Sometimes, the best things come in small packages – at least, that’s the case when it comes to this recipe! My Viral Crispy Garlic Parmesan Crusted Potatoes uses mini yukon gold potatoes and only 7 other ingredients for a simple side dish that is anything but basic. This recipe went wildly viral when I shared it recently (50 MILLION VIEWS on Instagram!), and for a good reason. After all, what could be better than potatoes smothered in butter and parmesan cheese?!
Friends, would you believe me if I told that within 1 week of sharing this recipe, it got over 1 million likes and 50 million views on Instagram? It’s true! Truth be told, I’ve never had a recipe go so viral so quickly – not even my viral Life Changing Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies. But it makes sense why this recipe has garnered the traction that it has. After all, who can resist crispy potatoes that are smothered in butter and parmesan cheese?
These potatoes make for the perfect holiday appetizer, the perfect side dish when paired with your favorite protein (like my Ultimate Easy Prime Rib), or even as a snack. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve made this recipe as a healthy and delicious snack for myself on more than one occasion. And while this tray can serve anywhere from 6-8 people when served as an appetizer or side dish, I can definitely eat a whole tray of these potatoes by myself. Proceed with caution: these tiny potatoes are absolutely addicting.
The 8 Ingredients Needed to Make These Easy, Cheesy Potatoes
- Mini Yukon Gold Potatoes: The best type of potato to use in this recipe is a mini yukon gold potato. Why? Because they are small and tender, meaning they cook quickly without needing to boil them first!
- Olive Oil: Rich olive oil adds the best flavor to these potatoes and ensures that they turn out perfectly crispy.
- Seasonings: To season these potatoes, we’ll be using a combination of dried parsley, garlic powder, sea salt, and ground black pepper. Yum!
- Unsalted Butter: Because this recipe calls for so much parmigiano reggiano (which is a rather salty cheese), I like using unsalted butter to ensure that the potatoes don’t turn out too salty.
- Parmigiano Reggiano: Parmigiano regginao is like parmesan cheese, but better, and that’s because it comes from a specific region in Italy and is aged at least one year, whereas traditional parmesan cheese is rarely aged past 10 months. The result? A perfectly rich flavor that pairs wonderfully with these potatoes.
How to Make These Perfectly Crispy Potatoes
To make these potatoes, start by preheating your oven to 425 F. Next, wash the potatoes and cut them in half. Then, take your knife and “score” the potatoes by cutting diagonal lines alongside the cut-side of each potato.
Transfer the cut potatoes to a large bowl and add in the olive oil, parsley, garlic powder, sea salt, and black pepper. Toss until the potatoes are fully coated in the oil and seasonings. Next, grate the parmigiano reggiano into a bowl and pour the melted butter on top. Mix them together until a thick paste forms. Transfer the paste to a large baking dish and use a spoon or spatula to spread it out evenly across the bottom of the dish.
Then, transfer the potatoes to the baking dish and place them cut-side down, pressing them into the cheese mixture. Repeat until all of the potatoes are in the dish. Finally, bake the potatoes for 25-26 minutes.
Once they’re done, remove them from the oven and allow the potatoes to rest for 10 minutes, until the cheese hardens. Then, use a spatula to remove the potatoes from the pan, serve, and enjoy!
If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a review and rating below! To see more recipes and behind the scenes, follow along on Instagram, TikTok, and Youtube! I’m also now on Pinterest, so stop by and take a look at what’s new.
** Photography by Tanya Pilgrim
Ingredients
- 1 Pound Mini Yukon Gold Potatoes , halved
- 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 Tablespoon Dried Parsley
- 1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
- ½ Teaspoon Sea Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
- ¼ Cup Unsalted Butter, melted
- 1 ½ Cups Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated
Instructions
- To make these potatoes, start by preheating your oven to 425 F.
- Next, wash the potatoes and cut them in half.
- Then, take your knife and "score" the potatoes by cutting diagonal lines alongside the cut-side of each potato.
- Transfer the cut potatoes to a large bowl and add in the olive oil, parsley, garlic powder, sea salt, and black pepper. Toss until the potatoes are fully coated in the oil and seasonings.
- Next, grate the parmigiano reggiano into a bowl and pour the melted butter on top. Mix them together until a thick paste forms.
- Transfer the paste to a large baking dish and use a spoon or spatula to spread it out evenly across the bottom of the dish.
- Then, transfer the potatoes to the baking dish and place them cut-side down, pressing them into the cheese mixture. Repeat until all of the potatoes are in the dish.
- Finally, bake the potatoes for 25-26 minutes.
- Once they're done, remove them from the oven and allow the potatoes to rest for 10 minutes, until the cheese hardens.
- Then, use a spatula to remove the potatoes from the pan, serve, and enjoy!
Rate & review
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What others are saying
Can I put these all together, refrigerate and bake the next day?
Hi Michelle! Yes that should work fine.
Omg! So good and so easy! This is a big hit in our house. I think I could eat these every day. Great cheesy flavor. I haven’t ventured from the exact recipe but you could def use other herbs and seasoning, however its perfect just the way it is! Thank you!
Wow, I love hearing that, Sheri! Thank you so much for making this recipe, and for leaving such a kind review!
can you use chedder cheese for them
Hi Elaine, sure!
I made these potatoes and they were delicious! I felt like I should have doubled the butter/cheese mixture to accommodate all the potatoes. Really easy to pull together and so tasty!
Lots of butter and cheese is the key to making these potatoes, Jennie! Thank you so much for your review!
These potatoes were so tasty but my cheese/butter paste started to burn and didn’t attach to the potatoes. Is there something I can do to prevent this?
Oh no! Did you coat the potatoes in them?
Not sure what I did wrong but mine were anything but crispy. They had a great flavor but they didn’t form that crunchy layer on the bottom. I cooked for 25 minutes, let them rest for awhile, even put them back in the oven. They may have been a little better but still swimming in butter. What size pan should I use?
Oh no! I recommend using a 9×11 inch baking dish!
Can i use parchment paper for clean-up?
Hi Deb, I don’t recommend it! The potatoes won’t get as crispy.
I also had soggy potatoes swimming in butter and no crisp in sight. I had to set them on a paper towel to absorb the excessive butter and then that made the cheese that did stick attach to the paper towel. :/ Ate them anyway cuz #potatoes but was not expecting a flop.
Oh no! I am so sorry to hear that, Kathy!
These turned out fantastic! Very crispy and buttery. You could get away with just slightly less butter, but mine turned out great. After the 10 minutes cooling, I used a spatula to turn them over in chunks in the dish for further cooling and crisping. I used a glass 9×13 Pyrex, so maybe that made the difference.
I’m so happy to hear that, JB! Thank you for making this recipe, and for leaving a review!
Made these with a few modifications since I only wanted a snack and we had some small potatoes in the house. I added some garlic paste to the parm/butter mix, used too much butter (I love butter!). They came out great! I’m probably going to add some shrimp to go on the side 😀
I am so happy that you enjoyed them, Ella! Thank you so much for making this recipe and for leaving such a kind review!
This worked exactly as written, thanks!
It was so good. Crispy and tasty. I unfortunately put in WAY to much salt. I got distracted. But short of the salt error on my part…it was great. Thanks for sharing.
Oh no, I’m sorry to hear that Marion! I’m so glad it turned out well otherwise, though.