Perfect Pan Fried Potatoes – A Couple Cooks

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:

More potato recipes

The potato is one of the most versatile of all vegetables! Here are a few other popular potato recipes to try: