Grilled Potato Salad with Onions, Peppers and Arugula

This grilled potato salad is bright, smoky, and fresh. With grilled potatoes, arugula, grilled peppers and onions, feta cheese and a herbed vinaigrette, it's perfect for a barbecue or potluck!

Grilled potatoes are such a revelation: crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Our go-to recipe are these unbelievably crispy grilled potatoes, but another fun way to enjoy them is in a grilled potato salad!

This grilled potato salad is lighter and free from a heavy mayo dressing. Instead it is fresh, loaded with vegetables (onions, peppers, arugula), herbs (parsley, chives), and bright flavors (feta cheese and a tangy vinaigrette).

I think you're going to love this remix!

Ingredient Notes

• Potatoes- red or white; skinned potatoes work great for this recipe as do baby potatoes
• Vegetables- grilled red onion and bell pepper add color and a subtle sweetness to the salad; consider them optional.
  • Arugula lightens the salad up and adds a peppery flavor
• Feta cheese- adds a briny, salty pop of flavor; I don't recommend skipping
• Fresh herbs- chives and parsley add bright, herbaceous flavor but can be left out
• Lemon parsley vinaigrette- is sweet, tangy and fully or herby flavor; can be swapped for a simpler white wine vinaigrette

Boil Potatoes Before Grilling

If you place potatoes straight onto the grill raw, they will require a long cook time which leads to them drying out. To get around this, some people will cook in foil packets, which steams the potatoes while they grill.

To get crispy outsides and tender insides, we start by boiling the potatoes for 12-15 minutes, before tossing in oil and finishing them off on the grill. This two-step method may seem like extra work, but the results are well worth the effort in this grilled potato salad!

TIP- boil your potatoes up to 4 days ahead and store in the fridge to cut down on prep time.

Grilling the potatoes

Grilling the potatoes not only improves their texture by making them slightly crispy on the outside, but also gives a nice charred and smoky flavor to the salad. I highly recommend using a vegetable grilling basket to grill the potatoes as this gives them a crispy texture across the entire surface of the potato, however, you can also place them directly onto the grill.

After tossing in oil and seasoning with salt and pepper, place cut side down on the grill and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until crispy. Using tongs, carefully turn them until they are crispy on all sides.*

Make sure to check the potatoes frequently, as all barbecues have hot spots that may cook quicker.

*the potatoes get crispiest on the cut sides

Making the Lemon Parsley Vinaigrette

This fresh, herbaceous vinaigrette helps lighten up the heaviness that you typically get with traditional potato salad. To make the vinaigrette, you will need a stand or immersion blender.

Combine the olive oil, white wine vinegar, honey, lemon juice, dijon, salt, parsley, and a bit of water to thin out. Blend until smooth, and use within 24 hours, as the flavors start to dissipate at this point.

Recipe Tips

Prep Ahead/Meal Prep Tips

• Grilled potato salad may be prepared ahead and not dressed; store in the fridge for up to 48 hours. Note that potatoes and vegetables will soften.
• The dressing may be prepared up to 24 hours ahead and stored in the fridge
• After dressing, the salad should be served immediately as it will not keep
• Potatoes may be boiled up to 4 days ahead and stored in the fridge; when you are ready to grill, cut in half and toss in oil, then grill as directed

Serve with

Grilled potato salad is a great potluck recipe, though you will want to keep the dressing separate until serving. Here are some other recipes that would go great with this grilled potato salad:

• Perfect Grilled Chicken Breast
• Grilled Chicken Wings with Sticky Thai Glaze
• Chili-Rubbed Salmon with Avocado Salsa
• Perfect Juicy Turkey Burgers
• Mushroom and Lentil Bruschetta Burger

More delicious grilled recipes

• 40 Healthy Grill Recipes for Summer
• Balsamic Grilled Zucchini with Parmesan
• Grilled Cauliflower with Jalapeño Lime Butter
• Grilled Broccoli with Lemon & Parmesan
• Grilled Brussels Sprouts with Garlic Butter

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Grilled Potato Salad with Onions, Peppers and Arugula

5 from 2 votes

Prep Time: 20 minutes mins

Cook Time: 25 minutes mins

Total Time: 45 minutes mins

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This grilled potato salad is bright, smoky, and fresh. With grilled potatoes, arugula, grilled peppers and onions, feta cheese and a herbed vinaigrette, it's perfect for a barbecue or potluck!

6

Ingredients

• ▢ 2.5 lbs potatoes cut into 1 inch pieces; see note 1
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 1 tablespoon coarse sea salt
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ freshly ground black pepper
• ▢ 1 red onion sliced into ¼ inch rings; see note 2
• ▢ 2 bell peppers sliced into ¼ inch rings
• ▢ ½ cup feta cheese
• ▢ 4 cups arugula
• ▢ 2 tablespoons parsley chopped
• ▢ 2 tablespoons chives chopped

Lemon Parsley Vinaigrette:

• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• ▢ 1 tablespoon honey
• ▢ 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice ½ a small lemon
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon dijon
• ▢ 2 tablespoons water
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ¾ cup parsley loosely packed

Instructions 

• Add potatoes to a large pot, cover with water and bring to a boil.
• Cook for 12-15 minutes, or until a fork can easily go into the potatoes (but not overly soft).
• Drain potatoes and set aside.
• Heat grill to medium high heat. While grill is heating, cut the potatoes in half (for baby potatoes), or in 1 inch cubes (for larger potatoes). Toss in a large bowl with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of sea salt, garlic and black pepper.
• In a separate large bowl, combine the onion slices and bell peppers with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Place the potatoes (cut side down) over direct heat on the barbecue, and arrange the onion slices and bell peppers over indirect heat.
• Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Check the potatoes and turn if necessary. Check the bell peppers and onions frequently after this. Peppers and onions will need only 3 or so more minutes on the grill (8 min total).
• Continue checking the potatoes every 2 or so minutes, turning frequently until golden and slightly charred. Mine took a total of 8-15 minutes.
• Blend together all vinaigrette ingredients using an immersion blender, and toss with remaining salad ingredients.
• Assemble salad, toss with vinaigrette, and serve immediately.

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Tips:

1- you may use new potatoes, white or yellow potatoes, or any type of baby potatoes.

 

2- To prevent bell peppers from sliding through the grates, I found it easier to slice them as rings rather than strips.

 

3- All barbecues are different, so cook times may vary.

 

Storage

Unfortunately this salad does not keep well and is best served fresh.

 

Make Ahead

Components of this salad may be prepped ahead:

• boil potatoes up to 4 days ahead
• prepare vinaigrette up to 24 hours ahead

 

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1/6 batch, Calories: 252kcal, Carbohydrates: 29g, Protein: 7g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 11mg, Sodium: 1430mg, Potassium: 904mg, Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 2400IU, Vitamin C: 86.6mg, Calcium: 154mg, Iron: 6.4mg

Author: Denise Bustard

Course: Salad

Cuisine: American

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