Hasselback Potatoes: Crispy, Flavorful, and Unforgettable
Indulge in the irresistible charm of these Hasselback Potatoes – a dish renowned for its spectacular crispy edges and beautifully tender, fluffy interior. Roasted to golden perfection in the oven with a rich blend of butter, aromatic garlic, and fresh thyme, these potatoes are not just a side; they’re a revelation. Their unique accordion-like slices are not only visually stunning but also incredible for soaking up any accompanying sauces, making them a supremely versatile addition to your table. Plus, they reheat wonderfully, making them an excellent choice for meal prepping or preparing ahead of time.
The Allure of Hasselback Potatoes: A Culinary Delight
For many, potatoes are a staple, especially during the colder months. Whether it’s creamy mashed potatoes, hearty roasties, comforting jacket spuds, or delicate gnocchi, the humble potato offers endless culinary possibilities. Now, allow us to introduce another remarkable potato preparation that promises to elevate your dining experience and captivate your family and guests: the Hasselback potato.
Originating from the Hasselbacken restaurant in Stockholm, Sweden, in the 1950s, these potatoes are thinly sliced almost all the way through, creating a fan-like effect that allows the exterior to become incredibly crisp while the inside remains luxuriously soft. The unique cutting technique, though requiring a few extra minutes of upfront effort (we’re talking less than a minute per potato once you get the hang of it), yields a visually stunning and texturally exciting result. The subsequent roasting process is remarkably straightforward, letting the oven do most of the work to transform simple potatoes into a gourmet side dish.
Beyond their beautiful appearance, Hasselback potatoes offer an unparalleled texture contrast. Each thin slice caramelizes and crisps up, forming a delightful contrast to the tender, fluffy flesh within. This method also creates numerous crevices, perfect for absorbing butter, garlic, herbs, and any savory sauces you might serve alongside, infusing every bite with incredible flavor.
📋 Essential Ingredients for Perfect Hasselback Potatoes
Crafting these delectable potatoes requires only a handful of readily available ingredients, each playing a crucial role in achieving that signature taste and texture:
- Floury Potatoes: For the ideal fluffy interior, we recommend using starchy varieties such as Maris Pipers, Rooster potatoes, Russets, or Idaho potatoes. These types break down beautifully when cooked, ensuring a wonderfully tender and airy consistency inside the crispy shell.
- Garlic: The quintessential partner to potatoes! Freshly minced garlic provides an unbeatable aromatic depth. For convenience or if you prefer a milder flavor, you can substitute with about 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder.
- Oil and Butter: This dynamic duo is key to achieving both crispiness and rich flavor. Olive oil (or another high-smoke-point oil) helps prevent the butter from burning at higher roasting temperatures, while the butter infuses the potatoes with its irresistible nutty and creamy taste, contributing significantly to their golden-brown finish.
- Thyme: Fresh thyme adds an earthy, herbaceous note that perfectly complements the garlic and butter. While fresh thyme is always preferred for garnish, dried thyme works effectively during the roasting process. Feel free to use either, or both for maximum impact! Rosemary is another fantastic herb that pairs beautifully with potatoes.
- Salt, Pepper, and Paprika: A good seasoning blend is vital. Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper enhance the natural flavors of the potato. Paprika not only adds a beautiful golden-red hue to the crispy skin but also a subtle, warm, and slightly sweet undertone that elevates the entire dish.
Mastering the Hasselback Technique and Roasting Perfection
The preparation of Hasselback potatoes is simpler than it looks, and with a few tricks, you’ll be slicing like a pro in no time. The goal is to create thin, even cuts that go almost all the way through the potato, forming those distinctive “accordions” without detaching the slices.
The Cutting Technique: A Pro Tip
To ensure you don’t cut all the way through the potatoes, place a wooden spoon or a chopstick on each side of the potato lengthwise on your chopping board. As you slice, the knife will hit the spoons/chopsticks, acting as a natural stopper. Aim for slices approximately 2-3mm apart. The thinner the slices, the crispier the final product will be, as more surface area is exposed to the heat and seasoning. Don’t worry if your cuts aren’t perfectly uniform – the beauty of this dish lies in its rustic charm!
