🥔 Smashed Potato Salad (Vegan, Crispy, Creamy)
There’s something nostalgic yet exciting about a good potato salad—but this isn’t your grandma’s mayo-drenched version. This vegan smashed potato salad is a game-changer: crispy roasted baby potatoes tossed in a creamy, tangy, herb-packed dressing. It’s dairy-free, plant-based, and bursting with texture and flavor.
Perfect for summer BBQs, meal prep, or as a vegan side dish at your next picnic, this recipe gives the classic a much-needed facelift. Think golden smashed potatoes with crispy edges, fresh dill and parsley, and a luscious cashew mustard dressing that ties everything together. No one will miss the eggs or mayo—promise.
🥗 What Makes This Smashed Potato Salad Different?
Most vegan potato salads are either too mushy or missing that nostalgic zing. Here’s why this one hits differently:
- Crispy + Creamy Texture – Thanks to roasting the smashed potatoes, you get crunchy edges with a soft center.
- Flavorful Without Mayo – The herby cashew dressing is creamy, tangy, and zippy.
- Whole-Food Ingredients – 100% oil-free optional, made with real, plant-based staples.
- Crowd-Pleasing – Whether you’re vegan or not, this is a cookout favorite.
🔥 Smashed vs. Traditional Potato Salad: Why It Matters
The smashing and roasting process gives this dish its edge—literally. You get crispy texture that contrasts beautifully with the creamy dressing. It’s not just a flavor upgrade—it’s a texture transformation.
Plus, roasting adds a light caramelization that enhances natural sweetness and makes the potatoes irresistible. Once you go smashed, you won’t go back.
👩🍳 How to Make Smashed Potato Salad (Quick Overview)
This easy vegan potato salad comes together in three simple steps:
Boil baby potatoes until tender. Once slightly cooled, gently smash them on a baking tray. Drizzle with oil, season with salt and pepper, and bake until the edges are crispy.
Mix plant-based yogurt and vegan mayo with lemon juice, garlic, fresh herbs, cucumber, and red onion until creamy and well combined.
Toss the crispy smashed potatoes with the herbed dressing and enjoy warm or chilled.
🧺These Smashed Potato Salad are Perfect For These Occasions:
This salad is one of those flexible recipes that fits almost any situation. Here are some ideas:
- 🌞 Summer BBQs and picnics
- 🍽️ Vegan side dish for weeknight dinners
- 🎉 Potlucks and cookouts
- 🥗 Meal-prep lunches
- 🧺 Road trips and lunchboxes (it’s great cold!)
🔁 Variations & Add-Ons for your Smashed Potato Salad
Want to mix things up? Here are a few fun variations:
- 🥒 Add chopped pickles or capers for a briny boost
- 🥓 Sprinkle with coconut bacon for smokiness
- 🌶️ Mix in a bit of chili oil or hot sauce for a spicy kick
- 🫘 Add cooked lentils or white beans to make it a meal
📦 Storage Tips for Smashed Potato Salad
- Fridge: Keeps well for 3–4 days in an airtight container.
- Meal prep tip: Store dressing separately if you want max crispiness later.
- Reheating: Warm the potatoes in a pan or oven before adding fresh dressing for best texture.
🧑🍳 Chef’s Tips for Perfection
- Smash while warm: Potatoes smash better and crisp up beautifully when still warm.
- Use parchment paper: This prevents sticking and makes clean-up a breeze.
- Add fresh herbs last: To preserve color and flavor, toss them in just before serving.
❓Smashed Potato Salad FAQs
Yes! Fingerlings, baby reds, or even halved Yukon Golds will work.
Totally. Just skip the oil on the potatoes and use parchment paper to keep them from sticking while roasting.
Absolutely. It’s one of the few potato salads that’s just as good cold, warm, or room temp.
Yes! Just roast and store the potatoes separately, and mix with herbs and dressing just before serving.
