The Humble Potato, Three Ways
Makes about 4–6 servings, depending on the version
Crisp • Golden • Rustic • Comforting
Three simple ways to transform the humble potato—from craggy smashed rounds to beautifully fanned Hasselbacks and deeply crisp British roast potatoes.
This recipe is 100% plant-based.
Is there anybody who doesn’t love potatoes?
I suppose there must be, but I don’t know if I’ve met them.
Potatoes have always been one of those foods I could eat in almost any form. French fries, roasted potatoes, baked potatoes, smashed potatoes, little crispy potatoes straight from the oven—put them in front of me and I’m generally happy.
The one exception when I was growing up was potato salad. I was never much of a mayonnaise person, so cold potatoes covered in mayonnaise did absolutely nothing for me. Maybe I should make my own version now and see if I can finally change my mind.
But hot, golden, crispy potatoes?
Those have always had my attention.
Growing up with a British mother meant proper roast potatoes appeared regularly at our table. I suspect most British households have rather strong opinions about how a roast potato should be made, and ours were very good.
The magic is in what happens before they ever reach the oven.
You parboil the potatoes first, drain them well, and then—instead of treating them delicately—you rough them up. Give the pan a good shake and let those softened exteriors become fuzzy and irregular. It looks almost as though you’ve damaged them, but all those roughed-up little surfaces become gloriously crisp once they meet hot oil and the oven.
That contrast is everything: a deeply golden, crunchy shell surrounding a soft, fluffy center.
Years later, another potato entered our lives from an entirely different direction.
Lloyd and I first discovered Hasselback potatoes at Crossroads Kitchen. The first time we ordered one, that was pretty much the end of the discussion. From then on, if it was on the menu, Lloyd wanted it as part of our meal.
Every time.
I understood why. A Hasselback potato somehow manages to be both beautiful and comforting. The potato remains whole, but all those thin slices fan open in the oven, giving you crisp little edges across the top while the bottom and center remain creamy and tender.
Eventually I started making them at home because, despite their impressive appearance, they really aren’t difficult. The important things are starting with a good potato, slicing it carefully, and learning how to get all those little edges beautifully crisp without saturating the whole thing in oil. I love working herbs into mine, especially rosemary or thyme, and sometimes a little cultured butter along with the olive oil.
They have been one of our favorite potato preparations ever since.
And then there are smashed potatoes.
These are for an entirely different kind of day.
When I want something salty and crunchy but don’t particularly feel like doing much to get there, smashed potatoes are my answer. I buy those wonderful little potatoes so I don’t even have to cut them, boil them until tender, smash them against the pan, add good olive oil, salt and a few herbs, and let the oven take over.
The broken skins and irregular surfaces become brown and craggy while the centers stay creamy. You can make a dipping sauce if you want one, but honestly, give me a beautifully crisp potato with good olive oil, herbs and enough salt and I’m perfectly happy.
That was actually where this recipe began. It used to be simply my Crispy Smashed Potatoes—a recipe for the kind of night when you don’t want to try very hard but still want something that hits exactly right.
But the more I thought about potatoes, the sillier it seemed to stop there.
Because one of the wonderful things about this humble ingredient is how dramatically technique can change it.
Boil a little potato and smash it, and you create craggy surfaces that turn wonderfully crisp.
Take a whole potato and make dozens of thin cuts across it, and it opens in the oven into a beautiful Hasselback fan.
Parboil a floury potato, deliberately beat it up a little, and roast it in a hot pan, and you get the British potato I remember from childhood—crunchy and golden outside, fluffy and steaming within.
Same ingredient.
Three completely different experiences.
And potatoes have quite a history of finding their way into food traditions far from where they originated. Hasselbacks came to us through Sweden, where potatoes became an important part of the food culture centuries ago; today potatoes remain deeply woven into Swedish everyday cooking. British roast potatoes developed their own place at the table, and for me they carry the added history of my mother and the food I grew up eating.
But perhaps my favorite thing about potatoes has nothing to do with where any particular preparation began.
They are food for sharing.
