Garlic Butter Smashed Potatoes Recipe

Name: These Crispy Smashed Potatoes Pack a Buttery, Garlicky Punch
Prep time: 55 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 65 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 24 ounces baby potatoes, cut in half if larger than 2 inches wide; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for cooking water; 1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Roasted smashed potatoes with garlic and garnish on a tray — Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

These crispy smashed potatoes with garlic butter offer a tasty upgrade to typical sides.
Using whole baby potatoes keeps the prep simple and ensures a fluffy interior with crisp edges.
A homemade garlic butter sauce infuses deep flavor into the potatoes.
You can prep and par-roast these potatoes ahead of time to finish on busy nights.

The smashed potato is one of the most underrated side dishes out there. Instead of frozen fries or tater tots, a crispy smashed potato with a tender, fluffy inside is the perfect accompaniment to SO many dishes.

This version gets even more elevated with a simple garlic butter sauce. You might need to brush your teeth after enjoying these garlic-packed smashed potatoes, but they are worth it. They’re deeply garlicky, buttery, crispy on the edges, and easy to make!

The Best Potatoes for Smashed Potatoes

In theory, you could use any potato for these, but I think baby potatoes are the easiest. You don’t have to prep them and they smash really easily. You could also use fingerling potatoes or new potatoes, but you might need to chop them into about 2-inch pieces before boiling and smashing.

Garlic butter smashed potatoes garnished with herbs on a baking sheet — Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

How to Make Smashed Potatoes

To make smashed potatoes, I like to boil the potatoes in salted water until they are fork-tender, but not mushy, then drain and return them to the hot pot off the heat so they can dry. Once they’re cool enough to handle, I place each one on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and smash it gently with a measuring cup. Just flatten the potatoes, but don’t mash them into oblivion—you want the potatoes to stay together.

I drizzle the smashed potatoes with olive oil, season them with salt, and bake them until they get crispy. Meanwhile, I make a very easy garlic-butter sauce on the stovetop. I like to add half of the butter sauce to the potatoes as they finish roasting, then add fresh parsley to the sauce and use it to finish the dish when the potatoes come out of the oven.

Depending on your tastes, don’t feel like you need to use all the garlic butter sauce, but I use it pretty liberally when I make these for an ultra-garlicky experience. These potatoes were an immediate hit with my family, so don’t hold back!

Making These Smashed Potatoes in Advance

If you are short on time, the best way to make these potatoes ahead is to smash and roast them for 20 minutes so they are par-roasted. Then, you can keep them in the fridge for a few days. When you are ready to finish the smashed potatoes, roast them for the last half of cooking, adding the butter sauce at the end.