I’ve always loved potato salad in all of its incarnations. Remember the potato salad you could buy from the deli at your grocery store? Maybe I shouldn’t use the past tense, I bet it’s still available… Anyway, I’m pretty sure it was comprised entirely of just potatoes and mayonnaise, but guess what? I was a fan.
I know mayonnaise, especially the huge quantities often seen in potato salad recipes, is a deal breaker for a lot of people. Clearly not for me, but Shane definitely falls into that category. In fact, when I asked him about potato salad in general, hinting I wanted to make some a few weekends ago, he politely, but in no uncertain terms, said no thanks. Undeterred, I set out to find a version that would change his mind. I also hoped to keep it on the lighter side, at least as much as is possible when the main ingredient in the dish is potatoes 🙂
When I stumbled upon this roasted potato salad with honey mustard dressing and bacon, I was pretty sure I had my winner. You start with baby red potatoes. No need to peel them, just wash, cut and roast until fork tender – so easy! The potatoes are then combined with crispy bacon, garlic, and lightly caramelized onions. I probably could have stopped there and been happy, but the dressing wound up being the perfect finishing touch. There’s only a tiny amount of mayonnaise, and you won’t even taste it because the tangy mustard really is the star, it adds a ton of flavor! He was skeptical, but this potato salad definitely won Shane over (he ate it with both lunch and dinner the day I made it!). I have no doubt it’ll become one of our go-to dishes this summer.
Roasted Potato Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing and Bacon
slightly adapted from Cooking Light, July 2006
3 pounds baby red potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 heaping cup diced sweet onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons reduced-fat mayonnaise
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Preheat oven to 400 F.
In a large bowl, toss together the potatoes, olive oil, pepper, and salt. Spread the potatoes in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet (or two baking sheets if you need to). Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork tender, tossing them once or twice as they cook. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
Set a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and add the bacon. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the bacon has browned and is crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Pour off all about 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat in the pan. To the bacon fat, add the onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10-15 minutes, or until the onions have softened and are starting to caramelize. Add the garlic to the pan and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute, just until fragrant. Transfer the onion and garlic mixture, as well as the bacon, to the bowl with the potatoes. Gently toss to combine. Set aside while you make the dressing.
In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, mayonnaise, honey, and vinegar. Pour the dressing over the potato mixture and add the parsley to the bowl as well. Gently toss to coat the potatoes. You can serve immediately, but I found the potato salad was best after the flavors had the chance to meld for an hour. Serve at room temperature or chilled.
These sounds perfect!
I was definitely a fan of this, thanks for making it!
I love roasted potatoes! Potato salad can be so boring, but not this one. Great flavors are going on in here!
I love so many aspects of this potato salad – the no peeling, the roasting, the honey and mustard. I can’t wait to try it. I’m not a no mayo person but my husband is like yours and I still think he’d eat this.
My husband buys the ginormous (seriously, like 5 pounds) tubs of that potato salad at the grocery store every time he grills. He loves that stuff. I don’t even try to make potato salad because I know he’d prefer the store-bought kind. Totally making this next time we have people over though! And he can’t stop me!
I love my dad’s traditional potato salad but I always made him make it without any raw onion or celery pieces in it because I used to hate little foreign crunchy objects in my creamy potato salad. This version looks especially appealing with the bacon – crunchy parts that I approve!
Yum. This looks and sounds good. I have never thought about using roasted potatoes in potato salad. I really like potato salad but don’t make it often because it’s a lot of work. But I make roasted potatoes all the time. Next time I roast potatoes I’ll just make extra and use leftovers for salad.
This is my favorite kind of potato salad. great with a sliced hard boiled egg on top!
This looks so good. I love roasting the potatoes rather than boiling them. It completely changes the texture. Ina Garten has a potato salad with fresh dill. I wonder how some dill would work in this recipe.
This is look so good:)
Mayo is definitely a deal-breaker for me also but with mustard being the predominant flavor here I could totally get into it!
This has my name allll over it!
This looks so so yummy!!! I love a good potato salad-mayo included!
This is my kind of potato salad! I don’t love a lot of potato salads because they are so heavy…this one sounds right up my alley!
Yum!
I want to make this but I don’t have honey. I do however have agave nectar. Gonna give it a whirl.
I’ve only recently become a fan of potato salad, but this one sounds awesome!
Oh goodness, my mouth is watering over this potato salad 🙂 oh so delicious!