This creamy dairy-free potato salad is packed with everything you'd expect from a fully loaded baked potato -crisp salty bacon, green and red onions, jalapenos and a zesty "cheesy" dressing. This healthy & Whole30 side dish is sure to impress your friends and family at your next summertime celebration!

With Memorial Day Weekend in the rearview, it's officially SUMMER! Warmer weather, flip flops, backyard BBQs and POTATO SALAD! Can I get a h*ll yeah?! I've never crossed paths with a potato salad I didn't want to stick my face into. With so many variations of an all-American classic, why shouldn't I? The best thing about potato salads is that they're inherently gluten-free making them super simple to Whole30 -fy.
This one in particular combines the creamy deliciousness of classic potato salad with the crave-worthy flavors of a loaded baked potato while being totally dairy-free and Whole30 compliant! You read that correctly. There's plenty of "cheesy" flavor in this side dish without any cheese! VIRTUAL HIGH FIVE!
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What You'll Need to Make Dairy-Free Loaded Baked Potato Salad
A traditional loaded baked potato usually has sour cream and shredded cheese. *Spoiler Alert* -both of those foods are out for your Whole30 because you can't have dairy. Womp Womp -but no need to worry! This potato salad is just as creamy and "cheesy" as a loaded baked potato without any cream or cheese!
Dairy-Free "Sour Cream" & "Cheese"
For the creamy "cheesy" dressing, you'll need:
- ½ Cup Dairy Free Cream Cheese: So we're not actually using a dairy-free sour cream. Instead, I used my absolute FAVORITE dairy-free cream cheese, Kite Hill. It's smooth, rich, slightly sweet, slightly tangy and absolutely delicious!
- ½ Cup Whole30 Compliant Mayo: Once you've mastered making your own, you'll never reach for the pricey store-bought version again. In the meantime, Primal Kitchen Mayo With Avocado Oil will get the job done.
- Nutritional Yeast: I have yet to quite understand what exactly this stuff is. In this case, ignorance is bliss. It's an amazing way to add "cheesy" flavor to recipes without any dairy, and I'm all about it.
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Mustard Seed: A little bit of ground mustard goes a long way! It adds the perfect amount of tang!
Best Potatoes for Potato Salad
Any variety of small, baby potatoes will work great! I used honey gold potatoes but red and purple potatoes will work just as well. You can also use larger potatoes, like yellow or yukon. If using a larger potato, you'll just need to do a bit more chopping. As long as you cut them into bite-size chunks, you're good!
You'll Also Need
- 4 Slices Crispy Cooked Bacon
- 1 Stalk Green Onion
- 1 Large Jalapeno
- 1 Garlic Clove
- ½ Tablespoon Fresh Dill
- ½ Tablespoon Fresh Parsley
- EVOO, Salt & Pepper
Simple Swaps to Make this Potato Salad Vegan & Vegetarian-Friendly
By using your favorite Vegan egg-free mayo and omitting the bacon, this potato salad easily becomes a satisfying side dish to impress your plant-based friends! If you're looking for even more yummy plant-based dishes to impress guests, check these ones out:
- Easy Cucumber Salad
- Dairy-Free Broccoli & "Cheese" Stuffed Mushrooms
- Vegan Roasted Root Vegetable Gratin
- Easy Vegan Slower Cooker Spiced Carrot Dip

Roasting Potatoes for Potato Salad
An alternative to boiling potatoes for potato salad is roasting them! While you could certainly boil them, roasting them adds an additional depth of flavor. In my opinion, roasted potatoes are sweeter than boiled potatoes. That bit of sweentess is perfectly complimented by the salty tangy flavors of the bacon and the "cheese." To do so, quarter the potatoes into bite-size pieces and toss them in a bowl with EVOO and salt and pepper. Roast the potatoes in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes, tossing half way through.
Quick & Easy Steps to Make Whole30 Loaded Baked Potato Salad
While the potatoes are roasting, prep the remaining ingredients. Chop the bacon into crumbles, thinly slice the green onion and jalapeno, finely dice the red onion and mince the garlic. Give the fresh herbs (dill and parsley) a good chop as well.
Make the dairy-free "cheesy" dressing by simply whisking the cream cheese, mayo, nutritional yeast and ground mustard together until smooth.
Once the potatoes are perfectly roasted and fork-tender, let them cool off a bit before giving them a gentle but thorough toss with the dressing, bacon and remaining prepped ingredients. Season to taste with a bit more salt and pepper and chill in the fridge for a bit before serving. It only gets better the longer it chills!

All things considered, potato salad recipes are a dime a dozen, but this one obviously stands out among the rest. I mean, just look at how colorful it is! It's basically the party in your mouth you never knew you needed. It's creamy, tangy, crunchy, salty, oniony, bacony, spicy and cheesy all while being made with REAL FOOD ingredients! Does it get any better than that?! I think not. Seriously guys, y'all are going to LOVE this!
If you make this recipe, I want to hear all about it! Be sure to drop a recipe rating and a comment below! I'd also love to see your recreations! Be sure to tag me in your foodie photos all over social media with #paleoishkristaeats! Thank you!
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📖 Recipe

Whole30 Loaded Baked Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds baby potatoes quartered
- 4 slices crispy cooked bacon about ½ cup crumbled
- 1 green onion stalk about 2 tablespoons sliced
- 1 large jalapeno about ¼ cup sliced
- ¼ small red onion about 2 tablespoons finely diced
- 1 small garlic clove about 1 teaspoon minced
- ½ tablespoon dill weed chopped
- ½ tablespoon flat leaf parsley chopped
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ cup dairy-free cream cheese Kitehill
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 ½ tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard seed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° and line a sheet pan with parchment paper; set aside. While the oven preheats, prep ingredients. Quarter the potatoes into bite-size pieces. Crumble the bacon. Thinly slice the green onion and jalapeno. Finely dice the red onion. Mince the garlic clove. Chop dill and parsley.
- Add potatoes to parchment paper-lined sheet pan. Toss with EVOO and salt/pepper. Bake in 400° preheated oven until fork-tender (about 30 minutes), tossing half way through.
- Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, whisk together dairy-free cream cheese, mayonnaise, nutritional yeast and ground mustard seed until smooth and creamy.
- Once fork-tender, remove potatoes from oven and let cool for about 15 minutes before adding to the mixing bowl with the cream cheese-mayonnaise mixture. Add the bacon, green onion, jalapeno, red onion, garlic, dill and parsley to the bowl and give everything a gentle but thorough toss.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper. Whole30 Loaded Baked Potato Salad is best served cold. The longer it chills in the fridge the better. Enjoy! 🙂
Nutrition
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