We make potato salads pretty much every week in the summer. To me, they are the perfect food – satisfying, packable for the beach or picnics, and the recipe is easy to change according to what we have on hand. Today’s recipe has been our favorite version as of late. I love adding French lentils to a potato salad to make it more satiating/into a complete meal if needed, plus their flavor and texture is great. Another thing I like to include is a green vegetable: asparagus, green beans, or zucchini like in this recipe. For the dressing, I think that a mustardy vinaigrette is always a great move for most potato dishes, and we make a simple one for this salad.
Hope you’ll give this version a try this summer!
- ½ cup French lentils
- sea salt
- 1½ lbs yellow baby potatoes or fingerling potatoes - halved or quartered
- 1 medium zucchini - sliced into half moons
- 1 shallot - minced
- 1½ tablespoons Dijon mustard (or half Dijon and half grainy mustard)
- zest and juice from 1 lemon
- 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
- freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- a few large handfuls of dill and/or other herbs of choice - chopped
- Add the lentils to a medium saucepan, cover them with about 1 inch of water and salt well. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to a simmer and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until tender but not mushy. Add the potatoes to a soup pot, cover with water, salt well, and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil the potatoes for 15-20 minutes, until tender. Add the zucchini to the pot with the potatoes at about the last 3 minutes of cooking, to quickly blanch it. Drain the lentils and potatoes/zucchini once cooked (you can drain everything into one colander).
- While the lentils and potatoes are cooking, prepare a big bowl for the potato salad. In the bottom of the bowl, combine the shallot, mustard, lemon zest and juice, vinegar, a generous pinch of salt, and plenty of black pepper, whisk to combine. Stream in the olive oil while whisking, until emulsified. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust if needed. Add the drained lentils, potatoes, and zucchini to the bowl with the dressing and mix to combine. Let cool for a few minutes, then mix in the herbs. Serve right away or refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to serve.
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This is a delicious and filling salad. I used shaved fennel bulb instead of zucchini and it worked!
So happy you enjoyed it Lyn! Love the addition of fennel.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful recipe- it was delicious! I used fresh lemon- basil for the herb componentWhich was lovely. Served over a bed of fresh arugula it was a perfect lunch!
So glad you liked it. Lemon basil must have been so good in there!
Just realized! Surprisingly refreshing and comforting in the same time. You figured a wonderful dressing! Thanks a lot for sharing this nice recipe.
Thank you for your note! Glad you enjoyed it.
This is the best potato salad I ever had (and this is coming from a German ;))!
I’m usually not a big fan of salads, but this one is THE exception. The flavours are perfectly balanced and the veggie combination is delicious. I added a little maple syrup, because my lemon was so strong and I’m absolutely in love with it!
This will defininetely be a summer recipe staple! Thanks so much ♥
Hi Paula,
I’m so happy you loved it! Thanks so much for leaving this note.
Wow. So simple and delicious! I followed as listed, and used fresh dill. This is the first recipe I have made from your site. I will definitely be searching for more. Thank you for the recipe!
Hi Nicole,
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for leaving this note.
I made a few modifications and it turned out so good! I used fingerling potatoes because they were what I had on hand and then I roast both the potatoes and the zucchini since I prefer roasted veg over boiled. I also added a teaspoon of honey to keep the dressing from being too sharp between the raw shallots and the lemon juice/red wine vinegar.
Forgot to note that I served it warm!
So glad you enjoyed it!