These old fashioned Home Fried Potatoes are crispy on the outside, tender in the middle, and really easy to make. There’s no need to boil the potatoes first, and they turn out golden and crispy right in the skillet.
Making diner-style Home Fried Potatoes at home is simple, easy, and requires nothing but some hot fat, starchy potatoes, salt, and a heavy bottomed skillet (like cast iron).
There are plenty of chefs who swear by parboiling the potatoes first, but I find that it isn’t worth the trouble to boil and pat all the potatoes dry. Instead, with a few tips and tricks, you can make crispy fried potatoes right in a skillet with no extra steps necessary.
I could not stop popping samples of these in my mouth! They’re buttery and perfectly crisp on the outside, tender and fluffy in the middle, and seasoned just right. I’m more of a sweets-for-breakfast kind of person, so I served these for dinner with roast chicken to rave reviews. But of course, they’re an all-star for breakfast with eggs, bacon, and a bit of ketchup.
Essential Tips for Crispy Home Fried Potatoes
- Preheat the pan while you’re chopping the potatoes. You want it nice and hot to get crispy potatoes.
- Use a mixture of butter and a fat with a slightly higher smoke point, such as bacon grease or shortening.
- Cut the potatoes into ½-inch cubes to ensure they will cook all the way through.
- Don’t overcrowd the pan. If the pan is crowded, the potatoes will steam instead of get crispy. I did two pounds of potatoes in two batches in a 10-inch cast iron skillet.
- Add the onion toward the end. The chopped onion burns quickly in a hot pan, so save these for the last few minutes of cooking time.
- Don’t under-salt the potatoes! No one wants bland home fries.
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How to Make Home Fried Potatoes
- Gather your ingredients. You’ll want to use either russet potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes, which are starchy and make for fluffy-on-the-inside home fries.
- Get the pan HOT and add the fat, then add the potatoes in a single layer.
- Leave those potatoes alone! Give them 5-6 minutes to get crispy on the bottom before stirring.
- Flip the potatoes and give them another 3-4 minutes, then stir and continue cooking until the potatoes are tender. Add the chopped onions the last 2-3 minutes of cooking time so they don’t burn.
Tips for serving
You’ll want to serve the potatoes right away after cooking. Since the potatoes need to cook in batches (unless you have a really BIG pan), I like to just set the first batch off to the side, then return them to the pan with the second batch to warm through.
Avoid covering the first batch of potatoes to keep them warm. They will end up getting soft from the steam.
You can also put the first batch in a single layer on a baking sheet in a 200°F oven to keep warm.
📖 Recipe
Home Fried Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons shortening (or bacon fat or vegetable oil)
- 2 lbs russet or Yukon Gold potatoes (about 3 medium-large)
- ½ yellow onion diced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Place a large skillet (such as cast iron) over medium heat for at least 5 minutes or until HOT.
- Peel potatoes and cut into small pieces (about ½ inch cubes).
- Add half the butter and shortening, and immediately add half the potatoes in a single layer. Stand back as any moisture on the potatoes can splatter in the hot oil. Sprinkle in half the salt and pepper.
- Let cook for 6-7 minutes, or until the potatoes are golden brown on the bottom. Do not stir until they are golden brown.
- Then, flip the potatoes. They don't have to all be flipped over perfectly, they should just cook on a different side than the crispy one. Continue cooking until tender, stirring every few minutes, eventually stirring in half the onions in when the potatoes are almost done cooking (the onions will only need 2-3 minutes in the hot pan, they will burn otherwise).
- Transfer the batch to a plate. Do not cover-you can either place them in a 200°F oven or you can just add them back to the pan to warm up after the second batch is cooked.
- Repeat with the remaining butter and shortening, potatoes, salt & pepper, and onions.
- When those are cooked through, add the first batch of potatoes back to the pan. Let cook for a couple minutes to warm through.
- Serve right away.
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