Name: Recipe for Mayo-Free Homestyle Potato Salad
Prep time: 2½-4 hours
Cook time: 25-30 minutes
Total time: 3-4½ hours
Yield: 15 (⅔ cup) servings
Cuisine: Salads
Ingredients: 1 raw cashews; 2 tapioca powder; 1 nutritional yeast flakes; 2 1/2 salt; 1 1/2 Chicken-Style Seasoning; 1 onion powder; 1 mustard powder; 1 sweetener; 1/2 celery salt; 1/2 garlic powder; 1/8 turmeric; 2 boiling water; 1/4 dried dill; 1/4 lemon juice; 1 apple cider vinegar; 6 large Yukon Gold potatoes, diced; 1 (15–16 oz.) extra-firm water-packed tofu; 1/2 sweet onion, minced; 2 large dill pickles, minced; Any other family favorites such as green onions, celery, etc.

Bowl of potato salad with pickle garnish

Salads A Plant-Based Version of an American Classic

This delicious egg-free version of potato salad retains the familiarity of homestyle goodness. Potato salad is a hearty comfort food that can often carry a lot of unwanted free fats in the salad dressing. This recipe eliminates all free oils but retains the much-loved flavor of traditional potato salad.

Mayo-Free Homestyle Potato Salad

Recipe courtesy of

Heather Leno

Prep Instructions

Yield: 15 (⅔ cup) servings
Prep Time: 2½-4 hours
Cook Time: 25-30 minutes
Total Time: 3-4½ hours

Recipe Ingredients

1 cup raw cashews
2 tablespoons tapioca powder
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons Chicken-Style Seasoning
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon sweetener
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
2 cups boiling water
1/4 teaspoon dried dill
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
6 large Yukon Gold potatoes, diced
1 (15–16 oz.) extra-firm water-packed tofu
1/2 cup sweet onion, minced
2 large dill pickles, minced
Any other family favorites such as green onions, celery, etc.

First make the dressing–combine all but the water, dill, lemon juice, and vinegar in your blender cup and set aside.
Bring exactly 2 cups water to a boil, either in the microwave or on the stovetop, and then quickly pour into the blender with its contents.
Cover tightly with the lid, making sure the pressure vent is released. I like to lightly cover the lid with a paper towel, so the steam doesn’t burn. Blend until all the nuts are completely smooth, scraping down the sides of the blender if needed.
Add the dill, lemon juice, and vinegar, and blend just to mix. Cover and refrigerate to chill.
Steam the potatoes with their skins on, chill, peel, and dice. Dice tofu into 1/4-inch pieces and lightly sauté in a dry nonstick frying pan just enough to firm up to the texture of boiled eggs. Stir often so it doesn’t brown. Set aside to cool.
Mince the onion and pickles.
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and cover. When the dressing is chilled to at least room temperature, fold it into the salad and continue chilling until ready to use, preferably several hours or overnight for the best flavor.

NOTE: If you want to omit the vinegar, decrease the lemon juice to 2 tablespoons and replace the vinegar with 1/2 teaspoon citric acid (level off to measure, as citric acid granules pack a lot of punch).