Whole Food Plant Based Potato Salad
Creamy, crunchy, and satisfying, this Whole Food Plant Based Potato Salad is an amazing low-fat side or entree. Made with no mayo, oil, nuts, or seeds, this healthy low fat potato salad is the perfect dish to take to a summer cookout, on a picnic, or just make it for meal prep! This potato salad tastes every bit as delicious as traditional but with healthier ingredients.
Equipment
- 1 Blender or a food processor may be used
- 1 Blender spatula not necessary, just makes it easier to get all of that vegan queso goodness out of the blender!
Ingredients
Potato Salad
- 8 Medium Gold Potatoes, steamed, cooled, and chopped in ¾ to 1-inch pieces (see note in Step 1 of the recipe for details)
- 4 Ribs Celery, finely chopped
- 3 Green Onions, finely chopped
- 3 Tablespoons Fresh Chives, finely chopped, or use 1 tablespoon dried chive rings
- 3 Tablespoons Fresh Dill, finely chopped, or use 1 tablespoon dried dill weed
No-Mayo Sauce
- 16 Ounces Silken Tofu, see notes for substitutions
- 3 Tablespoons Nutritional Yeast, see notes for substitutions
- 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
- 1 Teaspoon Dijon Mustard, or ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- 1 Small Medjool Date, pitted, see notes for substitutions
- 1 Teaspoon Granulated Onion,
- 1 Teaspoon Granulated Garlic,
- 1 Tablespoon White or Yellow Miso Paste, see notes for substitutions
Instructions
- Note about potatoes: This recipe calls for cooked AND cooled potatoes. While it's possible to work with freshly cooked potatoes (I usually steam mine in the Instant Pot, but boiled works too), they can fall apart when stirred while they're still warm. I tend to cook my potatoes whole, cool them on the counter for an hour, refrigerate overnight, then dice them when I'm ready to make my healthy potato salad. The other benefit to refrigerating potatoes is that they form resistant starch which has many health benefits.
- Prep potatoes: If your potatoes aren't already chopped, cut them in similar bite-sized pieces (I do around ¾ - 1 inch, but if feeding to little kids, you might want to go with ½-inch). Add to a large mixing bowl.
- Add other veggies and herbs: On top of the potatoes, add the celery, green onions, and most of the herbs (you can do them all, I just like to reserve a few for sprinkling on top which is totally optional).
- Make the sauce: Add the silken tofu, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, pitted Medjool date, granulated onion, granulated garlic, and miso paste to the blender. Blend on high until smooth, stopping halfway through and scraping down the sides if necessary. Taste the mixture and adjust if necessary (more lemon, more spices, etc.)
- Combine: Pour all of the sauce into the potato and veggie mixture and stir well, but gently. I find it best to use a spatula to stir (my favorite for this task (and my favorite spatula overall) is called a spoonula!) so you don't break the potatoes. Stir until all potatoes and veggies have been coated by the sauce.
- Refrigerate or Serve: I think this potato salad is delicious right away but also when it's been refrigerating for a few hours, so go ahead and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator (for up to 4 days, but it's best within the first day or so, since the veggies lose their texture after awhile) until you're ready to serve.
- Serve: If you reserved a few herbs to sprinkle on top, do that when you serve the potato salad. Some people garnish with a sprinkle of paprika, but that's up to you.
Notes
- Finding the Right Size Silken Tofu: You can find 16-ounce packages of silken tofu in the refrigerator section at your local grocery store, that's where I buy mine even in my little town that has almost nothing. But if you can only buy your silken tofu in the shelf-stable 12-ounce aseptic containers, you can either use 1 + ¼ of those, or just use one pack and add 2-4 tablespoons of soaked raw cashews, soaked raw sunflower seeds, cooked white beans, or dehydrated potato flakes.
- Substitution for Silken Tofu: If you can only find soft or regular tofu (don't use firm), you can use this and just add a little plain unsweetened non-dairy milk (just enough to blend). If you don't want to use tofu at all, you can do 1+½ cups drained and rinsed canned (or cooked from dried) white beans, 2 cups boiled and drained peeled potatoes (or gold potatoes, which you can leave the skin on), or 1 cup of either soaked raw cashews or soaked raw sunflower seeds (and you will need water or plain unsweetened non-dairy milk to blend, and how much depends on how long you soaked them so start with equal parts nuts/seeds and liquid and adjust from there.
- Nutritional Yeast: If you hate nutritional yeast or you can't have it, you can just add more of the seasonings, hot sauce, and lemon juice to taste. If you need to thicken the sauce (since the nutritional yeast does help thicken it), you can use potato flakes, cooked white beans, soaked raw cashews or raw sunflower seeds, or even a cooked potato.
- Medjool Date: You can use a teaspoon or two of date syrup or pure maple syrup (or one tablespoon of date powder) if you do want the sweetness for balance but you don't have dates on hand.
- White or Yellow Miso Paste: This is to replace the salt in the recipe, but I also love the little hint of umami flavors. Per Dr. Michael Greger of NutritionFacts.org, the soy in miso has a protective effect so the sodium in miso paste will not affect us negatively. Please feel free to omit or use a pinch of salt if that is what you prefer.
- Sodium: You can greatly lower the sodium by omitting the miso. Just add a bit more herbs, spices, and lemon juice for more flavor!
Nutrition
Serving: 0.25recipeCalories: 348.7kcalCarbohydrates: 67gProtein: 16.4gFat: 4.7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.06gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.07gSodium: 247mgPotassium: 1846.6mgFiber: 7.6gSugar: 7.9gVitamin A: 34.4IUVitamin C: 59.8mgCalcium: 145.4mgIron: 6.64mg
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