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Healthy Potato Salad has changed my attitude towards this all-American side forever and for better. It’s zippy, not bland. Creamy, not mushy. Classic without being boring. Basically it is potato salad redemption.

healthy potato salad with olive oil dressing

I know everyone has an opinion on what makes the best potato salad, and (I might be in the minority on this) I think most of them are wrong.

With the exception of vinaigrette-based potato salads and Pesto Potato Salad, just above every potato salad I’ve tried has been drowned in mayo, the texture is monotone and mushy, and the taste beyond bland.

I would wonder why we even bother with potato salad, except that it doesn’t quite feel like a real summer cookout without one (or without Boston Baked Beans and 7 Layer Salad).

creamy potato salad with Greek yogurt

That’s where healthy potato salad with Greek yogurt comes in.

It’s made without mayo, the creamy dressing is tangy and well-seasoned, and the texture is on-point.

In fact, this creamy potato salad achieved a distinction I previously thought was impossible in the potato salad world: everyone went back for seconds!

healthy potato salad with Greek yogurt

How to Make Healthy Potato Salad

To up this recipe’s nutritional factor, I made healthy potato salad NO MAYO style.

Along with a classic creamy dressing, this potato salad receives a boost from ingredients that provide crunch, seasoning, dimension, and all-around deliciousness.

Tips for the Best Potato Salad

  • Use waxy potatoes which hold their shape better than starchy potatoes.
  • DO NOT overcook the potatoes or your potato salad will be mushy.
  • Pour the dressing over the potatoes while they are still warm; this allows them to better absorb its flavor.
  • Taste and season with salt both right after you stir the potato salad together AND again before serving. Potatoes drink up salt and need more salt than you think, or they will taste bland.
  • Go heavy on the Greek yogurt dressing. While I ordinarily prefer a lightly dressed salad, when it comes to potato salad, creamy is king.

The Ingredients

  • Potatoes. Containing folate and fiber, potatoes do offer nutritional benefits, especially when complemented with the other healthy ingredients in this recipe.

The Best Potatoes for Potato Salad

  • Waxy potatoes, such as red potatoes, new potatoes, or fingerling potatoes are the best for potato salad. They have the least amount of starch so they retain their shape well and won’t turn to mush. Their thin skins also mean that you don’t need to peel them first, a timesaver. (Most often, I make healthy red potato salad with mini potatoes. Waxy potatoes are also my favorite for Oven Roasted Potatoes and and Grilled Potatoes.)
  • Avoid making potato salad with starchy potatoes, like russet potatoes. They won’t hold up during cooking. Save your starchy potatoes for Baked French Fries and Air Fryer French Fries.
  • For an in-between, you can make potato salad with Yukon gold potatoes, which are a great all-around potato that works in potato salad, Homemade Scalloped Potatoes, Crockpot Potato Soup, and more.
  • Sweet potatoes also make a yummy potato salad! Check out this Sweet Potato Salad for a recipe.
  • Hard Boiled Eggs. They make the potato salad even creamier and their flavor is a total classic. (You could use my Instant Pot Boiled Eggs recipe to make them.)

Tip!

Use old eggs to make hard boiled eggs. They are easier to peel.

  • Greek Yogurt. The secret to a healthy potato salad without mayo that tastes appropriately satisfying and comforting. It’s my go-to for creamy dressings, like the one you’ll find on this Creamy Cucumber Salad.

Ingredient Note

  • Most potato salads are not healthy to eat, because they are usually made with gobs of mayo and/or sour cream, a high-fat ingredient (and we’re not talking the good kind of fat).
  • Greek yogurt offers the same creaminess as mayo, but with the bonus of health benefits, like protein and calcium.
  • Greek yogurt also has a nice tang to it compared to mayo, which is more bland. That tang works well in a creamy potato salad dressing.
healthy potato salad (no mayo)
  • Fresh Garlic + Dijon Mustard + Green Onion. Essential zip and a tasty combo with the potatoes and hard-boiled eggs.
  • Capers. For brightness and brininess.
  • Celery Salt. The secret ingredient! I snagged this tip from my neighbor’s grandmother and will never make a creamy potato salad without it again. It’s savory and a little peppery.
  • KOSHER SALT. Potato salad desperately needs to be properly seasoned, or no matter what else you add to it, it will be bland. Salt the potatoes’ cooking liquid, salt the dressing, then taste and salt again as needed just before serving.
  • Celery. Let there be crunch!

The Directions

  1. Boil the potatoes until tender, and hard boil the eggs.
easy potato salad homemade dressing
  1. To a food processor or blender, add the dressing ingredients.
healthy potato salad dressing no mayo
  1. Blend until smooth.
the type of potatoes to use in healthy potato salad
  1. Drain and cut the boiled potatoes into 1 1/2-inch chunks.
healthy potato salad with Greek yogurt
  1. Pour dressing over the top.
easy potato salad without mayo
  1. Stir to combine. Let sit for 10 minutes.
healthy potato salad with ingredients
  1. Add the remaining ingredients.
super simple potato salad in a bowl
  1. Stir to combine. ENJOY!

