Mediterranean Fingerling Potato Salad With Olive Tapenade

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• The Mediterranean flavors are fresh but taste better after resting, similar to schug
• Big flavor, no mayo. Citrus, salt and olives pack a fresh punch
• Made for grilled food- briny flavor cutting through the richness of smoked meats

Why This Recipe Works

• Boiled then roasted fingerling potatoes - these waxy potatoes are tender, moist + buttery with that golden brown crisp outside that's full of flavor. They hold their shape much better than a starchy russet potato. After testing I found the 2-step cook method was better than just roasting which can result in a drier potato.
• The high acidity, salt, and brininess balance out the earthy mellow potato flavors.
• Roasted caramelized fennel brings a soft and sweet flavor to balance the tapenade. I use that same combo for Mediterranean Citrus Salmon which is why the two recipes pair so well.
• Boiled eggs add a softness from the whites and a richness from the yolks that replaces the 'fat' from the mayo giving you a salt, fat, and acidic harmony.

Recipe Ingredients

• Fingerling Potatoes - Fingerling potatoes come with yellow, red or purple skin and taste similar but have differentiating flavors. In my testing I've found that purple are earthier, red have a subtle sweetness, and yellow are slightly buttery. Find them at your local grocer, use whichever you prefer or a mix of all 3.
• Olive Oil - For this Mediterranean inspired potato salad we're using a quality olive oil. Extra virgin or high grade olive oil is best. I enjoy using Graza Olive Oil.
• Fennel - Fresh fennel brings a ton of flavor to Mediterranean Potato Salad. It caramelizes and brings a sweet distinct flavor that can't be beat.
• Fresh Herbs - Using fresh dill, thyme and parsley brings a bright fresh flavor to this fingerling potato salad that adds another layer of enjoyment.
• Olives - Use your favorite brand of Castelvetrano, Kalamata and Green olives. That happens to be the same lineup I use for marinated olives, which can be used here as well. They add a layer of salt and brine that pairs well with the mild fingerling potatoes.

See recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.

Substitutions & Variations

• Baby potatoes can be subbed for fingerling potatoes if needed. Yukon potatoes or red potatoes will also work. I recommend cutting in halves or quarters depending on the size of them. 1-inch chunks are a good size.
• Steamed or roasted green beans make a great addition to this salad.
• Fresh rosemary can be added to the recipe, about 1 ½ tsp, finely chopped.

This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!

How To Make Mediterranean Potato Salad with Olive Tapenade

Step 1: Preheat oven to 425°F then line a sheet tray with parchment paper. Boil fingerling potatoes until fork tender, drain well and place on sheet tray.

Step 2: Add fennel, garlic, shallot, olive oil, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl. Add fingerling potatoes then toss to coat.

Step 3: Place fingerling potatoes flesh side down then roast 25 minutes until cut side is deeply golden brown and edges of fennel have started to caramelize.

Step 4: Boil eggs for 6-7 minutes then shock in ice water and allow to fully cool, 25-30 minutes. Peel eggs then press through a wire cooling rack.

Step 5: Add all olive tapenade ingredients to a food processor then blend until chunky but not to a paste.

Step 6: Mix potatoes, fennel mixture, olive tapenade and eggs. Taste and adjust salt if needed. Top with fresh herbs and serve.

Chef Notes

• Thin sliced fennel can burn easily while baking. Be sure it's covered in olive oil and you keep a close eye with the oven light. Don't open the door while baking, it lets all the heat out and lowers the temperature significantly.
• Boil eggs for 6-7 minutes then shock in ice water and allow to cool 20-25 minutes for easy peeling. Over boiling causes that green ring around the outside of the yolk we all know and remember from our mother's and grandmother's cooking.
• Boil fingerling potatoes until fork tender, not falling apart. This should feel like no resistance while putting the fork into the potatoes but then the fork stays secure in the potato when lifting up. If the fork comes straight out or the potato crumbles, you've over cooked them.
• The reason you're putting the fingerling potatoes flesh side down rather than skin side down is that you're giving all of that flesh contact with the pan which will increase browning. Skin side down will only allow a small spot on the potato to brown. There's much more surface area on the flesh side. This is similar to how you would get a sear on cast iron salmon.
• Blending the olive tapenade too long will create a paste which is very visually unappealing and makes for an undesirable looking no mayo potato salad.
• Adding the tapenade while potatoes are still warm will increase the absorption of the dressing.

Why Fingerling Potatoes Work

Fingerling potatoes are great for potato salad for a variety of reasons. Besides the shape being unique, cute, and small, here are a few others:

• Easy to work with, one cut and they're prepped.
• Don't need to be peeled. The thin skin can easily be eaten and doesn't get in the way.
• Fingerling potatoes hold their shape well when cooked, rather than becoming mushy.
• Buttery smooth texture.

