Potato Salad
A Creamy, No-Mayo Potato Salad With a Surprise Ingredient
5 points to Gryffindor if you can guess it!
Looking for a potato salad—no mayo? This is our latest favorite, thanks to a little secret ingredient...
A picnic without potato salad is like Thanksgiving without stuffing. It’s quintessential summertime grub. It’s hard to imagine a red-checkered tablecloth draped over a picnic table without a giant bowl of potato salad weighing it down.
The only problem with classic creamy potato salad is that it always includes mayo, sour cream, or some kind of dairy which isn’t something everyone at the picnic table can partake in. Surely you could forgo the creamy potato salad for a vinegar-based one that everyone can eat, but why compromise when you don’t have to? This potato salad checks both boxes in one creamy, dreamy dish.
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To make this dairy-free but super-creamy potato salad, you won’t need any special equipment or labor in the kitchen for hours. You’ll just need one magic ingredient you’ve likely seen popping up a lot lately: tahini.
The velvety, sesame-based spread is having a moment and I am here for it! What I once viewed as an ingredient specifically used for hummus, I now see as an endlessly versatile ingredient that lends a rich smoothness to just about anything. It’s a go-to for making creamy salad dressing. It’s the smooth operator behind this super creamy pasta. And it’s the icing on the cake (literally) in this tahini buttercream–frosted chocolate cake. In this case, it’s the superhero ingredient behind this surprisingly vegan, dairy-free potato salad. (Not all heroes wear capes.)
The dressing is a cinch to make. I add a little warm tap water to the tahini to loosen it up a bit. (It has a tendency to firm up in the jar, especially if you’re using a previously opened tahini from the fridge.) Then, just whisk in some oil, lemon juice, lemon zest and season it up. Another tip is to dress the potatoes while they’re still hot to give them a chance to soak up all that tangy dressing as the salad cools. I add celery, a little onion, and baby arugula to my potato salad, but you can add whatever you’d like—or, because the dressing is so luscious, add nothing at all!
The best part about this potato salad isn’t just that it’s a great make-ahead dish (and you can make it waaay ahead) or that it’s perfect for packing to go. It’s also that this particular potato salad is just as creamy, just as delicious, and just as quintessential as the classic version.
The Food52 staff can confirm: We couldn’t stop eating Grant’s perfect potato salad.
| 3 | pounds red potatoes |
| 1 | pinch salt, to taste |
| 1/4 | cup tahini |
| 2 | tablespoons grapeseed oil |
| 2 | tablespoons warm water |
| 1 | lemon, zested and juiced |
| 1 | pinch pepper |
| 1/2 | cup celery, finely chopped |
| 1/2 | cup red onion, finely chopped |
| 1 | handful celery leaves, roughly chopped |
| 1 | handful parsley, roughly chopped |
| 2 to 3 | cups baby arugula |
| 3 | pounds red potatoes |
| 1 | pinch salt, to taste |
| 1/4 | cup tahini |
| 2 | tablespoons grapeseed oil |
| 2 | tablespoons warm water |
| 1 | lemon, zested and juiced |
| 1 | pinch pepper |
| 1/2 | cup celery, finely chopped |
| 1/2 | cup red onion, finely chopped |
| 1 | handful celery leaves, roughly chopped |
| 1 | handful parsley, roughly chopped |
| 2 to 3 | cups baby arugula |
A New Way to Dinner, co-authored by Food52's founders Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs, is an indispensable playbook for stress-free meal-planning (hint: cook foundational dishes on the weekend and mix and match ‘em through the week).
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Written by: Grant Melton
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8 Comments
I like the idea of preparing it when the potatoes are hot - nice call there.
Also, like Eileen mentioned, a lot of mayo brands are Kosher Parve, meaning no dairy/meat ingredients.
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