The Roasting Process: For Ultimate Crispness
Once sliced, the potatoes are generously coated with the flavorful butter, oil, garlic, and seasoning mixture. This mixture seeps into every crevice, creating an incredibly rich and aromatic crust as the potatoes roast. We bake them in the oven without the need for par-boiling, relying on a longer roasting time to ensure they cook through while achieving maximum crispness.
👩🍳PRO TIP for Extra Crispiness: For an even more spectacular crispness and enhanced flavor infusion, gently fan open some of the potato slices using a blunt knife or the back of a spoon during the basting process. This is often easier to do when the potatoes have been in the oven for a while and have softened slightly. Opening them up allows more of that delicious butter-garlic mixture to penetrate deeper into the potato, resulting in a more flavorful and textural experience.
🍽️ What to Serve with Hasselback Potatoes
The beauty of Hasselback potatoes lies in their versatility. Their unique structure, with all those wonderful nooks and crannies, makes them exceptionally good at soaking up sauces, gravies, and drippings. This makes them a phenomenal companion to a wide array of main courses.
Consider pairing them with succulent roast meats like a traditional Sunday roast chicken, slow-cooked pork belly, or a celebratory beef Wellington. They are also a superb alternative to traditional chips or fries when serving steak – especially when accompanied by one of these flavorful steak sauces such as peppercorn, red wine reduction, or creamy mushroom sauce. For a lighter meal, they can complement baked salmon or pan-seared cod, allowing the buttery garlic notes to enhance the delicate fish.
Vegetarian options also shine alongside Hasselback potatoes. Imagine them next to a hearty lentil loaf, a vibrant vegetable gratin, or a rich mushroom stroganoff. A dollop of sour cream and chives, a sprinkle of fresh parsley, or a drizzle of pesto can further elevate their flavor profile, making them truly unforgettable.
Suggested Main Course Pairings
Complementary Main Dishes
Meat
How to cook the perfect steak
Dinner
Creamy Pork and Apple Casserole
Slow Cooked
Slow Cooked Steak Diane Casserole
Chicken
Tarragon Chicken
Fish
Easy Salmon Recipe with Creamy White Wine Sauce
Vegetarian
Tuscan Style Stuffed Mushrooms in Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Sauce
Hasselback Potatoes: Troubleshooting and Tips
Don’t Worry About Slicing Mistakes!
One of the most common worries when making Hasselback potatoes is accidentally slicing completely through a potato, or having a thin slice come off during the cutting process. But fear not! These “mistakes” are actually a blessing in disguise.
If you slice all the way through, simply push the potato back together. If a piece comes off, just tuck it back into place. These small imperfections can actually create a few more gaps, which encourages the slits to separate even more beautifully in the oven, leading to extra crispy edges. So, embrace the slight mishaps – they only add to the rustic charm and delicious texture of your finished dish!
Preventing Garlic from Burning
Garlic is a fantastic flavor enhancer for Hasselback potatoes, but there’s a common concern about it burning during the long roasting time. The key to preventing this is proper basting. By brushing the potatoes with the oil and butter mixture 2-3 times during cooking, you continuously coat the garlic, protecting it from direct heat and allowing it to caramelize rather than burn.
Aim to get some of the garlic bits not just on top, but also nestled inside the potato slices. Even garlic that settles at the bottom of the pan should brown nicely without becoming black or bitter, provided you’re using the recommended amount of oil and butter. If you’re particularly concerned or prefer a foolproof method, you can substitute the minced fresh garlic with 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder. If using garlic salt, remember to reduce the regular salt to just a pinch to avoid over-seasoning.
🍲 More Fantastic Potato Sides for Every Occasion
Explore Other Delicious Potato Creations
Sides
Crispy Smashed Potatoes
Lunch
The Best Baked Potato Method
Roast Dinner
The Best Crispy Roast Potatoes
Sides
Homemade Oven Chips
Sides
Fondant Potatoes
Sides
Sautéed Potatoes with Garlic
Stay updated with new recipes! Don’t miss out on more delicious creations.
