sauce, fresh lemon juice, olive oil, cumin, chili powder, and crushed red pepper.
You can serve it warm, at room temperature, or chilled... featuring fresh flavors from the sweet tomatoes, artichokes, fresh mozzarella, and basil leaves.
It is quite simple to prepare, requiring no special cooking skills. All one has to do is boil the potatoes, drain them, and then toss them with all the other ingredients. See? Easy peasy!
The result? A vibrant, gluten-free dish to brighten your summer table!
Of course, potatoes are the key ingredient in this dish... a versatile starchy vegetable, full of vitamins and minerals. Needless to say, they pair well with almost anything, right?
This Potato Salad (no mayo) is refreshing, making it the ideal side for barbecued or grilled meats, meatloaf, fish, and roasts.
The spices that are in this healthy potato salad give it an unusual kick and make it one of the tastiest salads that you can imagine.
Ingredients and Substitutions
To make this no mayo potato salad recipe, you’ll need:
- Fingerling potatoes: Make sure to wash and cut them into halves before boiling them. If you prefer, you may replace fingerling potatoes with new potatoes, baby red potatoes, or Yukon gold potatoes.
- Seasonings and spices: We used salt, red pepper flakes, and cumin but you can use any spice of your choice such as black pepper.
- Oil-based dressing: We used olive oil, store-bought pesto sauce, fresh lemon juice (or red wine or white vinegar if you prefer), and Dijon mustard. It makes the dressing floral and tangy!
- Vegetables: We used canned artichoke hearts, sweet grape tomatoes (or you can use yellow grape tomatoes)
- Add-ons: Fresh mozzarella pearls (you can skip it to make it a vegan potato salad) and fresh basil! If you prefer to make a variation of our healthy potato salad recipe, you can use chimichurri or other sauce instead of pesto and replace basil with chopped parsley, green onions, or fresh dill.
How to Make Healthy Potato Salad
- Place potatoes in a large pot. Add enough cold water to cover by 2-3 inches. Stir in 1 tablespoon salt and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to medium and simmer until potatoes are fork-tender about 12-15 minutes. Drain potatoes in a colander and let cool slightly.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk olive oil, lemon juice, ½ teaspoon salt (or more), Dijon mustard, cumin, and chili powder until homogeneous. Stir in the crushed red pepper and pesto sauce, and mix well.
- Add potatoes, artichokes hearts, tomatoes, and mozzarella pearls and toss to coat.
- Place our healthy potato salad onto a serving platter. Cover well! You can serve it warm, at room temp, or chilled.
- If serving warm or at room temp, make sure to let it sit on the counter for at least 15 minutes for the flavors to marry together.
- Right before serving, garnish with basil leaves. Enjoy!
The Best Potato for Potato Salad
There are 3 types of potatoes:
- Starchy (high in starch and low in moisture, they don’t hold their shape well when boiled and are ideal for baking and frying. E.g. Russet potatoes).
- Waxy (low in starch, high in moisture and sugar, waxy potatoes are perfect for boiling, roasting, or slicing because they hold their shape well. E.g. )
- All-Purpose (medium starch and moisture contents, holding their shape in boiling water. E.g. Yukon gold).
In order to make potato salad, potatoes have to be boiled and be able to hold their shape.
In this case, you will need to use either waxy or all-purpose potatoes to make potato salad. Avoid starchy potatoes because they don’t hold their shape when boiled.
Tips for Potato Salad without Mayo
- Use smaller waxy or all-purpose potatoes that have thinner skin like fingerling, baby red, or Yukon gold potatoes. They will keep their shape when boiled, are quick and easy to cook, and don’t need to be peeled.
- For quicker cooking, I cut my potatoes in half before boiling them
- Before cooking the potatoes, make sure to wash the potatoes well in order to remove dirt.
- Before tossing the potatoes and veggies into the dressing, adjust the seasonings to your taste to distribute them well and avoid over-mixing.
- If you prefer, you may use a few tablespoons of plain Greek yogurt to add extra protein (or sour cream) to make a creamy potato salad.
Variations
- You can use any type of waxy or all-purpose potatoes. I used fingerling potatoes!
- Switch up the herbs: I used pesto and fresh basil but you can use any herby sauce of choice and a pairing fresh herb.
- Add a little sweetness: If the dressing is too tangy you can add a touch of honey or maple syrup to the dressing to balance out the tangy flavors.
- Use different veggies: If you prefer, switch the tomatoes and canned artichokes for chopped celery or red onions.
- To add a crunch to our healthy potato salad, you may add 1-2 tablespoon toasted pine nuts.
