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5.0 from 540 votes

The Best Vegan Potato Salad

From ingredients to enjoyment, this recipe makes it easy to create something wonderful.

Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
5 mins
Total Time
30 mins
Servings: 6 to 8
Calories: 196 kcal
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds (900g) baby red potatoes, fingerling potatoes, or new potatoes
Dressing
  • ¼ cup (56g) tahini well-stirred
  • 4 ounces (112g) unsweetened coconut yogurt*
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • 2 teaspoons yellow mustard
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed with a press or finely minced
  • 1 medium lemon, zested (2-3 teaspoons zest)
  • 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon
  • 1 teaspoon celery seeds (optional but recommended)**
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • freshly cracked black pepper
  • ⅓ to ½ cup (5 to 8g) fresh dill leaves, finely chopped***
  • 1 tablespoon caper brine****
Salad ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons capers, drained
  • ½ cup (50-55g) thinly sliced or shaved red onions
  • 1 jalapeño pepper, de-seeded and thinly sliced (this is optional; keep the seeds in for a spicy kick)
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons chopped chives (or thinly sliced scallions)
  • Flaky sea salt

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Wash and scrub the potatoes but leave the peels on. Cut baby/new/fingerling potatoes in half; cut larger potatoes into chunks.
  2. Transfer the potatoes to a saucepan and cover with an inch of cold water. Season generously with kosher salt. Bring to a simmer and maintain a decent simmer for 8 to 12 minutes until just tender. If the fork pierces the potatoes with the slightest bit of resistance, the potatoes are done. Note: For reference, the halved baby red potatoes I used took only 8 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, make the dressing. In a large bowl, whisk together the tahini, yogurt, Dijon mustard, yellow mustard, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, celery seeds, caper brine (not the whole capers), 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and pepper until well combined. Add 1 tablespoon of the chopped dill and stir together.Note: If the dressing is too thick, whisk in a tablespoon of cold water.
  4. Once the potatoes are cooked, drain them in a colander (reserve a little of the cooking liquid in case it's needed). Let the potatoes rest in the colander for 5 minutes to dry out, but don’t wait until they have cooled down.
  5. Add the warm potatoes to the dressing and coat evenly and well. If needed, add a spoon of the cooking water to bring everything together (I didn't need to).
  6. Add the capers, red onions, and jalapeños to the potato salad, and toss again gently. Sprinkle the remaining dill and the chives on top before serving. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  7. Serve warm, or chill for at least 1 hour.

Notes

  • * If you can't find a good-quality plain coconut yogurt, you can use use vegan sour cream. My preferred brands are Kite Hill Foods and Tofutti (this one is quite thick, so you might need to add a spoon of water). If using sour cream, you'll likely need less lemon juice and salt. 
  • ** If you don’t have celery seeds but have celery salt, substitute 1:1 and use ½ teaspoon kosher salt instead of 1 teaspoon. Or, add 3 tablespoons finely chopped celery leaves when you add the dill to the dressing.
  • *** Use the lower end if you’re not a big fan of dill (I love dill, so I use the full ½ cup)
  • **** Don’t have capers? You can substitute them with 1 finely chopped dill pickle and 1 to 2 tablespoons of the pickle juice.

Nutrition Information

Calories 196kcal (10%) Carbohydrates 32g (11%) Protein 6g (12%) Fat 6g (9%) Saturated Fat 1g (5%) Polyunsaturated Fat 2g Monounsaturated Fat 2g Sodium 540mg (23%) Potassium 813mg (23%) Fiber 4g (16%) Sugar 4g (8%) Vitamin A 118IU (2%) Vitamin C 33mg (37%) Calcium 75mg (8%) Iron 2mg (11%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 6to 8

Amount Per Serving

Calories 196

% Daily Value*

Calories 196kcal 10%
Carbohydrates 32g 11%
Protein 6g 12%
Fat 6g 9%
Saturated Fat 1g 5%
Polyunsaturated Fat 2g 12%
Monounsaturated Fat 2g 10%
Sodium 540mg 23%
Potassium 813mg 17%
Fiber 4g 16%
Sugar 4g 8%
Vitamin A 118IU 2%
Vitamin C 33mg 37%
Calcium 75mg 8%
Iron 2mg 11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.