Faux Potato Salad

By Kath Dedon

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I don’t have anything against potatoes. In fact, I love potatoes and I eat potatoes. Often. But I was intrigued when I saw Elana’s recipe for No Potato Salad. She uses cauliflower florets instead of potatoes and makes a salad that looks irresistible. (Click on the link for No Potato Salad to see Elana’s irresistible photo.)

Inspired by Elana, I made what I call Faux Potato Salad. I based the dressing on the one I use for All-American Potato Salad for Two.

I admit that I was skeptical about this one, and I kind of expected Bob to dislike it because I didn’t use potatoes. However, we both loved it! It has some of the same flavors of my favorite potato salad, but it’s much lighter. It was perfect served with grilled Polish Kielbasa.

Faux Potato Salad is much lower in carbs (12g per serving) than potato salad (100g per serving). It’s lower in calories (171 for Faux, 234 for potato). It qualifies as a serving of vegetables. And it tastes great!

I’m not going to give up potato salad, but I know I will be making Faux Potato Salad again because it’s just really delicious! Leftovers taste great the next day; I’d be very happy to pack some leftover salad in my lunch.

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Faux Potato Salad

(Inspired by elanaspantry.com and the potato salad in ATK’s The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook)

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Be sure to allow the time to let the cooked cauliflower cool and drain so it’s dry. I cooked it about 1½ hours before I tossed it in the dressing.

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(print the recipe)

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Serves 4

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1 medium head of cauliflower (about 2 pounds)

1 stalk celery, diced

1/4 cup finely chopped red onion

1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley

¼ cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon brine from a dill pickle jar (optional, but we always have pickles and I like to use it.)

1 tablespoon white distilled vinegar

½ teaspoon dry mustard

½ teaspoon celery seeds

½ teaspoon dried dill weed 

½ teaspoon sea salt

1 or 2 large hard-boiled eggs, diced (I used one when I first made this, as shown in the photos, but lately I have been adding two eggs. 🙂 )

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1. Cut the cauliflower into small florets and put it in a steamer basket.

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2. Steam the cauliflower about 4 minutes, until it is just tender.

3. Put the steamed cauliflower in a colander and let it cool and drain. (It’s best if it can drain for 45 minutes to an hour so it will be dry.)

4. Put the celery, onion, parsley, mayonnaise, pickle brine, vinegar, dry mustard, celery seeds, dried dill weed, and sea salt in a bowl large enough to hold the cauliflower.

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5. Whisk the dressing ingredients together and then add the cauliflower. Gently stir until the dressing is well distributed.

6. Stir in the diced egg and serve.

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