💬 Final Thoughts: A Potato Salad That’ll Steal the Show
This isn’t just a side dish—it’s the one everyone will be talking about. With its golden, crispy texture and crave-worthy vegan dressing, this vegan smashed potato salad will upgrade your entire summer menu. It’s easy to make, packed with nutrients, and totally plant-based.Whether you’re serving it at a BBQ, packing it for a vegan picnic, or meal prepping for the week, this is one recipe you’ll keep coming back to. Make it once—and it might just replace your go-to potato salad forever. Cook meals that matter — get inspired by Dr. Vegan’s plant-based recipes!
Smashed Potato Salad
Equipment
- Large Pot for boiling potatoes
- Oven for baking potatoes
- Baking sheet
- Mixing bowl for yogurt sauce
Ingredients
For the Yogurt Sauce:
- 1 cup Yogurt
- 1/2 cup Mayonnaise
- 1 lemon Lemon Juice
- 2 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 tbsp Dill chopped
- 1 tbsp Parsley chopped
- 1 tbsp Chives chopped
- 1/2 Cucumber finely diced
- 1 Red Onion finely chopped
Instructions
Preparation of Potatoes:
- Boil the potatoes until they are fork-tender.
- Preheat your oven to a high temperature (about 425°F or 220°C).
- Once boiled, drain the potatoes and let them cool slightly.
- On a baking sheet, gently smash each potato to flatten it, but ensure it remains in one piece.
- Drizzle olive oil over the potatoes and sprinkle them generously with salt and pepper.
- Bake in the preheated oven until the edges are crispy and golden brown, about 45-60 minutes or until crispy.
Making the Herbed Yogurt:
- In a bowl, combine yogurt and mayonnaise.
- Stir in the lemon juice, minced garlic, dill, parsley, chives or spring onion, diced cucumber, and finely chopped red onion. Mix well until all ingredients are incorporated.
Combining:
- Once the potatoes are baked and crispy, let them cool for a few minutes.
- Add the Potatoes to the Bowl with the yogurt-herb mix, combine and enjoy!
Great recipe. Used kewpie mayonnaise, and added more garlic, and cayenne. Thank you.
I made this for my family for Christmas dinner after seeing it on Instagram and it was their favorite dish. Everyone loved it so much. It’s the perfect recipe to serve at gatherings if you want something different than the usual mashed or roasted potatoes.
Hi Mary!
Wow, your kind words truly made my day! I’m thrilled to hear that your family enjoyed the dish. It’s comments like these and people like you that keep motivating me😊.
If you feel like your life has been missing something…it has…and it’s this recipe. I found this on TikTok originally and haven’t stopped making it since. It’s truly one of the greatest curations of humankind. Crunchy. Salty. Genius. I make one batch a week and my family devours it. I usually cut the mayo and add extra yogurt (Coco June is the way to go). It’s divine. Thank you for your service Dr Vegan 🫡
This is amazing! I followed the recipe to the t and used duck fat instead of olive oil to roast the potatoes. The dressing is to die for!
Duck fat? Take it you are not a vegan or vegetarian.
I know this isn’t vegan: But I humbly wanted to share that adding grilled chicken really enhanced the dish.
Hi, könnten vielleicht auch Gramm-Einheiten statt Tassen angegeben werden? Oder kann ich da einfach irgendeinen Umrechner aus dem Internet nehmen?
Oh my goodness 😍 That salad was absolutely delicious 😋 hands down!!! My whole family including my 5 year old couldn’t get enough ❣️ I already make the dill and cucumber salad, however, this salad brings out so many layers of goodness! Thank you so much for the recipe!
Flavor Explosion:
The first bite was an explosion of flavors—creamy, tangy, and perfectly seasoned. The potatoes were smashed to just the right consistency, creating a delightful blend of textures that was both satisfying and refreshing. Each forkful was a harmonious dance of creamy richness and zesty tanginess. WINNER!!!