Subscribe to our newsletter to hear when a new recipe is posted. You can also find us on YouTube (new videos every week) and Instagram (behind-the-scenes stories & beautiful food photos).
Click the stars to rate or comment
Hasselback Potatoes
10 minutes
1 hour 10 minutes
1 hour 20 minutes
Ingredients
- 8 small floury potatoes approx. 100g/3.5oz each
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter melted
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and minced
- ½ tsp dried thyme
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp paprika
To Serve:
- fresh thyme leaves
- Maldon salt
Instructions
-
Preheat your oven to 200C/400F (fan). This ensures the oven is at the correct temperature for even cooking and crisping.
-
Carefully place one potato on a chopping board. Position a wooden spoon or a chopstick on each side of the potato, running parallel to its length. Using a sharp knife, make thin slits in the potato, about 2mm apart, making sure not to cut all the way through – the spoons/chopsticks will act as guides. This technique creates the iconic Hasselback fanned effect.8 small floury potatoes
-
Repeat the slicing process with the remaining potatoes. Once all are prepared, arrange them in a single layer within a shallow, cast iron pan or a sturdy roasting tray, ensuring there’s a little space around each potato for even crisping.
-
In a small bowl, thoroughly mix together the olive oil, melted unsalted butter, minced garlic, dried thyme, salt, black pepper, and paprika. This fragrant mixture will be the key to their incredible flavor.2 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp unsalted butter, 2 cloves garlic, ½ tsp dried thyme, 1/4 tsp salt, ¼ tsp black pepper, ¼ tsp paprika
-
Evenly drizzle the oil and butter mixture over all the potatoes, ensuring it gets into the sliced crevices for maximum flavor. You can use a pastry brush for better coverage.
-
Transfer the pan with the seasoned potatoes to the preheated oven. Bake for approximately 60-70 minutes, or until the potatoes are beautifully golden brown, crisp on the outside, and fork-tender throughout. Crucially, remember to baste the potatoes 2-3 times during the cooking process. This helps them crisp up, absorb the flavors, and prevents the garlic from burning.
-
Once perfectly roasted, remove from the oven. For an extra touch of freshness and elegance, serve them immediately topped with a sprinkle of fresh thyme leaves and a pinch of flaky Maldon salt. Enjoy your crispy and fluffy Hasselback potatoes!fresh thyme leaves, Maldon salt
Watch How To Make It
If the video does not load, you can find the full recipe video on our YouTube channel.
Notes for Success
Hasselback potatoes are fantastic for preparing in advance. Simply cook them as directed, then allow them to cool completely. Cover the pan or tray tightly with foil and refrigerate for up to one day. To reheat, bake in the oven at 180C/350F (fan) with the foil still covering the pan for 20-25 minutes, or until they are piping hot and crisp again.
Scaling the Recipe:
This recipe is easily scalable. You can halve or double the quantities, ensuring you maintain the same ingredient ratios. If you’re doubling the recipe, make sure your roasting tin or pan is large enough to allow at least an inch of space around each potato for optimal crisping. If using two pans, place one on the top rack and one on the bottom, swapping them halfway through cooking and adding an extra 5-10 minutes to the total bake time to ensure even results.
Air Fryer Method:
For a quicker cooking time, Hasselback potatoes can be made in an air fryer. Replace fresh minced garlic with 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder, as fresh garlic can burn more easily in the air fryer’s hotter, drier environment. Drizzle the potatoes with half of the oil/butter/seasoning mixture, then air fry at 200C (400F) for 15 minutes. Drizzle with the remaining mixture and continue to air fry for another 10-15 minutes, or until they are golden, crispy, and tender.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Leave a comment below!
Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links – which means if you buy the product I get a small commission (at no extra cost to you). If you do buy, then thank you! That’s what helps us to keep Kitchen Sanctuary running. The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors. For more information please see our Terms & Conditions.