What to Serve with
- Grilled chicken legs
- Pulled pork
- Beef brisket
- Fried chicken
- Brazilian hot dog
- Egg stuffed meatloaf
- Air fryer salmon
- Honey baked ham
- Air fryer chicken thighs
- Air fryer steak
- Grilled flank steak
Frequent Asked Questions
What Makes this Potato Salad Healthy?
- It contains no mayo and is egg-free, gluten-free, and vegetarian.
- It only contains healthy fats from olive oil!
- It has almost no cholesterol!
- It’s loaded with nutrients like Vitamins A and C as well as calcium and iron.
How Much Potato Salad per Person?
The amount of potato salad needed to serve a crowd will depend on factors such as how many other sides you are serving and your guests’ appetite.
As a general guideline, you can assume each person will eat ½ cup or 4 ounces of our no mayo potato salad as you can see below:
- 4 people – 2 cups or 1 pound
- 8 people – 4 cups or 2 pounds
- 10 people – 5 cups or 2 ½ pounds
- 12 people – 6 cups or 3 pounds
Can I Make this Potato Salad (No Mayo) Ahead?
Make this no mayo potato salad 12-24 hours ahead, cover, and chill to marry the flavors for longer.
Can I eat healthy potato salad cold?
Potato salad without mayonnaise can be served warm, at room temperature, or chilled depending on your preference and the weather.
Storage
Store healthy potato salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.
If you are serving it at a party, it will keep at room temperature for 1 hour.
If you are serving it at an outdoor barbecue or picnic, it will keep for about 30 minutes but make sure to store it on ice in a cooler.
Can I freeze this no mayo potato salad?
While you can freeze vinaigrette potato salads, I do not recommend it. After thawing, the liquids will separate and become soupy.
If you would like to freeze it, cook, cool, and freeze just the potatoes.
Other Salad Recipes
- Vegan raw salad
- Kale pasta salad
- Fruit salad
- Beet goat cheese salad
- Heart of palm salad
- Zucchini salad
- Texas caviar
PIN & ENJOY!
Healthy Potato Salad (No Mayo)
Equipment
- 1 pot
- 1 Colander
- 1 bowl
- 1 platter
Ingredients
- 2 lbs mixed fingerling potatoes washed and cut into halves
- 1 tablespoon plus ½ teaspoon salt or more
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- ⅓ cup store-bought pesto sauce
- 1 can whole artichoke hearts drained, about 8-10 artichokes or 14-ounce
- 8 grape tomatoes or yellow grape tomatoes
- ⅓ cup fresh mozzarella pearls
- 5 fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Place potatoes in a large pot. Add enough cold water to cover by 2-3 inches. Stir in 1 tablespoon salt and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to medium and simmer until potatoes are fork-tender about 12-15 minutes. Drain potatoes in a colander and let cool slightly.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk olive oil, lemon juice, ½ teaspoon salt (or more), Dijon mustard, cumin, and chili powder until homogeneous. Stir in the crushed red pepper and pesto sauce, and mix well. Add potatoes, artichokes hearts, tomatoes, and mozzarella pearls and toss to coat.
- Place our healthy potato salad onto a serving platter. Cover well! You can serve it warm, at room temp, or chilled. If serving warm or at room temp, make sure to let it sit on the counter for at least 15 minutes for the flavors to marry together.
- Right before serving, garnish with basil leaves. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
** Nutrition labels on easyanddelish.com are for educational purposes only. This info is provided as a courtesy and is only an estimate, since the nutrition content of recipes can vary based on ingredient brand or source, portion sizes, recipe changes/variations, and other factors. We suggest making your own calculations using your preferred calculator, based on which ingredients you use, or consulting with a registered dietitian to determine nutritional values more precisely.
Please note that health-focused and diet information provided on easyanddelish.com is for educational purposes and does not constitute medical advice, nor is it intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease. Consult with your doctor or other qualified health professional prior to initiating any significant change in your diet or exercise regimen, or for any other issue necessitating medical advice.
This was once a compensated campaign in collaboration with the US Potato Board and Honest Cooking first published on March 7th, 2017. I have republished the post to add more extra info.
Karen (Back Road Journal) says
That isn't a salad, that is a meal as far as I'm concerned and a good one at that.
Karen (Back Road Journal) says
I often make a roasted chicken "Italian style" and your delicious salad would go perfect with it.
Raymund says
Springtime there autumn here, I am jealous.
Love the colours and elements in this salad
Juliana says
Your potato salad looks great Denise, I love the idea of using pesto sauce...and yes, looks perfect for spring!
I hope you are having a nice week 🙂
John/Kitchen Riffs says
Love potatoes. And love potato salad. This one is SO creative -- you've really loaded this up with flavor. Super dish -- thanks.
Deb|EastofEdenCooking says
Oh I am so ready for spring! What a fabulous potato salad to jump start the season!
Adina says
What a beautiful looking salad!