This creamy Vegan Potato Salad is a crowd-pleasing picnic and potluck side! Just like classic potato salad, but better for you. With tender potatoes and a delicious mayo mustard dressing, no one will guess that it’s 100% vegan.
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I love potato salad! And this is the best vegan potato salad I’ve tasted. It’s a perfect side dish for all your picnics, cookouts, and potlucks.
It’s as creamy as classic potato salad, but is totally plant based. It’s made with only 7 ingredients, is dairy free, egg free, gluten free, and oil free.
After I went vegan, I went without potato salad for a long time. Eventually some store brands of vegan mayo came out, but they were so expensive. And once I adopted an oil-free vegan diet, those were not an option.
Once I created my Oil-Free Vegan Mayo recipe, the world of mayo based recipes like this vegan potato salad were back on the menu!
My mayonnaise is made with tofu and a few cashews for added creaminess. It’s so close to the real thing, you’d never know it was vegan. And it’s so much lower in fat than any store bought mayo, vegan or not.
Bring this potato salad to any picnic or potluck gathering, and nobody will know that it is a healthier plant-based version of this classic recipe.
Ingredients for this vegan potato salad recipe
- Potatoes – I love using Yukon Gold potatoes or other yellow potatoes for this salad because I love their flavor and texture. Red or purple potatoes would also be good in this recipe.
- Vegan Mayonnaise – stores carry vegan mayo, but most of them are full of oil and are also quite expensive. I chose to use my Tofu Cashew Mayonnaise in this salad. If you are not following an oil free diet, feel free to use whatever mayo you desire.
- Celery – I add some finely chopped celery to add a bit of crunch
- Onion– I like to use finely diced sweet onion because it is a bit milder, but yellow or red onion is fine. I sometimes substitute green onions.
- Yellow mustard – for some tang.
- Sweet Pickle Relish – you can use dill pickle relish, but I love the sweet flavor added by the sweet relish!
- Kala Namak (black salt) – to mimic the egg flavor.
What is Kala Namak?
It is an Indian black salt from the Himalayan region of India. It is a volcanic salt, and has a distinctive sulfurous flavor and aroma. When added to vegan recipes, it mimics an egg yolk taste.
How to make vegan potato salad
Cook the whole potatoes in a large pot of water until they are soft. Cooking them with the peel on gives them a better texture because they don’t absorb as much water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium to prevent the pot from boiling over.
When the potatoes are fork tender, drain them and run cold water over them to cool them down.
When the potatoes are completely cooled, peel the potatoes, if desired. The peel will come off easily. Dice the potatoes into bite sized pieces.
Add in the celery and onion.
In a small bowl, mix together the vegan mayonnaise, the yellow mustard, the relish, and the black salt.
Add the dressing to the bowl of potatoes and gently toss to coat the potatoes with the dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Garnish with paprika, green onion, chives, fresh parsley, or fresh dill.
Optional add-ins:
- Fresh herbs dill or parsley or even cilantro or tarragon for a change of pace.
- Diced red bell pepper or pimentos for added color and taste.
- Other vegetables like green peas, olives, cucumber, radish, or shredded carrot.
- Vegan Bacon Bits
Tips for the best vegan potato salad:
- Be careful not to overcook your potatoes. They should be just fork tender. Overcooking them results in mushy potato salad.
- Cooking the potatoes whole prevents them from absorbing as much water. Once they are cooked, the peels slip off very easily.
- Try to cook similar sized potatoes so they cook evenly. If the size varies too much, some of your potatoes will be cooked more than others. I prefer to use small waxy potatoes. They cook faster, and are easier to cook whole. If you need to use Russet potatoes, peel and cube them before cooking.
- Allow the potatoes to cool completely before mixing in the dressing.
Serving suggestions
- It’s a perfect side for burgers like my Black Bean Burger or my Chickpea Burger.
- Serve it with this Italian Sausage and Peppers Sandwich.
- Pair it with BBQ favorites like Grilled Tofu Veggie Kabobs or BBQ Tofu.
- Enjoy it with sandwiches like this Chickpea Salad Sandwich or this Buffalo Soy Curl Sub.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! Potato salad is a perfect make-ahead dish. The flavors actually improve after it has been refrigerated for a day. It should last in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 days.
I wouldn’t recommend freezing potato salad. Freezing will change the texture of the potatoes and it will be mushy after thawing.
The reason potato salad is often considered unhealthy is the high fat content in the mayonnaise that is used. This recipe uses my oil free vegan mayonnaise, and the potato salad recipe has only 2 grams of fat per serving.
This oil free vegan potato salad is amazing! As good as any potato salad I’ve eaten, and you’ll never miss the oil or eggs. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
Other delicious vegan salads:
- Vegan Coleslaw
- Vegan Macaroni Salad
- Mexican Coleslaw
- Southwest Salad
- Vegan Pesto Pasta Salad
- Taco Salad
- Vegan Wedge Salad
- Vegan Caesar Salad
- Cucumber Salad
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Vegan Potato Salad
Ingredients
- About 2 1/2 pounds of yellow, red, or purple potatoes
- 1 cup Tofu Cashew Mayonnaise or other mayo of choice
- ½ cup diced celery
- ¼ cup minced sweet onion
- ¼ cup sweet pickle relish
- 4 Tablespoons yellow mustard
- ¾ teaspoon black salt (kala namak)
Instructions
- Scrub the potatoes, place them in a large pot of water, and boil the potatoes until they are fork tender.
- Drain the potatoes and run cold water over them to cool.
- Peel the potatoes, if desired, and dice them into bit sized pieces.
- Mix together the ingredients for the dressing.
- Place potatoes, onion, and celery in a large bowl and fold in the dressing to combine.
- Cover bowl and chill in refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition calculations are approximate.
Is sweet pickle relish the same as sweet relish (sorry – I’m English & have never seen it for sale here)? Would you perhaps consider doing a quick recipe for it?
Sweet pickle relish is the same as sweet relish. Sorry for the confusion.
Sorry – I have just asked the same question at the bottom of your Classic youVegan Tuna Salad. Please ignore!
I stopped looking for a good plant based potato salad recipe after I made this one! I’ve made it over and over again because it’s just perfect!
Wonderful! I’m so happy you like it!
I used the tofu mayonnaise from A Plantiful Path website, I baked the potatoes and then cut them up after they cooled. Shared with neighbors, everyone liked
As a follow up on my comments I am giving a 5 star rating also for two of my neighbors so actually this would be 2 more 5 star ratings. One neighbor told me today that he was only going to eat half but it was so good he ate the whole dish I gave him, The other, when I took him more samples of stuff said that he really liked the potato salad and the stir fry – both are recipes I made from A Plantiful Path. Teresa, my neighbors are loving your website!
That makes me so happy! Thanks for letting me know!
I am blown away by how delicious this potato salad is! I don’t usually eat Vegan, and I’m very picky about my potatoe salad. I like a creamy salad with the taste of eggs and a bit of tang. This recipe delivers!
Don’t tell them it’s Vegan, they’ll never believe you!
Thank you so much for the wonderful review! Glad you enjoyed this potato salad as much as I do!