Sometimes you make one kind. And sometimes I think it would be great fun to make all three.
Pile the smashed potatoes onto one platter, bring out the Hasselbacks, add a big bowl of those British roast potatoes, and put everything in the middle of the table. Add a beautiful salad in summer or a steaming bowl of soup when the weather turns cold.
Then let everybody reach.
Someone will want the crispiest smashed one. Someone else will pull apart the little leaves of a Hasselback. And I can almost guarantee there will be competition for the darkest, crunchiest British roast potato left in the bowl.
Add some good conversation and I’m not sure dinner needs to be much more complicated than that.
Maybe that is the real beauty of the potato. It is inexpensive, familiar and humble enough that we barely give it a second thought, yet with a little attention it can become something everyone at the table wants.
Three kinds of potatoes in the middle of a table, people reaching in from every direction, something warm alongside them, and nowhere anyone needs to hurry off to.
That sounds like a Meal That Gathers People to me.
INGREDIENTS
Version One: Crispy Smashed Potatoes
680 g small yellow or red potatoes (about 1½ pounds)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
1 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more for the cooking water
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
Version Two: Hasselback Potatoes
4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon Sol Canyon Kitchen Cultured Butter, melted, optional
2 cloves garlic, finely grated or minced
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary or thyme
¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Version Three: Traditional British Roast Potatoes
900 g Yukon Gold potatoes (about 2 pounds)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more for the cooking water
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2–3 sprigs fresh rosemary or thyme, optional
METHOD
VERSION ONE: CRISPY SMASHED POTATOES
Step 1 — Boil the Potatoes
Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover generously with cold water.
Season the water well with salt and bring to a boil. Reduce to a steady simmer and cook for approximately 15–20 minutes, depending on their size, until the potatoes are completely tender when pierced with a knife.
They need to be thoroughly cooked before smashing so they flatten easily rather than splitting apart.
Step 2 — Drain & Steam-Dry
Drain the potatoes thoroughly and leave them in the colander for approximately 5 minutes.
Allowing the surface moisture to evaporate is important. The drier the potatoes are before roasting, the more readily their edges will become crisp.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to:
450°F (230°C)
Step 3 — Smash the Potatoes
Arrange the potatoes on a sturdy rimmed baking sheet, leaving plenty of room between them.
Using the flat bottom of a glass or measuring cup, gently press each potato until approximately ½–¾ inch thick.
Don’t worry if the skins split or the edges become irregular. Those craggy little pieces are exactly what become wonderfully crisp in the oven.
Step 4 — Season Generously
Drizzle the potatoes with:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Season with:
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
Use your hands or a pastry brush to help distribute the olive oil over the broken surfaces and edges.
Step 5 — Roast Until Deeply Crisp
Roast for approximately 25 minutes without disturbing the potatoes.
Once the undersides are deeply golden, carefully turn them and continue roasting for another 10–15 minutes, until both sides are crisp and the ragged edges are beautifully browned.
The potatoes were already cooked before they went into the oven, so this stage isn’t about simply getting them done. It is about developing that deeply golden, crisp exterior.
Step 6 — Finish & Serve
Taste while hot and add another pinch of sea salt if needed.
Serve immediately, while the outsides are beautifully crisp and the centers are still creamy and tender.
VERSION TWO: HASSELBACK POTATOES
Step 1 — Prepare the Potatoes
Preheat the oven to:
425°F (220°C)
Scrub the potatoes well and dry them thoroughly. There is no need to peel them.
Place one potato between two chopsticks or the handles of two wooden spoons. Using a sharp knife, make thin slices across the potato approximately ⅛ inch apart, cutting downward until the knife reaches the chopsticks.
The chopsticks prevent the knife from cutting completely through the potato, leaving the bottom intact so the slices remain connected.
Repeat with the remaining potatoes.
Step 2 — Begin the First Bake
Arrange the potatoes in a baking dish or on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Brush generously with:
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Try to coat the outside well, but don’t worry about getting between every slice yet. The potatoes will begin to fan open as they bake.
Season with:
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Bake for approximately 30 minutes, until the potatoes begin to soften and the slices start opening naturally.