Potato Salad Safety

Potato salad and other mayo-based salad recipes are often blamed for any post-picnic illness, but it isn’t necessarily the mayonnaise that is at fault. The issue is that once the mayo is mixed with potatoes (which have a very low acid profile), it can become unsafe.

Even though this potato salad is made without mayo, don’t let it sit at room temperature for more than 2 hours (if it’s hot, no more than 1 hour). If possible return it to the refrigerator or cooler as soon as you finish serving.

Storage Tips

  • To Store. Store leftover potato salad in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Taste and season with additional salt before serving.
  • To Freeze. No, you cannot freeze potato salad (sorry!). The potatoes will become mushy and the dressing will separate.

Meal Prep Tip

While I prefer to assemble the potato salad within a few hours of serving, you can make and refrigerate it up to 1 day in advance.

creamy potato salad without mayo

Leftover Ideas

Mix leftover potato salad with avocado and pile it on toasted bread for a picnic spin on avocado toast.

What to Serve With Potato Salad

Potato salad is the perfect side for any of your favorite grilling recipes and will be a hit at cookouts!

  • Instant Pot. One of my favorite ways to cook hardboiled eggs!
  • Saucepan. Perfect for boiling potatoes (and making hardboiled eggs if you don’t have an Instant Pot).
  • Mini Whisk. Ideal for mixing up dressings (and so much handier than larger whisks).

This will be my go-to side this summer and my favorite potato salad forever more. It can’t wait to be a part of your cookouts too!

Healthy Potato Salad Video

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YouTube video

Healthy Potato Salad

4.79 from 19 votes
This easy, healthy potato salad is a potluck winner! It's super creamy thanks to a simple olive oil and Greek yogurt dressing with no mayo.

Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Total: 40 minutes

Servings: 6

Ingredients
  

  • 3 hard boiled eggs*
  • 1 1/2 pounds mini potatoes I use yellow or red, washed with peels on
  • 3/4 cup non-fat plain Greek yogurt
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves peeled and roughly chopped
  • 2 tablespoons white vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon celery salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt plus additional to taste and for cooking the potatoes
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 3 green onions divided
  • 2 stalks celery finely diced
  • 2 tablespoons capers rinsed and drained

Instructions
 

  • Prepare the hard boiled eggs if needed (see notes for an easy how-to). Peel and dice small.
  • Place the potatoes in a large pot with enough water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch. Salt the water generously. Bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook until potatoes are just tender when pierced with a fork, 10 to 20 minutes depending upon their size. DO NOT overcook, or your potato salad may be mushy.
  • Prepare the dressing: To a food processor or blender, add the Greek yogurt, olive oil, vinegar, mustard, garlic, celery salt, and black pepper. Cut 2 of the green onions into 4 pieces each and add them to the food processor as well.
  • Finely chop the third green onion and set aside. Blend the dressing until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the food processor a few times as needed.
  • Drain the potatoes. As soon as you can handle them safely, cut potatoes into 1 1/2-inch chunks (depending upon the size of your potatoes, this will be either halves or quarters). Transfer to a large bowl.
  • While the potatoes are still hot, pour 3/4 of the dressing over the top.
  • Gently stir to combine (it will look like a lot of dressing). Let sit 10 minutes, stirring once or twice as it rests.
  • Add the celery, capers, and eggs. Reserve a tablespoon or so of the remaining chopped green onion for garnish, then add the rest to the bowl. Stir to combine. Taste and add more salt/pepper as needed. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
  • Just before serving, add the remaining dressing as desired, taste once more for salt (potatoes drink it up! I usually add a few big pinches), and sprinkle with the reserved green onion. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

  • *To Hard Boil Eggs. Place the eggs in a small pot with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as the water boils, immediately remove the pot from heat and cover for 8 minutes. Prepare an ice bath. After 8 minutes, transfer the eggs to the ice bath to cool.
  • To STORE. Store leftover potato salad in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Taste and season with additional salt before serving.
  • To FREEZE. No you cannot freeze potato salad (sorry!). The potatoes will become mushy and the dressing will separate.

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 6Calories: 210kcalCarbohydrates: 22gProtein: 8gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 95mgPotassium: 574mgFiber: 3gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 205IUVitamin C: 24mgCalcium: 64mgIron: 1mg

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More Potluck Salads

Thanks to their variability and ease, you’ll always be appreciated when you bring a salad to a potluck. Here are some of my favorites:

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Erin Clarke

Hi, I'm Erin Clarke, and I'm fearlessly dedicated to making healthy food that's affordable, easy-to-make, and best of all DELISH. I'm the author and recipe developer here at wellplated.com and of The Well Plated Cookbook. I adore both sweets and veggies, and I am on a mission to save you time and dishes. WELCOME!

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62 Comments

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  1. I assume the olive oil goes into the dressing. Could you leave it out and use a full fat Greek yogurt?

