Crispy Smashed Potatoes
These Crispy Smashed Potatoes are soft and fluffy on the outside, irresistibly crispy on the outside, and seasoned with garlic powder and rosemary. They’re wonderful served as a side dish or an appetizer with your favorite dipping sauce!
When it comes to side dishes, you can never go wrong with potatoes. My air fryer baked potatoes never disappoint, and my family’s most requested side dish is my yukon gold mashed potatoes.
I love my air fryer potatoes for their golden brown, crispy exterior and soft fluffy center, but these Crispy Smashed Potatoes are my absolute favorite because they’re extra crispy.
What makes these so special? The baby yukon gold potatoes are boiled just until tender, then they’re smashed, tossed in olive oil and roasted to ultra crispy perfection.
By smashing the potatoes before roasting, you’re increasing the surface area of each potato and creating lots of nooks and crannies for the hot air inside the oven to crisp up.
You can serve these crispy roast baby potatoes during the week or for holiday dinners. They’re great whenever you need an easy potato side dish that everyone will love!
But be warned: these potatoes are addictively crispy and extremely hard to walk away from. 🙂
Why you’ll love this recipe
- These crispy roasted baby potatoes are fluffy on the inside and addictively crispy on the outside.
- They make a great gluten-free side dish or appetizer.
- The recipe may be changed up by using your favorite potatoes, herbs, or spices.
Recipe ingredients
You only need a handful of simple ingredients for these super crispy, boiled and roasted potatoes.
- Baby gold potatoes. You can technically use any color of baby potato you like, but I prefer baby gold potatoes for their fluffy yet creamy texture.
- Olive oil. Choose an extra virgin olive oil for the best flavor.
- Rosemary. Fresh rosemary is preferred, but you may use 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, if desired. Sub with your favorite herbs.
- Garlic powder. Adds garlicky flavor, but doesn’t burn like fresh garlic does.
- Salt and pepper. Always season your potatoes to taste.
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and quantities.
How to make baby potatoes super crispy
The steps involved in boiling the baby potatoes before roasting take up some extra time, but the crispy end result is totally worth it.
Pro tip: Smashing the potatoes before roasting results in more surface area of potato, which means even more of the potato becomes crispy under the direct heat of the oven.
See the recipe card below for full instructions.
- Boil the baby potatoes. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with water. Simmer until fork tender, then drain and pat dry.
- Shake the potatoes. Return the potatoes to the saucepan and add the olive oil, rosemary, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Cover with the lid and shake vigorously until the potatoes are well coated. Pour the potatoes onto a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer.
- Smash the potatoes. Transfer the coated potatoes to a rimmed baking sheet and smash gently with a fork or the bottom of a glass.
- Roast until crisp. Roast the smashed baby potatoes at 425 degrees F until crisp and golden brown.
Recipe FAQs
The exact cook time will depend on the size of the baby potatoes. In my experience, 10 to 12 minutes is plenty of time for baby potatoes to become tender.
I suggest roasting baby gold potatoes at 425 degrees F for 30 to 45 minutes depending on the level of crispness you desire.
Save the Russet potatoes for making air fryer baked potatoes. They’re more tender and fluffy when roasted and won’t crisp up like baby golds.
Serving suggestions
Pair this easy side dish with your favorite mains. These crispy potatoes go well with everything from one-pot weeknight dinners to more time consuming holiday proteins!
- They’re great with everyday entrees like air fryer chicken thighs, pork loin roast, lemon roasted chicken, or bbq turkey meatloaf.
- Enjoy these with holiday favorites like slow cooker maple ham and boneless roast turkey breast.
- Bulk up your favorite salads, such as salmon nicoise salad or spring mix salad.
- Serve at brunch with poached eggs or spinach frittata.
- They’re great served as an appetizer with Greek yogurt ranch dressing or green goddess dressing.
Recipe notes
- Pro tip: Smashing the potatoes before roasting results in more surface area of potato, which means even more of the potato becomes crispy under the direct heat of the oven.
- Once smashed, I like to dab some of the remaining oil from the saucepan over the tops of the potatoes.
- Change up your potatoes by using different herbs and seasonings, or serve with a dollop of sour cream!
- These are best served the day they are made as they will lose their crispness once they’ve been refrigerated.
More potato side dishes you’ll love
- Air fryer potato skins
- Air fryer potatoes
- Crock Pot mashed potatoes
- Yukon Gold mashed potatoes
- Twice baked mashed potatoes
Did you try this recipe? If so, be sure to leave a review below and tag me @flavorthemoments on Facebook and Instagram
Crispy Smashed Potatoes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds baby gold potatoes
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 teaspoon dried)
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Place the potatoes in a large pot and fill with enough water to cover by 1". Place the lid on the pot, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, and simmer uncovered until the potatoes are fork tender, about 10-12 minutes. Drain well in a colander, then blot dry with a towel.1 1/2 pounds baby gold potatoes
- Place the potatoes back in the pot and add the olive oil, rosemary, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Place the lid on and shake vigorously until the potatoes are completely covered with the olive oil.1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Pour the potatoes out onto the prepared baking sheet in a single layer and smash them down with a fork. Once smashed, I like to dab some of the remaining oil from the saucepan over the tops of the potatoes.
- Roast for 30-45 minutes or until the potatoes are crisp and golden brown. Enjoy!
Notes
- Pro tip: You can use any type of baby potatoes for this dish. I prefer baby gold potatoes for their fluffy yet creamy texture, but red and purple potatoes also work.
- Once smashed, I like to dab some of the remaining oil from the saucepan over the tops of the potatoes.
- Change up your potatoes by using different herbs and seasonings, or serve with a dollop of sour cream!
- These are best served the day they are made as they will lose their crispness once they’ve been refrigerated.
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
**This post was originally published in June 2013. The photos, recipe and text have been updated.
13 Comments on “Crispy Smashed Potatoes”
Love the flavours of rosemary and garlic! I have some baby potatoes on hand that I should use soon, and these would make the perfect side dish for dinner tonight!
Rosemary and garlic go so well together don’t they? Thanks Leanne!
Crispy smashed potatoes are the BEST!!! I haven’t made them in so long and now I’m questioning what I’ve been doing with my life 😉 These look terrific!!
I was questioning what I’ve been doing too because it’s been years since I made these! lol Thanks Katherine!
I love potatoes and this is such a great way to cook them Marcie. YUM! 🙂
The extra steps are worth it when they’re extra crispy!
I so need to try these! Love my potatoes! 🙂
Me, too!
What a fun way to prepare potatoes – I love them too! haha PacMan. I used to love that game when I was a kid – I always wanted to play it when we went to the arcades on the boardwalk!
I played PacMan at the boardwalk arcades, too, but originally I played it on the Atari video game system. Man, am I old.
I couldn’t stop eating these! They were just the way I like them, too. Thank you, Adri! I hope you enjoy them.
I looooove potatoes. Your kids are crazy for only liking them fried or mashed — I’ll take them any way you’re serving them. These potatoes sound amazing, I love the idea of a nice crispy outside and a fork tender middle.
My kids are crazy, right?! I’ll eat potatoes any which way, too.