What Should I Serve Mediterranean Fingerling Potato Salad With?

Mediterranean Fingerling Potato Salad is one of those side dishes that can be served alongside quite a few things. These have been some of my favorite pairings over the last 7 or 8 years that I've been making this recipe.

Mediterranean Citrus Roasted Salmon has many similar flavors and pairs perfectly as the olive tapenade cuts right through the richness of the salmon making this a great combo for a Mediterranean inspired night.

Roasted Half Chicken with Chimichurri or Salmon Chimichurri are great summer cookout dishes to serve alongside this no mayo potato salad, keeping in line with the vinegar theme.

Shawarma Corn on the Cob is great because schug and garlic in the corn recipe really pop when served alongside the fingerling potato salad. Another complimentary side is Mediterranean Cucumber Salad adds fresh Mediterranean flavor with cucumber, tomatoes and red wine vinaigrette without duplicating ingredients.

Mediterranean Fingerling Potato Salad FAQs

Potato Recipes You'll Love

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📖Recipe

Mediterranean Fingerling Potato Salad With Olive Tapenade

Krista Stechman

No mayo Mediterranean Fingerling Potato Salad with Olive Tapenade is full of fresh herbs, salty olives, sweet fennel, tangy citrus, and garlic. It's got layered flavor, balance, and crave-worthy flavor that pairs perfectly with BBQ sides, weeknight salmon dishes and grilled burgers.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Cooling Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 50 minutes mins

Course brunch, dinner, lunch

Cuisine american, mediterranean

Servings 6 servings

Calories 314 kcal

Equipment

• ▢
  1 food processor
• ▢
  1 mandolin slicer

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

Potatoes

• ▢ 1½ lbs fingerling potatoes boiled until fork tender
• ▢ 1 tablespoon kosher salt Diamond Crystal
• ▢ ½ bulb fennel sliced thin
• ▢ 1 oz shallot fine dice
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 1¼ teaspoon kosher salt Diamond Crystal
• ▢ ½ teaspoon black pepper coarse ground
• ▢ 5 hard boiled eggs

Olive Tapenade

• ▢ 2¼ oz green olives with pimentos
• ▢ 2 oz kalamata olives pitted
• ▢ 2 oz castelvetrano olives pitted
• ▢ 1 clove garlic peeled and smashed
• ▢ ½ oz capers
• ▢ 1 tablespoon lemon juice fresh
• ▢ zest of 1 lemon
• ▢ ½ tablespoon orange juice
• ▢ 5 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• ▢ 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• ▢ ½ tablespoon fresh thyme stemmed and rough chop
• ▢ 2 tablespoon fresh dill chopped
• ▢ ½ cup fresh parsley stemmed and chopped
• ▢ ¼ cup olive oil extra virgin
• ▢ 1 pinch kosher salt Diamond Crystal
• ▢ 1 pinch black pepper coarse ground

Instructions

 

Potatoes

• Preheat oven to 425°F then line a sheet tray with parchment paper. Add fingerlings to cold water with 1tbsp kosher salt and bring to a boil for 10-15 minutes, until fork tender but not falling apart. Drain well
• Add fingerlings to a bowl along with fennel, shallots, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss to coat then spread out on prepared sheet pan, cut side down, and roast 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Allow potatoes to cool while making the olive tapenade
• Boil eggs while potatoes are roasting. Start eggs in a pot of cold salted water. Bring to a boil and continue cooking for 6 minutes, uncovered. Drain eggs and immediately shock in a bowl of ice water for easy peeling. Allow 20 minutes of cooling before peeling, then press through a wire rack or chop into small chunks

Olive Tapenade

• Add all olive tapenade ingredients to food processor then blend on high for 5-10 seconds until chopped but still chunky
• Add tapenade to warm potatoes, allow to cool slightly then add eggs. Serve immediately or up to 24 hours later

Notes

Use multi-colored or all one color fingerling potatoes.

Potatoes can be boiled up to 3 days in advance before roasting. Keep boiled potatoes in an airtight container in the fridge. 

Tapenade can be made and stored in an airtight container in the fridge up to 1 week in advance. 

Use a mandolin slicer for easy thin slicing of fennel bulb.

If hard boiling eggs in advance, it is recommended to peel them before storing them in the fridge. Boiling eggs then storing them in the fridge before peeling can cause difficult peeling. Eggs will keep up to 5 days in the fridge, boiled and peeled.

Store potato salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 48 hours. Flavor begins to fade after 2 days. 

Nutrition

Calories: 314kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 9gFat: 21gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 155mgSodium: 2280mgPotassium: 692mgFiber: 5gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 830IUVitamin C: 35mgCalcium: 78mgIron: 2mg

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