How to Make Healthy Potato Salad

A summer get together wouldn't be the same without potato salad. Unfortunately, this popular summer side dish is loaded with fat and calories. While many people choose to reinvent potato salad by using a healthy vinegar-based dressing, this isn't necessary. It's easy to make a healthy mayonnaise-based potato salad, if you know a few tricks.

First of all, don't peel your potatoes. Many people peel their potatoes before boiling them. But, did you know that most of the nutrients are in the skin of the potato? When you leave the peel on, you are actually adding nutrients to your potato salad. Just be sure to thoroughly scrub the skin to remove excess dirt.

As your potatoes are boiling, you will need to make the dressing for your potato salad. While, regular mayonnaise is a big no-no, light mayo is perfect for your healthy potato salad. I highly recommend using Kraft Light Mayonnaise. This is one of the only low-fat mayonnaises that taste close to the regular version. Next, add fresh cracked pepper and sea salt. Sea salt is healthy, because you use much less of this high-flavor salt. If you like a tangy flavor, you can also add mustard to your healthy potato salad dressing. Still, the most important note you need to remember is to only use enough dressing to lightly coat the other ingredients.

You might think you should avoid adding hard boiled eggs to your healthy potato salad, but this couldn't be farther from the truth. Hard boiled eggs add a lot of protein. They also improve the texture of your healthy potato salad. Textures are important when you're trying to live a healthy lifestyle, because they allow your body to get the variety it craves.

Another great way to add protein to your healthy potato salad is to add sunflower seeds. I suggest using a roasted variety that hasn't been salted. You may even have to roast them yourself. Still, sunflower seeds are high in protein and worth the extra work. Plus, this extra addition adds more texture to your healthy potato salad.

Last, but not least, you need vegetables. I suggest adding lots of chopped green peppers and sweet onion. The kinds of vegetables you add are up to you. Just remember to add fresh vegetables. Fresh vegetables have more nutrients than those that have been cooked.

As you can see, healthy potato salad is just as easy to prepare as the regular version. Actually healthy potato salad is even easier because you don't have to peel the potatoes. Just remember to use light mayonnaise, add hard boiled eggs and sunflower seeds for protein, and add tons of fresh vegetables.