This Vegan Potato Salad is a quick and easy recipe, using creamy avocado instead of mayonnaise. I love how it’s nut-free and oil-free, and that you can’t taste the avocado at all!
Using Avocado instead of Mayo
This potato salad gets its creaminess from an unexpected source– avocado! I love using avocado in this case because it keeps the recipe in the starch category for food combining (which may help to reduce bloating) and it means the overall recipe is oil-free.
If you aren’t the biggest avocado fan, don’t worry, you can’t taste the avocado once it’s mixed with the rest of the ingredients! I’m not the biggest avocado lover myself, but I love the flavor of this particular potato salad.
How to Make Vegan Potato Salad
This Vegan Potato Salad has the flavor of traditional potato salad, including fresh dill and mustard, but also has a lower sodium content thanks to the addition of diced fresh cucumbers, instead of using jarred pickles.
When allowed to marinate, the cucumbers become quite pickle-like, but feel free to add a few of your favorite pickles if you prefer.
Making this salad is as easy as it gets! Just cook the potatoes until they are tender, and while they cool you can mash together the avocado “sauce” in a separate bowl and stir in the chopped herbs and veggies.
Be sure to taste and adjust the flavors as you go, until it’s just right for you.
Keep in mind that this vegan potato salad will have the best flavor when it has the chance to marinate, so I recommend making this at least 2 hours before you plan on serving it.
Will the Avocado Sauce Brown?
I’ve kept this potato salad in the fridge for at least 3 days in an airtight container, and the potato salad still looks great! You’ll need to stir it again to reincorporate the sauce, but you can definitely make this a day in advance if you’d like to.
Vegan Potato Salad (Oil-Free & Nut-free)
Ingredients
- 1 pound Yukon gold potatoes , cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1/2 ripe avocado (about 3.5 ounces)
- 1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon salt , or to taste
- black pepper , to taste
- 1/4 cup finely diced red onion
- small handful fresh dill , chopped
- 1 cup chopped cucumber
Instructions
- Add an inch of water to a sauce pan and arrange a steamer basket inside. Place the potatoes in the steamer basket, then bring the water to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, lower the heat and cover, allowing the potatoes to steam until just fork-tender, about 10 minutes.
- While the potatoes are cooking, combine the avocado, 2 tablespoons of water, mustard, lemon juice and salt in a medium bowl, and mash well with a fork. This mixture will be on the acidic-tasting side, until you mix it with the potatoes, but feel free to adjust any flavors to suit your taste. For a more "Southern-style" potato salad, try adding a touch of maple syrup for sweetness.
- Allow the steamed potatoes to cool for at least 20 minutes (preferably in the fridge to speed things up), then gradually add the cooled potatoes to the creamy avocado sauce. Stir gently to coat well.
- Place the potato salad in the fridge to marinate for at least an hour, so it can completely cool and the flavors can meld. Serve chilled, and store the leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is based on 1/4 of this recipe. This information is automatically calculated, so it’s just an estimate and not a guarantee.
Recipe Notes:
- This recipe can be easily adapted to suit your personal taste, so feel free to get creative! Use yellow mustard if you prefer it over Dijon, and use any other herbs or seasonings that you like.
- Yukon gold potatoes, red potatoes, or even sweet potatoes can be used in this recipe, depending on your preference– keeping in mind that the sweet variety will change the flavor.
As always, if you try something different with this recipe please leave a comment below letting us know how it worked out. We can all benefit from YOUR experience!
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Reader Feedback: Are you a fan of potato salad? Anything made with mayonnaise used to freak me out as a child, but now I love this stuff!
I’e never really eaten potato salad because of the mayo but I can’t wait to try this version-what a genius substitute and I love avocado!
This sounds so good! I love the idea of using avocado instead of mayonnaise. I have a huge bag of potatoes at home that I was going to roast but I think I’ll give this a try instead!
Our daughter in law just made this yesterday for a Memorial Day cook-out side dish. AMAZING! My husband, who loves traditional potato salad said, “This is the best potato salad I’ve ever had!” I was shocked. And he wasn’t just saying it for her benefit. He raved about that salad on the way home too! She gave him plenty of left-overs and she texted me this great recipe. THANK you for this delicious healthy version of a summer holiday favorite!
I’m so glad it was a hit!! Thanks so much for coming back to let me know!
Mmmm…I want some now! It looks amazing!
This looks yummy! I was just saying to my husband last night wondering about avocado & coconut milk yogurt for the typical broccoli salad with raisins, sunflower seeds, etc. I’ve made with plain coconut yogurt & it was pretty good. This dish looks delish. I love potato salad I just don’t make very often. My mom made the best potato salad – I miss it!
