This Easy Herby Warm Potato Salad makes the most of new season or baby potatoes and is the perfect side dish for a buffet, picnic, barbecue or just a light meal. It’s creamy but not heavy with a hint of garlic and packed with fresh herbs.
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As much as I do like a regular cold potato salad, I actually way prefer one that’s a little warm. I feel like the texture of the potato is nicer and the flavours all become more rounded and enjoyable.
Saying all this, this recipe also works perfectly as a cold salad, just cool the potatoes in ice water or under cold running water for a few minutes.
How to Serve Warm Potato Salad
Potato salad is super versatile. Make a big bowl to serve at a large gathering and it’ll never be passed over – pretty much everyone loves a potato salad and there aren’t many foods that it doesn’t accompany and complement perfectly.
It’s also great for everyday meals, especially on warmer days or when you just want something a little fresher. Try as a side to sliced gammon, some juicy hotdogs or one of my favourite options, with simply cooked fish and a green salad. I’ve served with a delicious skate wing here – absolutely worth seeking out.
Herby Potato Salad Ingredients
Potatoes
You can buy baby potatoes all year round, and even miniature potatoes which I absolutely love using for this recipe. You absolutely can also use larger potatoes – new season and especially jersey royals are of course the crème de la crème of spuds. Whichever you use, just make sure to cut them so they’re all a similar size – I aim for something that I can eat in one bite.
I’m not the biggest fan of leaving potatoes unpeeled as a general rule. But when the potatoes are small and/or new and the skins are thin, I do like to leave them on. And of course its rather a pain in the butt to peel a bunch of tiny potatoes. What is important, no matter the size, is to spend those few minutes making sure to cut off any bad patches or eyes from the potatoes, no one wants to be picking them out the salad, or worse, eating them.
Mayonnaise
You can use any mayo that you prefer. My general preference is a light one but full fat is of course fine and I tested this recipe with both. It works perfectly either way. Of course a homemade mayonnaise is a next level option.
If you really don’t want to use mayo at all, you can just use more crème fraiche but the dressing will lose some of its richness and texture as a result.
Crème Fraiche
Again it doesn’t matter if you wish to use a full or reduced fat option here. Some of the more expensive French crème fraiches that are available in the big supermarkets and delis are really delicious so if you’re aiming for true luxury, maybe give them a try.
If you like even more tang, you can sub the crème fraiche for sour cream. And if you don’t mind the slight difference in flavour, Greek yoghurt is also an option.
Shallot
I use shallot rather than onion in the dressing because it has a milder and sweeter flavour. If you prefer to use white or red onions, you can cut them finely then leave to sit in cold water for 20 minutes or so. This will remove some of the harsher, more acrid flavour notes. Drain the onions and then add to the recipe as normal.
Garlic Salt
I use garlic salt a lot. It adds a garlic undernote without the harshness of raw garlic. You could alternatively use a mix of garlic powder or granules and sea salt. Add some roasted garlic is another good option as this is sweet and smoky rather than harsh in flavour.
Herbs
It’s the herbs that really make this potato salad. I chose to use a mix of chives with their oniony twang, parsley with it’s more grassy notes and mint for freshness. Of course mint is a really classic pairing with potatoes anyway.
You can use more of one herb than the other, add other herbs or just use one or two. I would suggest sticking to soft/non-woody herbs. Common options would be tarragon, chervil, coriander, basil or sorrel. Harder herbs like thyme, oregano, sage and rosemary or best left for dishes where the herbs are subjected to heat.
Fresh herbs are ideal but you could sub one herbs for dried. If sticking to my recipe, I would use fresh chives and parsley but use dried mint.
Be Flexible
As I’ve already mentioned, you can use any size potato, change up the herbs to your preference and use whichever mix of creme/mayo that you prefer. Beyond that we’re looking at adding other ingredients to switch things up.
Dijon mustard would make an excellent addition – or wholegrain. Just go easy so the other flavours in the dish aren’t overwhelmed. You could also add fresh chopped chillis for a spicy version. Very finely cut pickles or cornichons would be a classic addition or for the posher version, try capers.
To make the salad more of a hero than a side, you can add cooked cubed or shredded chicken, crispy fried pieces of bacon and/or/hard boiled eggs.
Vegetarian or Vegan Potato Salad
This recipe is suitable for vegetarians as written.
To make a vegan potato salad, you will need to make sure that your mayonnaise is plant based and you will need to use something to replace the crème fraiche – there are quite a few vegan options available now.
If you are struggling to find something, you can always increase the amount of vegan mayo instead.
