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Here’s how to make the best fried potatoes: perfectly seasoned and browned to perfection! They’re great as breakfast potatoes or an easy dinner side dish.
Ever crave a skillet of perfectly browned fried potatoes? It’s easy to wing this recipe and make it on the fly. But why not codify the method so it works every time? Introducing the perfect fried potatoes! These thin potato rounds are browned in a skillet until they’re crispy and golden. The seasoning is perfect: just the right amount of smoky, salty, and savory. They work as breakfast potatoes, or an easy side dish for dinner. Here’s how to make them!
Ingredients for fried potatoes
What we love about fried potatoes: they’re simple, humble, and quick! No need to wait for an oven to preheat like with roasted potatoes. We love using them for dinners where you’ve got something roasting in the oven already, or as breakfast potatoes for a fancy brunch. Here’s what you’ll ned:
- Yellow or red potatoes
- Butter
- Olive oil
- Smoked paprika, garlic powder, and thyme
- Kosher salt
Butter and olive oil bring big flavor (and a variation)
Why use both butter and olive oil to make fried potatoes? It adds complexity and nuance to the flavor: you can taste the difference! The butter is savory and rich, and the olive oil adds a subtle nuttiness. We started using butter and olive oil as a combination a few years ago, and we love pulling out the “olive oil and butter” trick to make things taste over the top incredible.
If you eat vegan, you can just substitute the butter with additional olive oil. If you like the idea of flavor nuance, you could also use refined coconut oil in place of the butter. It adds a light fruity essence, but it’s not too strongly coconut flavored.
Smoked paprika is essential
Smoked paprika is a must in these fried potatoes, if you can find it! You can also substitute standard paprika, sometimes called sweet paprika or Hungarian paprika. Smoked paprika is a Spanish version of paprika that adds a smoky flavor without heat or spice! It’s made up of dried pimiento peppers that that are smoked over a fire, then ground.
You can find smoked paprika in the spice aisle in most grocery stores. Refer to the terminology above when you’re looking for it. You can also buy it online here!
- Smoked paprika may be labeled as any of the following: pimentón, Spanish smoked paprika or sweet smoked paprika.
- Avoid hot smoked paprika! It’s too spicy and not interchangeable.
Use any skillet: non-stick or cast iron
You can use any type of skillet to make these fried potatoes! It’s easier to use a non-stick skillet, though of course a cast-iron skillet feels more sturdy and rustic. If you’re using cast iron, make sure that potatoes are fully browned before you flip them. When they brown, they release better from the pan.
Ways to serve fried potatoes
These fried potatoes are so versatile, and work just as well with breakfast and brunch as they do dinner! Here are some of our favorite ways to serve them up:
- With eggs. Try scrambled eggs, scrambled eggs with cottage cheese, sunny side up eggs, over easy eggs, over medium eggs, over hard eggs or baked eggs.
- With a tofu scramble. For a vegan breakfast idea, try it with a tofu scramble.
- With a frittata. Make a spinach feta frittata.
- With fish. Add these potatoes as an accessory to baked salmon, broiled shrimp, or sauteed shrimp.
More potato recipes
The potato is one of the most versatile of all vegetables! Here are a few other popular potato recipes to try:
- Make the very best mashed potatoes
- Bake up ultimate baked fries or a classic baked potato
- Go for garlic roasted potatoes or hasselback potatoes
- Mix up classic potato salad or try loaded potato skins
This fried potatoes recipe is…
Vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, and gluten-free.
Easy Fried Potatoes
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 3 to 4 1x
Description
Here’s how to make the best fried potatoes: perfectly seasoned and browned to perfection! They’re great as breakfast potatoes or an easy dinner side dish.
Ingredients
- 1 pound yellow or red potatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter (or 2 tablespoons olive oil, for vegan)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
Instructions
- Wash the potatoes. Cut them into thin slices, about 1/4” inch thick.
- Heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Add the potatoes and cook them for 10 to 12 minutes until browned, flipping occasionally until all sides are browned. Sprinkle with seasoning and serve hot.
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Pan Fried
- Cuisine: Vegetables
- Diet: Vegan
More tasty potato side dishes
This fried potatoes recipe is a tasty and easy side dish recipe! Here are a few more potato recipes that work as side dishes:
- Quick Baked Potatoes These quick baked potatoes roast in half the time! This easy trick will become your go-to for a perfect potato in just 30 minutes (it tastes better, too).
- Roasted Fingerling Potatoes The buttery, roasty flavor is unreal.
- Home Fries This tasty breakfast or brunch side tastes diner-style.
- Perfect Boiled Potatoes These potatoes are tender and buttery: the ideal easy side dish!
- Spanish Tortilla A potato and egg omelette that is a tasty Spanish dinner or tapas recipe!
- Parmesan Potato Wedges The best side dish ever? This Parmesan potato wedges recipe will have your friends and family singing your praises.
- Loaded Potato Soup Eat potatoes in the form of soup…loaded with all the toppings.
I didn’t have butter or olive oil so I used avocado oil and it came out great. I cooked it slower with less stirring though and partially covered because I was doing other things at the same time. Still came out great. I also tried it with unmelted virgin coconut oil which seemed to be the most like butter. I used granulated garlic minced onion, and added some italian seasoning. Great quick recipe no boiling required. Thanks!
I wasn’t going to make these then thought, why not give it a try!
These are the BEST fried potatoes.
Thank You for this recipe !!!