Cheesy Bacon and Garlic Butter Smashed Red Potatoes

Late September. Cody is on day two hundred and sixty-three of his sentence. The smoke from a controlled burn south of Tulsa drifted over Broken Arrow on Saturday afternoon and the whole sky turned hazy gold for two hours. I stood on the back porch with a cup of coffee at four o’clock and watched the sun come through the smoke and the light hit the maple in the Hendersons’ yard, and the maple, which is now half orange, glowed like a painted-photograph version of itself for those two hours. The fall is here.

And the recipe Sunday was cheesy bacon garlic butter smashed red potatoes. The recipe was a Host the Toast side dish I had been wanting to try and which is the kind of thing I will pair with a roast chicken when the chicken is on the markdown rack on the right week. Small red potatoes boiled whole until tender, smashed flat on a sheet pan, brushed with garlic butter, topped with crumbled cooked bacon and shredded sharp cheddar, baked until the bottoms are crispy and the cheese is melted.

The math: a two-pound bag of small red potatoes $2.49, four slices of bacon $1.49 worth, four cloves of garlic free, three tablespoons of butter, a half cup of shredded sharp cheddar $0.50 worth, salt, pepper, fresh chopped chives $0.99 (the rest will go in the next omelet). Total: about $5.50 for a sheet pan that fed Mama and me for three dinners as a hearty side.

The technique is the smash, which is the part that turns a baked potato into something better. You boil the potatoes whole in salted water until fork-tender, about fifteen minutes. You drain. You arrange the potatoes on a buttered sheet pan with about an inch of space between each. You press each potato flat with the bottom of a sturdy drinking glass to about half an inch thick. The skin holds the potato together while the inside gets squashed into a flat round.

You brush each smashed potato generously with melted garlic butter (three tablespoons of butter melted with three minced cloves of garlic and a pinch of salt). You top each potato with a sprinkle of cooked crumbled bacon and a generous pinch of shredded cheddar. You bake at 425 for fifteen minutes until the bottoms are crispy and the cheese is melted and golden.

You finish with chopped fresh chives at the table. The smashed potatoes have crispy edges from the contact with the hot pan, soft creamy centers from the boiling, and the salty-bacon-cheese topping that turns the side into a small meal.

Mama said, when she ate these Sunday night, baby, this is the kind of side dish I would order at a steakhouse. The Sonic shift-lead pay has bumped us into the kind of grocery budget where small side-dish bacon is no longer a luxury. The math has continued to make the math work.

The recipe is below. The trick is the smash with the bottom of a glass. Boil whole, smash flat, top, bake. Do not skip the bacon.

Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 35 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs small red potatoes (about 16–18)
4 strips bacon, chopped
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 cloves garlic, minced (or 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder)
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (or a cheddar-mozzarella blend)
2 tablespoons sour cream, for serving (optional)
2 tablespoons sliced green onions, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Boil the potatoes. Place red potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold salted water. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook 15–18 minutes, until fork-tender all the way through. Drain and let sit 5 minutes.
Heat the oven. Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a large rimmed sheet pan with foil or parchment and lightly grease it.
Smash. Arrange boiled potatoes on the prepared pan, spacing them a few inches apart. Use the bottom of a heavy glass or a flat spatula to press each potato down firmly until it flattens to about 1/2-inch thick. The skin will split — that’s exactly what you want.
Make the garlic butter. Stir together the melted butter, garlic, onion powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Brush or spoon generously over every smashed potato.
Add the bacon. Scatter the chopped raw bacon evenly over the potatoes.
Roast. Bake 18–20 minutes, until the potato edges are golden and crispy and the bacon is cooked through and starting to crisp.
Add the cheese. Pull the pan from the oven and sprinkle shredded cheese over each potato. Return to the oven for 3–5 minutes, until cheese is fully melted and beginning to bubble at the edges.
Serve. Top with a small dollop of sour cream and a pinch of green onions if using. Serve straight from the pan.

Nutrition (per serving)

Cheesy Bacon and Garlic Butter Smashed Red Potatoes — The Sunday Sheet-Pan Side