Polish Beet and Potato Salad

Polish-style beet potato salad is deliciously zesty, full of crunch and colour, and comes with a mayo-based creamy dressing. If you prepare the beets and potatoes ahead this salad comes together in minutes.

See also traditional Polish potato salad recipe!

This beet potato salad is a testament to Poles' love of food that's made for sharing. This salad (alongside such classics as bigos, pierogi, and cabbage rolls) is perfect for any occasion including holidays, potlucks and barbecues, as well as family gatherings.

This potato beet salad easy to make, healthy, delicious and a celebration of 2 of the most important vegetables in Polish cuisine. Earthy beets and mellow potatoes are combined with zesty, crunchy and tangy ingredients for a comforting, delicious dish everyone will love.

Beet potato salad ingredients and substitutions

• Beets: I used small beets as they cook faster. If your beets are very large halve them before roasting.
• Potatoes: use waxy potatoes such as baby or new potatoes, red potatoes, fingerling or Alexandra potatoes. 
• Apple: I recommend using a sweet variety (such as Pink Lady for example) to balance out the tangy flavour of the pickles.
• Dill pickles/pickled gherkins: these can be either pickles in vinegar or traditional Polish dill pickles in natural brine (the latter are sold in Polish stores and used also in traditional dill pickle soup). I used the former.
• Red onion: use (half of a large) white onion instead, if preferred.
• Mayonnaise.
• Yogurt: Adds flavour and creaminess but without too many calories. Either Greek yogurt, Skyr or fromage frais/fromage blanc can be used.
• Mustard.
• Lemon juice.
• Parsley: you can use dill instead (or in addition to parsley).

How to prepare the beets and potatoes

To get the most flavour out of the beets I recommend roasting them unpeeled, whole (my favourite preparation method I also used to make beet carpaccio and Polish shredded beets). This is easy to do and can be done in advance.  

An alternative method is to boil the beets whole, unpeeled (so they retain as much flavour and colour as possible).

TIP: I do not recommend buying ready-to-eat beets. They tend to be overcooked and lack flavour.

The easiest way of preparing the potatoes for this beet and potato salad is by boiling them whole. You can either boil the potatoes with the skin or boil them first then peel.

Do I have to peel the vegetables for beet and potato salad

For best results I recommend that you do. Whole roasted beets are delicious but the skin around them can become a little dry and tough so it's best to remove it.

Boiled potatoes are very easy to peel and if you chop them without removing the skin first some of the skin is likely to come off anyway as you stir the ingredients together. So if you boiled the potatoes unpeeled remove the skin once they are cooked.

Step-by-step recipe instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375F/190 C/gas mark 5.

2. Roast beets: Wrap the beets in foil, place on top of a baking sheet and roast for 40-45 minutes (up to an hour) until tender but still have some crunch (check with a fork). 

3. Cool: Remove from the oven and set aside to cool completely. In the meantime prepare the potatoes.

4. Boil potatoes: Boil the potatoes for several minutes until fully cooked but don't let them cook until the peel starts to crack (this means they are overcooked). Drain as soon as they are cooked (check with a fork) and set aside to cool completely before making the salad.

5. Cut vegetables: Peel and cube the potatoes and beets, then core and finely dice the apple.

TIP: You can cut the vegetables into small or larger cubes, according to preference.

6. Assemble: Place in a mixing bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. Stir thoroughly, adjust the seasoning as needed and refrigerate for 2 hours (if possible) before serving.

Serving suggestions

This potato and beet salad is the perfect dish for a special occasion, including Easter brunch. Serve it alongside deviled eggs, salmon spread or chicken pineapple salad. 

It is also delicious on its own or with a slice of bread (in Poland bread is served with most dishes).

Top tips

• You can cook both the beets as well as the potatoes in advance and once cooled refrigerate (overnight), covered, unpeeled, until you are ready to make the salad. Peel and chop when you are ready to assemble the recipe.
• I recommend using a sweet rather than sour apple variety (Pink Lady is a good choice).
• Prepare the apple just before adding into the salad as it's prone to discoloration. You can but don't need to peel it.
• Tweak the ingredients to your taste: for example use more mustard, lemon juice etc.
• Best served chilled. If possible chill this beet potato salad for 2 hours before serving.
• Refrigerate for up to 3 days.
• Not suitable for freezing.
• I recommend wearing rubber gloves when handling the beetroot.

Related recipes

• Creamy Potato Salad with Dill
• Salmon Potato Salad with Dill Dressing
• Polish Cold Beet Salad
• Potato Salad Deviled Eggs
• Russian Olivier Salad (Salatka Olivier)

See also these other easy, delicious salad recipes as well as more traditional Polish dishes!

Recipe

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If you make this beet potato salad recipe I'd love to know how it turned out for you.  Let me know in the comments below, thanks!

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