Green Potato Salad with Tofu Pesto Dressing

I love salads that double as complete meals and not just as sides. Not only is this an easy way to get in all your nutrients, but it is also a great convenient way to eat and prepare meals, especially when you are time limited. This salad keeps for a good 5 days in the fridge (dressing separate) and is brilliant for work lunches during the week or to take with to a braai or family gathering on the weekend (especially in those cases where the salad may be your only plant-based option!). My idea of a balanced meal is a meal that contains lots of vegetables (preferably including some green veg), a healthy starch, a high quality protein and some healthy fats. This salad contains all of those key components and is packed full of nutrition: healthy starch from the potatoes, greens from the rocket and basil, protein from the peas and tofu and healthy fats from the walnuts. What more could a Dietitian ask for?

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For my patients on calorie-controlled meal plans:

1 x 326g serving of this recipe (dressing included) =

  • 1 starch serving
  • 1 legume/ protein serving
  • 2 veg servings
  • 1 fat serving

It all starts with...

Ingredients:

  • 700g baby potatoes, boiled and halved
  • 1 x 40g packet wild rocket
  • 300g broccoli florets
  • 300g frozen peas
  • 1/4 cup toasted seeds of choice (optional)

For the dressing

  • ½ cup soft tofu, drained

  • 2 cloves garlic

  • Juice of 1 large lemon

  • 30g walnuts

  • 2 handfuls fresh basil

  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast

  • 1/4 tsp salt (or to taste)

  • Water to desired consistency

Method:

1.     Bring a large pot of water to the boil and boil the potatoes for 20-30 minutes or until soft.

2.     In the meanwhile, cook your frozen peas according to the package instructions (about 4 minutes in the microwave or 10 minutes on the stovetop). 

3.     Lightly steam your broccoli for about 4-7 minutes until cooked but still slightly crunchy and then dice the florets.

4.     For the dressing: place all the dressing ingredients in a high powered blender or nutribullet and blend until a smooth creamy dressing is formed. Depending on the brand of tofu, you may need to add a bit of water to thin the dressing out. If prepping your salad in advance, place the dressing in an airtight container in the fridge to add before serving.

5.    Once the potatoes, broccoli and peas are cooked and cooled, assemble your salad: in a large bowl or container mix together the halved potatoes, diced broccoli, peas and rocket. Top with toasted seeds, salt and pepper to taste. Add the dressing and mix through prior to serving.

Mark SebbaComment