Pesto Potato Salad with Crispy Prosciutto and Burrata

Pesto potato salad with burrata in a bowl.

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Pesto Potato Salad with Crispy Prosciutto and Burrata

This very gorgeous pesto potato salad is the ultimate summer side. Perfectly cooked baby potatoes are tossed with fresh basil pesto, then finished with crispy prosciutto shards and dollops of creamy burrata. Luxurious, looks beautiful, mayo-free, and fab for garden parties, cookouts, barbecues, and meal prep.

Prep Time5

Cook Time25

Total Time25

Course: Salad

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Keyword: potato salad, potatoes

Servings: side servings

Calories: 315kcal

Author: Kate Phillips

Ingredients

For the pesto potatoes -

2 lb baby potatoes or other waxy potato (1kg)
½ cup basil pesto
4 slices prosciutto or bacon
Handful of basil leaves torn
1 ball of burrata
Salt

For the homemade pesto –

2 packed cups fresh basil leaves
½ cup freshly grated parmesan
3 cloves garlic
⅓ cup toasted pine nuts or cashews, walnuts, almonds, pistachios, sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup olive oil

Instructions

Cook the potatoes.
Add the potatoes to a large pot along with a big pinch of salt. Cover them with cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Simmer for about 20 minutes, until the potatoes can be pierced with a fork but still have a little bit of tension. You want them cooked, but firm.
Drain the potatoes, then transfer them back into the now-dry pot to cool slightly.
Make the crispy prosciutto.
While the potatoes cook, heat your oven to 350℉ (180℃) fan and line a sheet pan tray with parchment paper. Lay the prosciutto slices on the pan, and cook for 10 minutes until crispy. Set aside to cool (they’ll continue to crisp up during this time), then crumble them up into small shards.

You can also do this in the air fryer. Lay them in a single layer in your air fryer basket, then air fry at 350℉ (180℃) for 3 to 5 minutes, until crispy.

Make the pesto (optional).
Add the 2 cups of basil leaves, ½ cup grated parmesan, ⅓ cup pine nuts (or alternative), 3 garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and ½ teaspoon of salt to the bowl of a food processor and blitz for a minute, until it turns into a rough paste. Scrape down the sides. With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil to create a lovely emulsified pesto.
Mix the potato salad.
Once the potatoes have slightly cooled, add them to a large mixing bowl with the pesto and roughly half the crispy proscuitto shards. Give the potatoes a really good mix to make sure they’re all coated well.
Garnish and serve.
Transfer the potatoes to a serving plate, then scatter over the remaining crispy prosciutto. Tear small pieces off the burrata, and dollop them all over the top of the potatoes. Finish by scattering over the torn basil leaves, and a good sprinkling of flaky salt.

Notes

STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: The pesto potatoes keep really well. Make them a couple of days ahead of serving them if you like, and keep them in a covered container in the fridge. They'll last for 5 days this way. If you do prep them ahead of time, wait until you serve before adding the crispy prosciutto and burrata (the crispy prosciutto will soften if it sits in the pesto too long).

INGREDIENT NOTES: Play around with your pesto - these are also great with sundried tomato pesto, wild garlic pesto or even spicy zhoug sauce (a spicy cilantro pesto sauce). Use bacon rather than prosciutto, or leave it out for a vegetarian version. If you can't find burrata, use a ball of fresh mozzarella, or use crumbled feta.

Nutrition