Looking for a new potato side to serve for dinner? Try our melting potatoes which are golden brown and crispy on the outside and so soft and creamy on the inside that you'll be asking for seconds.
If you're looking for more family favorite side dish recipes, try our Duchess potatoes and scalloped potatoes.
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Ingredients
Our melting potatoes recipe takes basic pantry staples that are easy to find at your local grocery store. Let's talk about some of the key ingredients.
- Potatoes: We used Yukon gold for melting because they have the best creamy texture, but you could substitute with sweet ones too, just cook them at a lower temperature. Don't use russets because they are more mealy and can absorb too much broth.
- Broth: We used chicken broth, but you could substitute it with vegetable broth.
- Spices: We used sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, fresh thyme leaves, fresh rosemary, and fresh oregano.
- Dairy: We used a lot of butter in this recipe, but you could substitute it with vegan butter, duck fat, or olive oil if you are allergic to dairy.
- Acid: We used one-half of a lemon cut into wedges.
How to Make
Gather all the ingredients for the melting potatoes. Scrub the potatoes, peel the garlic, wedge half of a lemon, and chop the fresh spices.
- Cut off the ends of each potato and slice them ½ inch thick. Use ones that are similar in diameter, as they will cook more evenly. Melt the butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add the potato slices and sear them by cooking for about 4 minutes on one side.
- While they are searing, use the bottom of a glass jar to smash the garlic cloves on top of a cutting board.
3. Flip the seared slices over and transfer them to the buttered metal pan.
4. Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper. Pour in one cup of reduced sodium chicken stock. The liquid should be no deeper than 3 mm. This means it will barely cover the bottom of the large pan.
5. Sprinkle on the chopped fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme and oregano).
6. Place a pat of butter on top of each potato slice. Scatter the smashed garlic cloves in between the slices.
7. Place on the middle rack of a 400°F oven. Bake uncovered for roughly 30 minutes. The chicken broth will reduce and the garlic cloves will roast.
The chicken broth should also mellow any blackness from the searing. The melting potatoes should be soft and creamy inside and crispy outside.
8. Put the garlic cloves in a bowl and pour the pan sauce into another. Serve the melting potatoes while still hot.
Drizzle some of the pan sauce on top of the melting potatoes. Give each guest a lemon wedge to squeeze over their potato slices.
Melting potatoes are creamy, crispy, and full of flavor. You'll want to make these soon. Your family will eat these up in a heartbeat!
Recipe FAQs
There are two main methods for cooking melting potatoes. The most popular method uses a 500 F oven and three-quarter to one-inch slices. They are roasted for 45 minutes, flipping the pieces every 15 minutes. On the third flip, chicken broth is poured into the pan along with garlic and fresh spices. Then, everything goes back into the oven for another 15 minutes.
The second method involves searing one-half inch sliced pieces of potato in a skillet, then transferring them to a metal pan where the chicken broth, garlic, and fresh spices are added. Then, they are roasted for 30 minutes at 400 F.
Yes and no. They don't melt like butter but when making melting potatoes, they cook up so creamy on the inside they appear slightly melted explaining the name.
Some varieties work better than others for this dish. Yukon Golds have a creamier texture while russets, which are a fluffy and floury type of potato, turn out more mealy since they absorb too much broth. You can also make them with sweet potatoes, but just cook them at a lower temperature so they don't burn.
Melting potatoes consists of thick potato slices with a crispy exterior and a soft, creamy interior. They are an American twist on the British fondant potato dish, which are similar but require more hands-on time.
Serve
Here are some other dishes you can serve along with the melting potatoes:
- Lamb
- Roast beef
- Chicken
- Green vegetables
- Crisp salad
Store
- Make ahead: For best results, melting potatoes should be made and cooked on the same day. If you are cooking these for a special meal like Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter and need to do some prep work the night before, I suggest scrubbing and slicing them and tossing them in melted butter or duck fat. The garlic cloves can be peeled and smashed ahead of time and the lemon can be wedged. Put the potatoes, garlic, and lemon in separate bowls, cover them and place them in the fridge overnight.
Variations
- Don't want chicken broth? Try melting potatoes with beef broth or vegetable broth.
- Want it spicy? Add a dash of cayenne pepper.
- Can't have dairy? Use duck fat or olive oil instead of butter.
- If using sweet, lower the oven temperature, as they will burn faster due to the higher sugar content.
- Want additional toppings? Try sour cream, chives, grated cheese, or crumbled bacon.
Expert Tips
- Use a big roasting pan. The broth should be about 3 mm in depth--just enough to cover the bottom. Plus, you don't want to overcrowd.
- Want to take off the potato skin? No problem! Peel the skin off!
- Add boiling broth to a hot pan or room temperature broth to a cold pan. This will prevent unnecessary evaporation.
- Need a garnish? Try thyme leaves or chives.
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Recipe
Melting Potatoes
Ingredients
- 7 medium Yukon gold potatoes, cut in ½ inch slices
- 12 tablespoons salted butter
- ¾ teaspoon Mediterranean sea salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 13 jumbo garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
- 1 cup reduced sodium chicken broth, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped
- 1 ½ teaspoons fresh oregano, chopped
- ½ lemon, cut into 4 wedges
Instructions
- Find ones that are similar in diameter, then scrub, rinse, and dry them. Peeling is optional. Slice off ½ inch from both ends, then cut them in ½ inch slices.
- Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add the slices and sear them on one side for 4 minutes, then sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- While they are cooking, use a pastry brush to butter a large metal baking dish with sides (about 10.5x15 inches). Don't use a small pan because the broth will be to deep. Optionally, place the pan in the oven while it preheats to 400 F.
- Smash the freshly peeled garlic cloves with the bottom of a glass jar. Flip them over in the skillet and transfer them to the prepared pan, then sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Carefully pour the chicken broth into the pan. In order to prevent excess evaporation, use boiling broth if the pan is preheated.
- Sprinkle the fresh herbs over the top, then place a pat of butter on each potato slice. Scatter the smashed garlic around the metal pan. Place the metal pan in the middle of the oven.
- Bake at 400 F for 30 minutes. Note: the broth will reduce in the oven into a pan sauce. Drizzle the pan sauce over top of the melting potatoes just before serving. Squeeze a fresh lemon wedge over top.
Notes
- About 1/16 of an inch or 3 mm in depth for the broth should be enough to cover the bottom of your large baking pan. Remember, don't overcrowd.
- Peel the potato skin off if you don't want the skin.
- To prevent unnecessary evaporation, add boiling broth to a hot pan or room temperature broth to a cold pan.
- Try thyme leaves or chives for a garnish.
Beth
I love anything potatoes. 🥔 These are really good and rather elegant. The sauce is delicious.
Emma
I really like the sauce, too! You can never have too many potatoes.