Step 3 — Add the Garlic & Herbs
While the potatoes are baking, combine:
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon Sol Canyon Kitchen Cultured Butter, melted, optional
2 cloves garlic, finely grated or minced
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary or thyme
Remove the potatoes from the oven.
By now, the slices should have opened enough that you can gently brush some of the garlic-herb mixture between them as well as over the tops.
Season with the remaining:
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
Don’t force the slices apart; simply work the mixture into the spaces that have opened naturally.
Step 4 — Bake Until Golden & Crisp
Return the potatoes to the oven and bake for another 30–40 minutes, brushing once more with any remaining oil and butter mixture during baking.
The potatoes are ready when the centers are completely tender, the slices have fanned open, and the exposed edges are deeply golden and crisp.
If you want even more color, increase the oven to 450°F (230°C) for the final 5 minutes, watching carefully.
Step 5 — Finish & Serve
Remove from the oven and finish with a little additional sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, or fresh herbs if desired.
Serve immediately while the individual edges are crisp and the interior remains soft and creamy.
VERSION THREE: TRADITIONAL BRITISH ROAST POTATOES
Step 1 — Prepare the Potatoes
Preheat the oven to:
425°F (220°C)
Peel the potatoes and cut them into generous, roughly equal pieces, approximately 2–3 inches each.
Try to give each piece several cut surfaces and corners. Those edges will eventually become some of the crispiest parts.
Step 2 — Parboil Until Tender at the Edges
Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover generously with cold water.
Season the water well with salt.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a steady simmer and cook for approximately 8–10 minutes.
The outside of the potatoes should be beginning to soften while the centers remain firm enough to hold their shape.
A knife should enter the outer portion fairly easily but meet some resistance toward the center.
Step 3 — Drain & Rough Up the Potatoes
Drain the potatoes thoroughly in a colander and allow them to steam-dry for approximately 5 minutes.
Return them to the dry saucepan, cover with the lid, and give the pan several good shakes.
You aren’t trying to break the potatoes apart. You simply want to rough up their softened exteriors until they look slightly floury, fuzzy, and irregular.
Those roughed-up surfaces are the secret to the extraordinary crust.
Step 4 — Heat the Olive Oil
While the potatoes steam-dry, add to a sturdy roasting pan:
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Place the pan in the hot oven for approximately 5 minutes, until the oil and pan are thoroughly hot.
Carefully remove the roasting pan from the oven.
Step 5 — Coat the Potatoes
Carefully transfer the roughed-up potatoes to the hot roasting pan.
Season with:
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Add, if using:
2–3 sprigs fresh rosemary or thyme
Turn the potatoes carefully in the hot olive oil until their surfaces are well coated.
Arrange them in a single layer with plenty of room between each piece. Crowding traps steam, and steam is the enemy of a truly crisp roast potato.
Step 6 — Roast Until Deeply Golden
Roast undisturbed for approximately 25–30 minutes, allowing the undersides to develop a substantial golden crust before turning them.
Turn each potato and return the pan to the oven.
Continue roasting for another 25–35 minutes, turning once more if necessary, until the potatoes are deeply golden and crisp on several sides.
Don’t be afraid of color here. A proper roast potato should have a substantial, crunchy shell surrounding a fluffy center.
Step 7 — Finish & Serve
Remove the herb stems and taste for seasoning.
Add another little sprinkle of sea salt while the potatoes are still piping hot if needed.
Serve immediately.
The outside should be deeply crisp and craggy, almost audibly crunchy when you cut into it, while the center should remain soft, fluffy, and steaming.
NOTES
Choosing the Right Potato
Different potatoes shine in different preparations.
For the Crispy Smashed Potatoes, small yellow or red potatoes are ideal. Their thin skins and creamy interiors hold together beautifully when smashed while giving us plenty of craggy edges to crisp.
For the Hasselback Potatoes, medium Yukon Golds are my favorite. They have a naturally buttery, creamy texture and hold their shape well as the thin slices fan open.
