Crispy Smashed Potatoes Recipe with Golden Garlic Butter

Prep: 15 mins · Cook: 35 mins · Total: 50 mins · Serves: 4 · Calories: ~280 kcal

Crispy smashed potatoes come out of the oven sizzling, with shatteringly golden edges and pillowy centers. Ready in 50 minutes, this side disappears first, crackling outside and creamy inside. Perfect for Sunday suppers or a crowd-pleasing weeknight.

Why This Recipe Works

• Salt the boiling water generously for seasoned centers: Potatoes absorb salt as they simmer, so the middles taste seasoned, not just the skins. Cook them until a knife slides in with no resistance.
• Smash firmly to create craggy, crisp-ready edges: Flattening spreads the potato wide and exposes ragged edges. Those jagged bits catch the oil and brown fastest, becoming the crunchiest bites.
• Olive oil and butter share the browning job: Olive oil handles high heat without scorching, while butter's milk solids toast into nutty, golden flavor. Together they give you crisp edges and rich taste.
• Preheated pan and blazing oven sear on contact: Hot metal starts browning the moment the potato touches it. A cold pan would let the potatoes steam and stick instead.

Ingredients You'll Need

Baby Red Potatoes: These small potatoes have thin, tender red skins and firm, creamy flesh. Their size lets them smash flat in one press and crisp evenly. Yukon Gold potatoes cut to a similar size make a good substitute.

Kosher Salt: Kosher salt is coarse and flaky, so it seasons evenly without tasting harsh. One tablespoon flavors the boiling water, so the potato centers taste seasoned from the inside. Fine sea salt works too, but use about half as much because it packs denser.

Water: Water is the simmering liquid that carries salt into each potato as it cooks. Eight cups gives the potatoes room to move so they cook evenly. Unsalted vegetable broth adds more flavor, but reduce the salt if you use it.

Freshly Ground Black Pepper: Black pepper adds a sharp, floral bite that balances the richness of butter and oil. Grinding it fresh keeps its aroma bright. Pre-ground pepper works in the same amount, though it tastes a little flatter.

Extra-Virgin Olive Oil: Olive oil coats the potatoes and helps their edges turn golden and crisp in the hot oven. It handles high heat well and adds a fruity, savory base. Avocado oil is a good swap if you want a more neutral flavor.

Unsalted Butter: Melted butter brings nutty, toasty flavor, and its milk solids brown beautifully on the crust. Using unsalted butter means you control the seasoning. Ghee is the best substitute, since it browns deeply and tolerates heat even better.

Garlic: Finely minced garlic gives a sharp, sweet aroma that mellows and turns golden in the oven. Mincing creates many small surfaces, so the flavor spreads through every bite. Garlic powder is a fine stand-in at about half a teaspoon, though it tastes milder.

Fresh Parsley: Finely chopped parsley adds bright, grassy freshness that lifts the rich, toasty flavors. Its green flecks look lovely against the golden crust. Fresh chives or cilantro work as substitutes, and dried parsley works at one-third the amount.

How to Make It (Step by Step)

Boil baby red potatoes until tender, smash them flat, then roast them in olive oil and garlic butter until crisp. Don't worry about perfect shapes, because a little craggy and uneven is exactly what you want.

Recipe

• 2 pounds baby red potatoes, about 1 to 1½ inches across, scrubbed
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided, 1 tablespoon for the boiling water
• 8 cups water
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped

Crispy smashed baby red potatoes, flattened discs with deep golden-brown crisp edges, one split open to show a fluffy pale center, arranged on a parchment-lined rimmed sheet pan. Inclined 45-degree three-quarter view, natural daylight, realistic color, shallow depth of field.

Refrigerate leftovers up to three days. Reheat them on a sheet pan at 425°F for about eight minutes. Skip the microwave, which makes those golden edges soft.

Prep: 15 · Cook: 35 · Serves: 4 · Calories: 280 · Category: Side Dish · Cuisine: American

Tips and Tricks

• Equipment: Use a parchment-lined rimmed sheet pan: The rim keeps butter and oil from spilling, and parchment stops the potatoes from sticking. Use one pan so they brown evenly.

• Temperature precision: Preheat the oven to 450°F: Let the oven reach full heat before the potatoes go in. A cooler oven steams them, and the edges stay pale and soft.
• Common mistake: Crowding the sheet pan: Packed potatoes trap moisture and steam instead of searing. Leave space between each disc, and use two pans for a big batch.
• Flavour upgrade: Add smoked paprika to the butter: Optional, but a pinch of smoked paprika in the melted butter adds a warm, smoky note to the golden edges.
• Texture tip: Let boiled potatoes dry before smashing: Set drained potatoes in the colander for five minutes so surface moisture evaporates. Drier skins crisp faster and turn shatteringly crunchy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use Yukon Gold or russet potatoes instead of baby red potatoes?

Yes, use Yukon Gold potatoes cut into 2-inch chunks and boiled until tender, roughly 2 pounds for 4 servings. Russets work too, but they yield a fluffier center and need a slightly longer boil, about 15 minutes.

How long do leftover crispy smashed potatoes last, and how do I bring back their crunch?

Store cooled potatoes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days, or freeze them flat on a sheet pan for up to two months. Reheat from frozen or chilled at 425°F on a parchment-lined sheet pan until crisp, about 10 to 12 minutes from the fridge.

Why are my smashed potatoes soggy instead of crispy in the oven?

Let boiled potatoes steam-dry in the colander for five minutes so the surface loses moisture before smashing. Crowding the pan traps steam, so leave space between discs and roast until the edges look deep golden and bubbly, not pale.

What to Serve With This

• Lemon-Garlic Green Beans: Bright lemon cuts through the butter, and the snap of the beans contrasts with the soft, fluffy centers.
• Creamy Cucumber Dill Salad: Cool sour cream and crisp cucumber soothe the heat of the garlic and give the crispy edges a creamy partner.
• Arugula Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette: Peppery greens and a sharp, zesty dressing brighten up the rich, golden potatoes.
• Whipped Herb Yogurt Dip: Tangy, smooth yogurt flecked with chives makes a silky contrast to every crackly, deep golden bite.