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Crispy Smashed Potatoes
Boil until fully tender, smash thin, then roast hot and undisturbed — the craggy edges shatter like a chip. The vinegar in the boiling water seasons the potatoes inside and helps them hold together.
01 GET SET
(music on. apron optional.)
- Fully cooking the potatoes before smashing maximizes the starchy surface that crisps.
- Not flipping means one side gets an unbroken, deeply browned crust.
- Vinegar in the boil keeps smashed edges intact instead of disintegrating.
02 MAKE IT
(check it off as you go.)
Boil
Cover the potatoes with cold salted water, add the vinegar, and simmer until a knife slides in with no resistance.
1½ lb baby yellow potatoes2 tbsp white vinegar
Smash
Drain and let dry 5 minutes. On an oiled sheet pan, press each potato to about ½ inch thick with the bottom of a glass.
1½ lb baby yellow potatoes
Roast
Drizzle with the olive oil mixed with grated garlic. Roast at 450°F (230°C) without flipping until the edges are deep golden and crisp.
3 tbsp olive oil2 garlic cloves, grated
Finish
Scatter with flaky salt and chives. Serve immediately — they soften as they sit.
1 tsp flaky salt2 tbsp chives, thinly sliced
- Potatoes larger than a golf ball should be halved before boiling.
03 GOOD TO KNOW
(future you says thanks.)
KEEPS FOR LATER
Best immediately. Re-crisp leftovers in a 425°F oven for 8–10 minutes.
MAKE IT AHEAD
Boil and smash up to a day ahead; refrigerate on the pan and roast to order.
SWAPS THAT WORK
- Duck fat instead of olive oil is outrageous, in a good way.
NUTRITION SNAPSHOT
per serving · makes 4
- Calories
- 210
- Fat
- 11 g
- Carbs
- 27 g
- Protein
- 4 g
(USDA estimates — useful for planning, not medical or allergy decisions.)
04 NEED A HAND?
(ask before dinner becomes a situation.)
Substitutions, timing, "can I use the other pan" — answered for this exact recipe.
05 THE VERDICT
(cooks vote. aunt judges.)
COOK'S NOTES
Notes from people who actually made it. Every note is human-checked.
No kitchen dispatches yet. Yours could be first.
06 COOK NEXT
(keep the good decisions going.)