For Traditional British Roast Potatoes, a flourier potato creates the fluffiest center and most dramatic crust. Yukon Golds work beautifully and are easy to find, while Russets will give you an even fluffier interior. If you happen upon traditional British varieties such as Maris Piper or King Edward, those are excellent choices too.
Dry Potatoes Make Crisp Potatoes
Water and crispness are not particularly good friends.
For both the smashed and British roast potatoes, don’t skip the steam-drying period after boiling. Allowing that surface moisture to evaporate helps the olive oil cling to the potatoes and encourages browning rather than steaming.
Give Them Room
Whatever version you’re making, resist the temptation to crowd the pan.
The potatoes need hot air circulating around them to become beautifully golden. If you’re doubling a recipe, two pans will give you much better results than squeezing everything onto one.
About the Olive Oil
You don’t need to drown potatoes in oil to make them crisp, but you do need enough to coat the surfaces you worked so hard to create.
Extra-virgin olive oil is my everyday choice. For the Hasselbacks, I sometimes combine it with a little cultured butter for additional richness and flavor.
The smashed potatoes can also be made without oil. They’ll still develop some crispness in a hot oven, although the surface will be drier and less deeply golden.
Herbs & Garlic
Rosemary and thyme are classics for good reason, but these potatoes are wonderfully adaptable.
Fresh sage, oregano, garlic, smoked paprika, cracked coriander, lemon zest, or even an everything-seed mixture can take them in completely different directions.
When using fresh garlic, particularly on the Hasselbacks, I prefer adding it partway through baking so it has time to become fragrant and golden without burning.
The Secret to British Roast Potatoes
This is one time when being rough with your potatoes is actually an act of kindness.
After parboiling and draining, shake them around in the covered saucepan until their softened surfaces become fuzzy, floury, and a little battered-looking.
Those imperfect surfaces create all the tiny ridges that catch the hot oil and eventually become that extraordinary crunchy shell.
They may look a little battered before roasting.
That’s exactly what you want.
Hasselback Slicing Tip
Place a chopstick or the handle of a wooden spoon along either side of the potato before you begin slicing. Your knife will stop when it reaches them, preventing you from accidentally cutting all the way through.
Keep the slices fairly thin and evenly spaced. As the potato bakes, those little sections will gradually open into the beautiful fan that makes a Hasselback so distinctive.
Make Them Your Own
Once you understand the three techniques, there are endless ways to change the flavors.
Try fresh sage, oregano, smoked paprika, cracked coriander, garlic, lemon zest, or an everything-seed mixture. The Hasselbacks can be finished with fresh herbs or a little flaky salt, while the British roast potatoes are so good simply salted that they hardly need anything else.
The technique is what makes each version special. Everything after that is yours to play with.
Serving & Reheating
All three versions are at their very best straight from the oven, when the contrast between crisp exterior and tender interior is greatest.
The smashed potatoes are wonderful for casual meals and dipping. Hasselbacks make a beautiful side when you want the potato itself to have a little presence on the plate. And those deeply crisp British roast potatoes belong anywhere you want that wonderful contrast between a crunchy exterior and fluffy center.
If you have leftovers, refrigerate them in a covered container and reheat in a hot oven or air fryer rather than the microwave. They won’t be quite the same as that first glorious trip from oven to table, but much of the crispness will return.
A Final Thought
I think potatoes sometimes suffer from being too familiar. They are inexpensive, dependable, and always there, so perhaps we stop noticing just how extraordinary they can be.
Smash one and you create wonderful craggy edges. Slice another almost all the way through and it fans open into something beautiful. Parboil one, rough it up rather unapologetically, and it comes back from the oven deeply crisp outside and soft and fluffy within.
Same potato. Three completely different pleasures.
Perhaps that’s why potatoes have always belonged so naturally at the table. They’re uncomplicated and generous—the kind of food you put down in the middle and watch everyone reach for.
Sometimes the best Meals That Gather People begin with the humblest ingredients—cooked with care, set in the middle of the table, and passed around until there isn’t a potato left.
This is the kind of food that nourishes quietly.
It asks us to slow down,
to listen,
and to remember what is enough.