This creamy Green Potato salad is a fresh, zesty and slightly spicy twist on the classic side dish. Made with arugula, cilantro, lemon juice, garlic and jalapenos, it is ready in 30 minutes. Vegan and gluten free.
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Why You’ll Love This Salad
- It has lots of flavor – move over boring mayo and green onions, this salad is a flavor bomb with creamy tahini, fresh cilantro, lemon juice, garlic and a few slices of jalapenos for heat. It has a lot more going on in its flavor profile than your typical white potato salad.
- The green color looks gorgeous– Green is just such an appetizing color! This lush looking salad is so appealing as a centerpiece or side dish with a creamy green dressing.
- It’s healthier – your typical potato salad uses a lot of mayonnaise and can be quite high in calories and saturated fat. This Green Potato Salad uses tahini as a creamy alternative to mayonnaise. Tahini is a wholefoods seed butter made from sesame seeds and is full of protein and healthy fats. It also tastes DIVINE. Creamy, rich, nutty, with just a hint of bitterness.
Ingredients
Here’s a shopping list of everything you’ll need to whip up this GreenPotato salad. See the recipe card at the bottom of this post for specific quantities.
- Small yellow or red potatoes
- Baby arugula
- Green onions
- Cilantro
- Tahini (hulled)
- Lemon juice
- Olive oil
- Garlic
- Salt
- Jalapeno
How to Make Green Potato Salad
Making this twist on Potato Salad is simple and very similar to making a classic potato salad recipe. The key difference is that we make the creamy dressing using a blender. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to make this recipe. For specific timings and quantities, check out the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step One: Wash and chop potatoes.
Step Two: Boil until just soft. Drain and cool.
Step Three: Add all dressing ingredients to a blender.
Step Four: Make dressing by blending cilantro, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, jalapeno, water, tahini, and salt until smooth.
Step Five: Combine cooled potatoes and green onions with dressing.
Step Six: Add arugula.
Step Seven: Toss salad and serve immediately.
Substitutions and Variations
The great thing about salads is that you can get creative with ingredients swaps and still end up with a delicious and healthy meal. The goal of salads (in my humble opinion) is to get as much variety into the meal for both flavor, texture and nutrition! Here are some substitutes that work well with this salad:
- Tahini – now I know I was singing the praises of this wholefoods seed butter earlier BUT if you are in a pinch, you can swap tahini for mayonnaise. It won’t be quite as nutritious (and it will taste less earthy) but it will still give the dressing that creamy factor. I would *not* recommend swapping tahini for any other nut butter with the exception of cashew butter as it is very neutral in flavor. If you do use cashew butter, you may find that you need to add a splash of water or extra olive oil to your dressing as it will be thicker than tahini.
- Arugula (rocket) – can be swapped for another dark leafy green like baby spinach leaves or even chopped kale (be sure to remove the stems).
- Green onions – can be swapped for finely diced red or white onion.
- Jalapenos – if you’re not keen on spicy flavor, it’s totally fine to omit the jalapeno slices.
- Cilantro – some people think it tastes like soap (if you are in that boat I’m sorry it sounds like such a bummer!!). If you’re not a fan, swap it out for another light leafy herb like dill, flat leaf Italian parsley or even mint. Avoid woody or pungent herbs like rosemary, thyme or oregano.
Storage Instructions
Look, like most salads, this one is best eaten on the day. If you’d like to make it in advance, I would suggest keeping all components separate. So that’s the potatoes in one container, the dressing in another, the arugula (rocket) and green onions in a third. That way everything will stay as fresh as possible and not go soggy.
If you do have leftovers after dressing the salad, keep them in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Eat as soon as possible for the best texture. I do not recommend freezing.
This Green Potato Salad is a delicious side dish or even a main meal. Try it with my Cashew Parmesan for a cheesy topping or paired with my Tofu Schnitzel recipe. It’s a great recipe to take to BBQs and pot lucks, as it has a familiar feel but with a fresh, robust flavor twist. If you make it, I’d love to know what you think and would be super grateful if you could leave a star rating and quick review below so others can also find this recipe 🙂
If you’re on Instagram, you can upload a photo of this salad and tag me @glowdiaries___ and I will reshare your post to my stories! I love to see what you’re cooking.
Green Potato Salad
Equipment
- Blender
Ingredients
- 2 lbs yellow or red potatoes small, (900g)
- 3/4 cup fresh cilantro (18g) leaves and small stems
- 1/3 cup tahini (78ml)
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice (30ml)
- 2 tablespoon olive oil (30ml)
- 2 cloves garlic (10g)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt (3g)
- 2-3 slices jalapeño (10-15g) depending on desired spice level
- 3-4 cups baby arugula loosely packed, washed and dried (60g)
- 3 medium green onions (45g) chopped
Instructions
- Add chopped potatoes to a large pot of salted water. Bring to a boil, then cook for about 15 minutes, or until just fork-tender. Drain and let cool completely. (To speed this up, rinse with cold water after draining.)
- In a blender, combine cilantro, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, jalapeño slices, and water. Blend until the cilantro is finely chopped (but not fully pureed).
- Add the tahini and salt, then blend again until smooth and creamy. Adjust water as needed for a pourable consistency. Let sit for at least 30 minutes to allow the flavors to develop.
- In a large bowl, combine the cooled potatoes and chopped green onions. Add the dressing and toss until fully coated.
- Add the arugula and gently toss again just before serving.
Make Ahead Tips:
- To prep ahead, store the potatoes and dressing separately in the fridge for up to 2 days.
- Wait to add arugula until just before serving to prevent wilting.
- Dressing can be made up to 5 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
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