  2. will be making this soon can i use coconut yogurt as am dairy free can i skip capers as am not a big fan of it i never had salad before perfect for my after office meals sorry i took a break from commenting on your recipes as busy with work will dm you if i make this and let you know how it goes Thanks Ramya

  3. I didn’t think I would ever be able to enjoy a potato salad as much as the old mayo classic. I was wrong! I made exactly as recipe suggests and it was delicious!! Everyone enjoyed. Next time I am doubling!5 stars

  4. This is not clear what ingredients you actually blend together and what you add chopped.!!!???

    1. Hi Hazel, could you be more specific in which ingredient you are referring to? In the directions under the ingredient list it specifically tells you when to chop and blend together. Also some of the ingredients in the ingredient list specifies that they need to be diced and chopped.

    1. Hi Pamela! I haven’t tested this recipe with pickles but you can definitely experiment with them. Let me know if you decide to try it out!

  5. I loved it!
    I love regular potato salad and was kind of doubtful about the yogurt but tried it anyway and the result was delicious!
    I didn’t have capers and celery, i guess they can be optional if you don’t like them, that’s a good thing! And this recipe is perfect in my case to prepare at night and take it for lunch at work the next day. Definetly will be trying more of the recipes!5 stars

  6. I made this for the first time for a NYear party. I used 1/2 yogurt and 1/2 mayo cause I was Leary. It was awesome!! Next time I will go full yogurt. I love your website! My husband has many health issues and cannot tolerate much fat. I use to scour all the cooking websites. Now I have realized my favorites are well plated! Thank you Erin! You have been a lifesaver!!5 stars

  7. I haven’t tried this yet but, I love potato salad and I am looking forward to trying this. The only thing I’m not so sure of are the capers never had them. I like parsley might that be a good substitution?

    1. Hi Ernestine! Capers are not an herb so parsley wouldn’t be a good substitute. You can just leave them out if you need to. Hope this helps!

  8. I can’t have salt so I plant to use 1 tsp Dijon, and one tsp dry mustard.
    Can I use celery seed in place of celery salt which I don’t have?
    sweet pickle relish which I always put in my potato salad in place of capers, which I don’t like?

    1. Hi Carole! I’ve only tested the recipe as written, so I can say for sure how any substitutions would work out for you. If you decide to experiment, let me know how it goes!

  9. I can’t have salt so I plant to use 1 tsp Dijon, and one tsp dry mustard.
    Can I use celery seed in place of celery salt which I don’t have?
    sweet pickle relish which I always put in my potato salad in place of capers, which I don’t like?
    I use no salt in place of salt in other places.
    I also plan to try your pea salad.

    1. Hi KJP! I stopped including sodium info because it can vary so much depending upon what products you used, and I found a lot of conflicting info online, so ultimately I didn’t feel comfortable publishing it because sometimes it wasn’t even in the ballpark. If you’d like to calculate it yourself, there are lots of free tools online (myfitnesspal.com is popular). I hope that helps!

  10. II like the recipe – clear n seems to closely resemble my. Mom’s. Especially like idea of capers vs pickles!! Question : seems like dill is missing. Is there a reason?4 stars

    1. Hi Anne! No reason really. It’s not an ingredient that is standard for potato salad, depending on what variation you make. This is the one I prefer! Glad you enjoyed it!

  11. I made this with sweet potatoes instead and it was delicious! Maybe a bit too much vinegar, but I loved all the egg and the taste was divine!5 stars

  12. This was an excellent recipe. I made it the same way but also added a little dry dill. Thank you for sharing this. It’s better than regular salad with Mayo!5 stars

    1. Hi Janet, I stopped including sodium info because it can vary so much depending upon what products you used, and I found a lot of conflicting info online, so ultimately I didn’t feel comfortable publishing it because sometimes it wasn’t even in the ballpark. If you’d like to calculate it yourself, there are lots of free tools online (myfitnesspal.com is popular). I hope that helps!

  13. I’ll give it a whirl but with full-fat yogurt. I’m sure it’s just as healthy. I use it in everything that uses low/no-fat yogurt. :)
    LOVE green onions! Thanks for this healthy version!

  14. Made this for me and my dad for our bbq.. I don’t eat mayo so I tried this out.. dad’s not big on Greek yogurt but he said it was ok.. the dijon was too much and over powered everything else.. I ended up adding some chive cream cheese; I love that stuff and it calmed it down.. I think I’ll just stick to German tater salad..3 stars

    1. I’m sorry to hear the recipe wasn’t to your taste, Kimberly. I know it’s disappointing to try a new recipe and not enjoy it. I (and many other readers) have enjoyed it, so I really wish they would’ve been a hit for you too!

  15. I plan to try this for an upcoming family dinner. However, I am not a huge fan of garlic and am looking at options with respect to using it. Is there some sort of substitute? Can I just reduce the amount. Can I leave it out entirely without a substitute?
    Looking forward to making this regardless of the response.

  16. Made exactly as recipe but I had no capers and I used full fat yogurt. Very nice taste. Saved it and will definitely make again.5 stars

  17. Made this exactly as described and it is excellent! Didn’t end up using the last of the dressing as it was enough with the first bit. You’re so right about the celery salt – makes the difference! Thanks so much.5 stars

  18. We had this recipe for dinner. Loved it! My picky husband loved the change from the traditional mayo version. Thank you for sharing!!5 stars