Thursday, May 5, 2022

Garlicky Smashed Potatoes on the Grill

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After my recent post about the Green Chile Flank Steak I had a lot of people ask about my process for making the garlicky smashed potatoes.


Three S's of Smashed Potatoes - Size, Seasoning, Smash

It is a simple method - boil the potatoes until they are fork-tender, smash them, cook them on a griddle, season them and cover them with luscious garlic butter. The trick is to follow the Three-Ss.

  • Size - You can use just about any variety of potato for this, the trick is to use "b-sized" potatoes, which is 1.5 to 2.5" in diameter. We used red bliss potatoes for this batch.
  • Seasoning - A simple SPG rub (salt, pepper, garlic) works the best. I like using my NMT Beef Rub V.2 recipe. For commercial, Fire and Smoke BBQ Company's The Classic is an excellent choice.
  • Smash - You want to smash the potato thin enough to get the maximum flat surface area you can while still leaving the potatoes intact. For me, that works out to about 1/2 inch in thickness. If you smash them too thinly, they will be pulverized. I find that smashing them between a folded deli sheet or wax paper makes smashing and handling them easier.

For me, the easiest way to smash them is with a recessed burger press. Instead of a flat bottom, this press is recessed so I only smash them to about 1/2 inch no matter how hard I press.  Perfect every time. In lieu of this, you can smash them with any sturdy, flat surface - a skillet bottom, a stiff spatula, a plate, you name it.

Enjoy!

Garlicky Smashed Potatoes

www.nibblemethis.com

Published 05/05/2022

Boiled potatoes smashed and cooked until crispy on a hot griddle or skillet and then dressed with garlicky butter.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb b-sized red bliss potatoes 
  • high-temperature cooking oil (tallow, canola oil, avocado oil, peanut oil, etc)
  • 3.5 teaspoons Salt-Pepper-Garlic rub (divided)
  • 6 tablespoons butter
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
  • 1/2 tablespoon finely minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

Instructions

  1. Boil the potatoes until they are fork-tender. The length of time will depend on the type and size of potatoes you have but it should be about 15-20 minutes.
  2. Preheat a grill to 450°f.  Five minutes before cooking, add the skillet or griddle plate to your grill.
  3. Smash the potatoes.  Smash the potatoes to 1/2" thick and place on a tray.
  4. Make the garlic butter.  Melt the butter, add the garlic, parsely, and 1/2 teaspoon of SPG rub.
  5. Grill the potatoes. Oil your griddle and place the flattened taters on the griddle. Season them liberally with the rest of the SPG rub.  Cook them until crispy on each side, about 2 to 3 minutes.
  6. Serve the potatoes and ladle the garlicky butter over them.

Yield: 2-4 servings depending on your appetite

Prep Time: 00 hrs. 30 mins.

Cook time: 00 hrs. 10 mins.

Total time: 40 mins.


While I smash smash-burgers directly onto the skillet or griddle, that becomes difficult with a large number of potatoes because you might not have the space on your griddle to work.  So I do mine on a cutting board and transfer them to the griddle.

Smashing the potatoes does two things. First, it gives the seasoning access to the inside pulp of the potatoes. Second, the rough edges get cripsy while cooking, adding texture and flavor. 

I season the potatoes heavier than one would think.

Making smashed potatoes on the grill
Getting crispy and delicious!

The garlic butter really is the perfect finish to these crispy potatoes.


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