This turned out great! It was exactly what I was looking for! I added some fresh garden cherry tomatoes and it was delicious.
We were going to have fries with dinner tonight (home made Italian sausage on the grill), but this sounds yummy!
Yes, I love the IDEA of potato salad! BUT I don’t like mayo or vinegar based ones. So, I’m really excited about your recipe, because I love avocados and lemon :0)! Does the cucumber blend into the dressing when mashed? I’d like to try adding a crunchy veggie to this recipe, too but am not sure what would compliment it. Do you you have any suggestions?
The cucumber doesn’t blend into the dressing, since you’re just mashing it all together with a fork. I like lots of crunchy pickle-like bites in my potato salad, so you get that from the onion and cucumber, but you can certainly add more texture than that if you like! Also, if you’re not crazy about a vinegar flavor, you can always reduce the mustard and increase the lemon juice. (My Dijon mustard is made with apple cider vinegar, so it’s still quite vinegary in flavor.)
Green apples go GREAT with dill & potatoes! cut up little chunks and throw em in there~
Thank you for getting back to my questions so quickly, Megan, & thank you for this recipe & the fudgy buckwheat brownie recipe that I’m also very excited about! Now that I know they’ll be crunchy pickle-like bites w/o the vinegar, I’m exited to try it just that way, the first time! Yes, skipping the mustard & increasing the lemon & just adding a few dry spices is exactly one of the options I was thinking about :0)! Or I might add a bit of a spicy vinegar-free sauce!
Thank you so much for your site & your contagious love for healthy whole foods! Congratulations on your little boy (I just saw the baby shower reveal from all the way back in June)! I hope the best for the three of you!!
This is such a cool idea! I’ve never made a potato salad since going vegan years ago and I love how you’re using the ingredients to create unique flavors/textures, like the avocado/mustard to add creaminess and diced cucumber like pickles bites. I can’t wait to try this, it looks delicious!
Just tried it and it is delicious and easy! Yummy. Thank you for sharing!!
I just made potato salad yesterday with almost the same exact ingredients. 😉 I love your idea of using avocado instead of mayo! I will definitely try this next time!!
I loved that you substituted mayo with an avocado and the mustard!
I tried out this recipe tonight, for a test run for an upcoming potluck, and wow! Creamy goodness, thanks for posting !
What a cleaver idea to substitute avocado! I appreciate your out-of-the-box ways to eat healthier! Do you have a recipe for your Dijon mustard?
I have a recipe for homemade mustard here: https://detoxinista.com/2013/01/homemade-spicy-mustard/
But, typically I just buy my mustard from Whole Foods! They make an affordable organic German mustard that is made with apple cider vinegar and a very clean ingredient list, and it tastes fantastic.
Love this idea, sounds delicious!
This sounds delish! I like to make coleslaw with Greek yogurt instead of mayo–with some lemon, it’s really light and refreshing.
Oh wow this looks amazing. I am so going to be making this for the next potluck!
I have long been a fan of Tyler Florence’s recipes. He really gets food. So I looked at his original potato salad recipe, but yours looks and sounds so much better! If I want to make potato salad, it will be your recipe that I use.
Amazing. I LOVE potato salad, and often eat it and then feel guilty afterward, but this recipe was super easy and delicious. The dill really comes through and the slightly mashed cucumber is a perfect crunchy kick to the mix. So excited. A bit worried I will now eat this for every meal. Thank you!
Wowsers! My younger sister has made this two times already. It is amazing how it tastes EXACTLY like mayo-potato salad, but it’s much healthier fats and plant-based. Genius!
Wow very nice and wonderful meal I promise i will try it good job.
I just made this recipe, thank you so much! I love potato salad but keep away from it most of the time because of the mayo. This potato salad is awesome !!!!! I didn’t add the cucumbers but that was the only change I made. will definitely be making this again and again. I love your website, so glad I found you… Date Squares are next : )
We had this salad at a BBQ last weekend and it was fantastic !!
This sounds delicious! I think I will try it with red potatoes – those are my favorite.
I was craving some potato salad (they make it at the place I work at, and it’s too expensive for a little container) and I’m lactose intolerant. I stumbled upon this website, and I needed a few ingredients from the store, but I had the rest (avocado, and lemon). This is so delicious! I love it! Thanks for this recipe!
yummy i will try with Avocado .. yesterday made potato salad see http://recipespassion.blogspot.com/ thanks for sharing..
was very tasty but i think next time i will not put as much dijon mustard ! I also added another avacado but didnt mush it, i diced it so you got some other texture. DELICIOUS x
This is LUSH!…Could I possibly use silken non-gmo/organic tofu for the avocado (and in what quantity?) for an avocado allergy (rubber cross-allergy!) in the family?…I love the color and beauty of your version!
