Crispy Smashed Potatoes Recipe
Published December 23, 2022. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
These Smashed potatoes are extra crispy and delicious, fried to perfection in butter for the ultimate potato side dish. This is hands down the crispiest and most flavorful smashed potatoes recipe on the internet.
I love the variety of potato side dishes, but I can also get stuck in a rut by repeatedly making the same ones. If you’re the same way, try my Lyonnaise Potatoes or Hasselback Potatoes.
Smashed Potatoes
Smashed potatoes are pre-cooked potatoes that are smashed and fried until crispy. The most common way to pre-cook the potatoes are by boiling them. However, you can also bake the potatoes as well.
There are two ways to make this extra crispy, and I believe this recipe achieves the best way to do it. Many recipes call for baking the potatoes in the oven after they are pre-cooked and smashed. I believe that frying the potatoes in oil and butter helps to crisp these potatoes to the next level.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Potatoes – Use small to medium-sized Yukon gold potatoes.
- Oil – I prefer olive oil, but any oil will work. To kick it up a notch, you could use lard.
- Butter – Always use unsalted butter in cooking and baking to control the salt content.
How to Make Smashed Potatoes
Add the potatoes directly to a large steamer basket.
Add the basket of potatoes to a large pot of salted water and boil for 20 to 23 minutes. The water should be well seasoned and salty like the ocean.
Remove the potatoes to a strainer or basket for 5 to 7 minutes or until they cool down. You’ll know the potatoes are done when you pierce them with a fork, remove them from the water, and slide off the fork easily.
Place one of the slightly cooled potatoes on a cutting board and place a small frying pan over top. Gently press down to smash the potato.
Place the potatoes on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper. Repeat the process until all the potatoes are smashed.
Next, add olive oil to a large frying pan, cast-iron skillet, or griddle over medium-high heat.
Once the oil is smoked lightly, place it on the smashed potatoes.
Immediately add the butter around the potatoes to help brown them and flavor them.
Season the potatoes with salt and pepper.
After 3 to 4 minutes, flip the potatoes over and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. If your pan is not big enough, you must do this in batches.
Remove the potatoes and garnish them with melted unsalted butter and optional chopped fresh parsley.
How to Bake Them Instead of Frying Them
If you want to cut back on oil and butter, you will need to keep them spread out on the sheet tray lined with parchment paper. Drizzle each top with a small amount of olive oil and season them with salt and pepper. Bake them at 450° for 15 to 2 0 minutes or until crisp.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make-Ahead: These are meant to be eaten within an hour of making them.
How to Reheat: Place them in a pan or on a metal tray and bake in the oven at 350° for 8 to 10 minutes or until warmed and crispy. Likewise, you can microwave it until warm.
How to Store: Cover and place in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. These do not freeze that well, so I advise against them.
Chef Notes + Tips
- If you have a lot of leftover potatoes, they are excellent for making hash browns by slicing them through and frying them.
- Feel free to load up each smashed potato with sour cream, cheese, bacon, and green onions, just like a loaded baked potato. In addition, pico de gallo on top is good as well.
- You can also finish the potatoes with fresh herbs.
- If you do not have a steamer basket, carefully add the potatoes to a pot of boiling salted water.
- You can use small red or russet potatoes as a substitute for this recipe.
More Potato Recipes
Video
Crispy Smashed Potatoes Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 small to medium-sized Yukon potatoes
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter + melted for garnish
- sea salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the potatoes directly to a large steamer basket.
- Add the basket of potatoes to a large pot of boiling salted water and boil for 20 to 23 minutes. The water should be well seasoned and salty like the ocean.
- Remove the potatoes and keep in strainer or basket for 5 to 7 minutes or until they slightly cool down. You’ll know the potatoes are done when you pierce them with a fork, remove them from the water, and they slide of the fork with ease.
- Place one of the slightly cooled potatoes on a cutting board and place a small frying pan over top. Gently press down to smash the potato.
- Place the potatoes on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper. Repeat the process until all the potatoes are smashed.
- Next, add the olive oil to a large frying pan, cast-iron skillet, or griddle over medium-high heat.
- Once the oil smoked lightly, place on the smashed potatoes.
- Immediately add the butter around the potatoes to help brown them up and flavor them. If your pan is not big enough, you will have to do this in batches so evenly distribute the oil and butter between the batches.
Thank you for your tasty recipe ChefBilly 😁😋
Oh my gosh tasty Chef Billy
😁😋👋thankyou ChefBilly tasty recipe as always
Thank you ChefBilly tasty recipe 🤩👋😁😋
Thank you ChefBilly tasty recipe 😁👋🤩😋
Thank you ChefBilly yep tasty 😋 👋😁🤩
OMG! So good and easy to make!
so good!!
These came out perfect, getting a nice crispy potato and some great flavor that has complimented a few dishes so far. We love our potatoes in this house and this recipe is now on regular rotation.
excellent!
Can you use duck fat instead of butter or lard?
Is there a reason you wouldn’t be able to?
Love these, especially when fried. YUM!
fantastic
Neat twist on fried potatoes. Looking forward to working it into the menu.
They’re tasty!
How about adding garlic and rosemary to this? Any suggestions on how to do this? Many thanks. I love crispy potatoes. Great website BTW.
Sure. Without testing it exactly, I can’t give you perfect instructions. Sorry.
Hey Chef Billy,
This is one of my most favorite side dishes. I love these potatoes. I have eaten them by the plate full. I was getting addicted to these little delicious potatoes so I had to stop making them, and now you send me the best recipe ever for making them…..Oh well, here I go again. These Potatoes go with everything BBQ, Steak, or all by their self with a nice dip. Thank you Chef for this great delicious recipe…
Love it!
Easy to make and guaranteed to please family and company at mealtime! Nice change from mashed, baked or boiled!
so good!!
Oh yummy!!! Worth repeating!!! Crispy, creamy, buttery amazingness. My husband loved them.
so good!!
Just what I like, simple and tasty!
so good!!
I made these yesterday with my 15 year old granddaughter and I had to keep her from eating all of them before the rest of us got any!
awesome!
I love smashed potatoes. A local restaurant here made stem at a whole different level. You literally could not stop eating them until they were gone. One day I was able to ask the chef what made them so good. His answer was they fried them in duck fat. Amazing.
Whole other level with duck fat!
This is an easy but delicious side for just about any protein. We usually do the oven technique and sprinkle with parmesan cheeseca small dollop of sour cream and chopped chives. Makes a beautiful and delicious side. I boil mine a day before and smash. Cover well and refrigerate.
so good!!
What’s not to like about a crispy, buttery steaming potato? Delicious and easy to prepare. So often when its just 2 of us, this is perfect because it’s so easy to make just a few.
so good!!