Make Allergy Friendly Warm Potato Salad
This recipe is free from gluten and nuts.
Dairy Free: A proper mayonnaise should already be dairy free but it is best to check the label. You will then also need to sub the crème fraiche. Just as with making a vegan version, you can usually find a good alternative in the supermarket or just increase the amount of mayo.
Egg Free: Mayonnaise contains egg but there are a lot of egg free and vegan options now available. If you don’t want to use one of those, you can use all crème fraiche instead.
Please note that this recipe may contain other allergens not referred to above and any variations suggested have not been tested unless otherwise stated. For more information regarding any dietary information provided on this website, please refer to my Nutritional Disclaimer.
Get Ahead
You can make the dressing up to several days in advance and store it in the fridge. You can boil the potatoes several days in advance and store in the fridge.
But if you are planning to serve this salad warm then it is best to not combine them until you are planning to serve. Reheat the potatoes and then combine with the dressing. A few extra fresh herbs to garnish are nice but not essential.
Leftover Warm Potato Salad
Leftovers will keep in the fridge for a good few days. Make sure they’re in an airtight container or bag as this kind of dressing has a tendency to absorb other flavours from the fridge.
You can eat the leftovers cold or you can warm them in the microwave, However the dressing won’t be quite the same and could even split a little. So do this at your own risk.
This recipe isn’t really suitable for freezing.
Potato Salad Tips
Be particular about prepping the potatoes. It might take an extra couple of minutes, but actually cutting all the bad bits off the potatoes will make a big difference to the quality of the final salad.
Allowing the cooked potatoes to sit in the warm pan and steam dry is essential. You don’t want any extra water in the dish. If they are not drying sufficiently, you can put the pan on a low heat to speed the process up.
Adding the dressing to the pan rather than the other way around also helps with the temperature of the dish but slightly warming the dressing.
Don’t forget to let me know in the comments if you try making this recipe – I want to know what you think and if you made any substitutions, how did it turn out?
Still Have Questions?
Simple! Just contact me and I will do my best to help as quickly as I am able. Head over to my Contact Me page, any of my social media channels or post a comment at the bottom of this page and I’ll see what I can do.
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More Potato Recipes
The Recipe
Easy Herby Warm Potato Salad Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 kg Baby Potatoes
- 2 tsp Fine/Table Salt
- 60 g Shallot
- 80 g Mayonnaise
- 80 g Creme Fraiche
- 1 tsp Lemon Juice
- 2 tbsp Fresh Chives - finely chopped
- 4 tbsp Fresh Parsley - finely chopped
- 2 tbsp Fresh Mint Leaves - finely chopped
- ½ tsp Garlic Salt
Instructions
- Put a kettle of water on to boil.
- If needed, wash and thoroughly dry around 1kg Baby Potatoes.
- Use a small sharp knife to cut off any large imperfections from the potatoes.
- Cut any large potatoes into half and any very large potatoes into quarters. How and if you do this will entirely depend on the size of your potatoes. You are looking to end up with all of the pieces being roughly the same size so they cook evenly.
- Place the potatoes into a saucepan, cover with boiling water from the kettle and add around 2 tsp Fine/Table Salt.
- Place the pan on a high heat and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down so the water is just gently boiling and allow to cook until tender. This will take around 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile prepare the dressing. Top, tail, halve, peel and very finely slice around 60g Shallot.
- Place the shallot into a small mixing bowl along with 80g Mayonnaise, 80g Creme Fraiche, and ½ tsp Garlic Salt.
- Finely chop around 2 tbsp Fresh Chives, 4 tbsp Fresh Parsley and 2 tbsp Fresh Mint Leaves. Set a little of each aside to garnish if you wish.
- Add the herbs to the rest of the dressing ingredients along with 1 tsp Lemon Juice.
- Mix well until everything is well combined. Taste it and adjust the seasoning as necessary – more salt or more lemon juice is often needed If you find it to be too sharp, add a very small amount of sugar.
- Once the potatoes are soft all the way through, drain the water and allow them to sit and steam dry for a few minutes. It is important for there to not be any water left in the pan.
- Tip the dressing into the pan of dry potatoes.
- Use a spatula or large silicone spoon to mix the potatoes with the dressing until every piece of potato is thoroughly coated.
- The potato salad can sit a little while if needed or can be served immediately.
Lesley says
I loved the combination of fresh herbs in this potato salad recipe, my family enjoyed it – empty plates all round.
Hannah says
I made this for Easter Monday and served with cold ham and salad. It was a big hit with all my family.