Greek Potato Salad

This Greek Potato Salad (patatosalata) is a zingy, tasty no-mayo potato salad. Mediterranean flavors including olive oil, lemon and herbs mingle together to create a hearty salad that's delicious warm or cold. Perfect for cookouts, potlucks, a summer side dish or picnics.

This Greek Potato Salad is bursting with delicious Mediterranean flavors.

Potatoes are cooked, then cooled slightly and tossed with sliced red onion. It's all then drizzled in a Greek-style viniagrette dressing full of olive oil, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, garlic and oregano. A sprinkle of fresh mint really elevates this salad.

To me, the heady aroma of oregano always evokes holidays in Greece so is a must in this salad.

Use fresh if you have it, or dried if not.

Inhale its scent, along with a hearty handful of fresh mint, and be transported to the black volcanic sand beaches of Santorini.

Back in my misspent youth, I spent a few months backpacking around Greece and Turkey with my best friend.

We stayed in hostels in tree houses, went Island-hopping, swam in the sea and ate amazing food. I'll never forget the wonderfully eye-wateringly strong garlic mashed potatoes, washed down with Ouzo, but it was the salads that captured my foodie heart.

We loved the traditional Greek salads (tomatoes, onion, cucumber and huge slabs of feta) and Greek Spinach Rice, as well as the potato salads that I've recreated here for you! I hope you'll love it too.

Why you'll love this salad

• It's a super quick and easy potato salad recipe.
• There's no mayonnaise so it keeps well, is lighter and can be taken to picnics.
• Zingy lemon, herbs, feta and olives make it a perfect Greek-style recipe.
• Enjoy it hot or cold.
• Vegetarian and easily vegan. Gluten-free.

What makes this potato salad Greek?

Like American potato salads, there are endless variations on Greek potato salad (patatosalata) recipes too.

Some have egg, others mayo. Perhaps fresh herbs are added, or dried might be added to the dressing.

You might find some with kalamata olives, and others will have feta cheese.

But the fundamental building blocks that make a Greek salad Greek, are olive oil, lemon and herbs.

And potatoes of course!

Ingredients

You only need simple ingredients for this Greek-inspired potato salad!

Potatoes - I use baby/new potatoes and leave the skin on. You can use any potatoes though. Denser, waxy, firm potatoes are better than more floury ones (such as Russet) as they hold together better. Try red-skinned, new potatoes or fingerlings or but Yukon gold will also work.

Red onion - though yellow onion works fine too. I just prefer the color of red in the salad.

Feta - try a vegan alternative if required or leave it out.

Olives - I used green, but black and kalamata work great too.

Mint - I love how the mint 'lifts' the flavors in this salad. If you don't like the flavor or don't have any, you can use parsley instead.

Olive oil - choose a good extra virgin olive oil for a lovely Mediterranean flavor.

Apple cider vinegar

Lemon juice - I use freshly squeezed for this recipe to give it lots of fresh zing.

Garlic - add extra if you love garlic.

Oregano - use fresh or dried.

How to make this recipe (step by step)

Like most potato salads, this Greek-inspired version is super easy to make! Follow these step by step photos for perfect results. Then, scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the full ingredients list and method.

1. Cut the potatoes into equal bite-sized pieces.

2. Add to a pan of boiling water and boil until cooked - about 15 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water. Set aside to cool.

3. Meanwhile, make the dressing by adding all dressing ingredients to a bowl and whisking to combine.

4. Toss the cooled potatoes and onion with the dressing.

5. Add the feta and olives and gently toss again. Enjoy warm or cold.

Tips and tricks

Cut the potatoes into bite-sized pieces.

Leave the skin on or peel them - though I prefer to leave the skin on for more goodness and texture.

If you can, leave this salad for an hour so the flavors really mingle. If you don't have the time it's still great eaten right away!

Substitutions

This is a very flexible recipe and you can adapt it to the ingredients you have on hand.

Use any potatoes you have, but avoid floury ones that will fall apart (like Russet): I use baby new potatoes, but you can chop larger potatoes into bite-size chunks.

Use fresh or dried oregano. If using fresh, use 1 tablespoon fresh chopped oregano or ½ teaspoon dried.

If you don't have apple cider vinegar, try red wine vinegar.

Use your favorite type of olives. Kalamata are typically Greek, but you can also use black, green or a mixture.

Special diets

This potato salad is naturally gluten-free.

To make this a vegan Greek potato salad, simply use dairy-free feta-style cheese or leave it out altogether.

Serving suggestions

This salad is perfect for picnics, cookouts, barbecues, party buffets, picnics or just a great everyday side dish to a summer dinner!

Try this patatosalata alongside these tasty recipes:

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Steaks
Spanikopita
Halloumi Souvlaki

Salad recipes

Looking for more tasty, easy, vegan or vegetarian salad recipes? Try these!

Rocca Salad
Persian Roasted Eggplant Salad
Green Salad with Pepita Dressing
Mango Salad with Lime Ginger Dressing
Spinach Strawberry Salad
Sauteed Butter Bean Salad

Be sure to also check out my list of the 28 Best Healthy Salad Recipes

Get the recipe

📖 Recipe