Pickley salad, crispy potatoes, and creamy ranch – this smashed potato salad is the perfect summer combo!
Crispy Smashed Potato Salad
Smashed Potato Salad Was My Favorite Lunch This Month.
As a basic girl born and raised in the Midwest, these are three top-tier restaurant items for me:
- a shreddy, choppy salad
- crispy golden French fries
- runny, drippy, housemade ranch dressing.
This salad is for anyone who loves that combo. It is a spin on the viral smashed potato salad – but more lettuce-forward instead of being a picnic-style potato salad. Doing it this way preserves a bit of the crispiness of the potatoes, but it’s also just really pleasant to eat with all the tender-crunch bites.
I had this for lunch several times this month, and every bite just carried me to a really joyful place. I want this for you.
It’s tangy, bold, substantial but also light and shreddy at the same time. We added tuna one night for dinner (extra protein, husband-led initiative) and it worked great. Delicious. But I’m emotionally attached to it as-is – just the pickley salad, the potatoes, and the creamy ranch as a trio. My besties.
Hope you love this!
Crispy Smashed Potato Salad
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings as a side 1x
Description
Pickley salad, crispy potatoes, and creamy ranch – this smashed potato salad is the perfect summer combo!
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Crispy Smashed Potatoes
- 24 ounces baby yukon gold potatoes
- 1 tablespoon salt
- avocado oil spray
- 2 tablespoons McCormick Salad Supreme seasoning
Salad
- 2 hearts of romaine, finely chopped
- 1 cup dill pickles, chopped
- a quarter of a red onion, thinly sliced (about 1/4 cup)
Dressing
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon pickle juice
- 1 tablespoon freeze-dried dill (or 1/4 cup fresh, chopped)
- 1 teaspoon McCormick Salad Supreme seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Potatoes: Bring a pot of water to boil. Add salt and potatoes; cook until the potatoes are fork-tender (15-25 minutes, depending on size).
- Veggies: While potatoes are cooking, chop all your salad ingredients.
- Dressing: While potatoes are cooking, whisk all your dressing ingredients.
- Smash: When potatoes are done and cool enough to handle, use the back of a flat drinking glass to smash each potato (1/4 to 1/8 inch thickness). Gently slide it off the potato in a flat motion to prevent sticking.
- Roast: Arrange the potatoes in a single layer in the basket of an air fryer; spray well with avocado oil, coat with the seasoning, and spray again with oil. Air fry at 375 for 15 minutes, or until golden, craggly, and crispy. (You may need to do this in batches; you can also do this in the oven – see notes.)
- Serve! Toss the romaine, pickles, and onions in the dressing. Toss half of the crispy potatoes in the salad (they may break into smaller chunks as you toss it), and reserve the other half to scatter across the top. Crunchy, fresh, creamy, so so yum.
Equipment
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Notes
The potatoes can also be baked at 375 for 30-45 minutes, until they’re crisped and golden to your liking.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: Air Fryer
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: potato salad, smashed potato salad
Three More Favorite Summer Salads
July 1, 2025
Nice to meet you!
I’m Lindsay and I ♡ FOOD. I used to be a teacher, and now making food and writing about it online is my full-time job. I love talking with people about food, and I'm so glad you're here.
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This salad is so good! I added some tuna for a protein boost. The dressing is ridiculously good! I think I’ll use it as either tartar sauce or remoulade for seafood! Definitely going into the rotation!
I have been loving the smashed potato salad trend, I need to get on it! This recipe looks like the perfect way to start 🙂