This was delicious and an easy recipe to make! I have been looking for a vegan dish like this for a while now. Keep up the good work and keep sharing!!
This recipe his a huge hit, even for the non-vegans!! So easy and delicious, I’ve added chopped sweet pickles for some more crunch and sweetness.
Thank you!
Loving your blog! One of my new faves <3
Thanks! Hope you enjoy the recipes! 🙂
I am in the country of potato salad (Germany) but here they are made in such an unhealthy way!!! I actually run away from them as fast as I can at friend’s 😉 But I really loved this recipe, I have some sweet potatoes being steamed right NOW 🙂 Thank you!
This was an amazing recipe! i had to use stone ground mustard, and added extra salt. i think next time i will add some chopped up hard boiled eggs!!
This recipe looks awesome! I’m allergic to avocado, is there anything else I can use as a substitute?
This is a fantastic recipe! My entire family (even the 11 year old) loved it. Thank you!
This is absolutely delicious! I didn’t have a lot of the ingredients, so I did it simply – avocado, yukon golds, yellow mustard, red onion, salt and pepper. My carnivore husband is chowing down on a big bowl of this amazing vegan creation right now! We’re never making potato salad any other way….and I’m going to make this for a family reunion tomorrow!
This had a little too much of a mustard taste for me. So I added a drizzle of honey, and now it’s perfect!
Thanks for the recipe! I tried it and also added a bit of sumac, fresh thyme and green scallions. Came out very yummy!
I just made this and it is amazing. I usually make vegan potato salad with vegenaise and have always enjoyed it. However, this tastes amazing and is a little more novel, in my opinion.
Awesome recipe… the avocado in place of mayo ingenious, Thanks!!!
I made this today using small fingerling potatoes, so I only halved them and didn’t peel them. I also cooked the small portion of onion (I used shallot) in a dribble of olive oil, because I’m not a big fan of raw onion. I used Grey’s Poupon Dijon (although I have seeded) and only a tablespoon and I was out of dill, but I’m not a big fan of dill anyway, although I want to try it again with dill. I used small Persian cucumbers and diced them (left peel on since it isn’t waxed,) and I added about 1/2 cup of celery for added crunch. Normally I make a recipe by the book the first time out, but I can see this wonderful recipe you have given us can allow for a lot of variations. I also added a sprinkle of celery seed (upon request) and some chopped parsley. It’s a keeper! 😀
I don’t know what I did wrong, but my batch is intolerable. I left out the onions, but I did everything else precisely the same. Help!?!
Thanks
This is absolutely amazing and so easy!! Thanks for sharing. It tastes so good 🙂
I have a bunch of Dutch Baby potatoes that I think will be perfect for this.
We had this salad at a BBQ last weekend and it was fantastic !
Does the avocado turn brown if made the day before?
Yes, it’s not as pretty if it sits in the fridge overnight– but it still tastes good!
Good to hear that the potato salad still tastes good after a day, even if brown. Can you estimate how long the potato salad would still taste good, despite the avocado turning brown? I’ve always assumed that the brown color (of the avocado) also meant bad taste (of the avocado). I guess your saying that isn’t true. So now I’m wondering whether the brown avocado also continues tasting good for a few days. Thanks for sharing what looks like a great potato salad recipe!
yes! it looked awful and i had to throw it out. too bad and a waste. no way it could last 3 days. it was delicious, though! i also added celery
This really does look good. Avocado makes everything better!
Just made this recipe for the first time. Followed it exactly, tasted it, and although it is a really good base I thought it was missing something. After adding more salt and being afraid to over salt it I realized that the “something” might be vinegar. Sure enough, I added just 1/2 tbsp of white wine vinegar and voila – it was perfect! The avocado is a great creamy replacement for mayo!
This looks pretty awesome. I love potato salad and am not vegan but I really don’t want to eat mayo so this is perfect. Does it turn brown after sitting in the fridge a while, or does the lemon keep that from happening?
Thanks!
I just made this after a couple of failed attemptes at making a delicious vegan salad to bring to a Christmas dinner. This one is definitely a winner! I love the flavours. Thanks for the delicious simple recipe!
Yum!!! I made a version with avocado, lemon juice, salt, mustard, pepper, and green onions. Besides being tasty, it was extremely pretty 🙂
Has anyone tried this with steamed cauliflower?
This recipe was so good!