Best potato recipe ever. The potatoes are roasted on a bed of shredded Parmesan cheese that browns and forms an amazing, cheesy crust on the potato.
These roasted potatoes are seriously amazing. With very little effort you get perfectly roasted potatoes that have a crispy cheesy crust. I like to add onions to mine pan for extra flavor and variety, and because onions and Parmesan cheese taste so good together.
Scroll down to read more about how it all comes together or click here to jump straight down to the recipe.
How To Make Parmesan Potatoes
I like to use red potatoes for this recipe, they look great and the size means you only have to cut them in halves. (If you’ve got a few big ones, you can quarter them.) For the onion, I love Vidalia for that roasted sweetness. First you’ll toss the cut potatoes and onions with olive oil, salt, and thyme.
Next, fill a large oiled baking sheet with a bed of finely shredded Parmesan cheese. Then you add the red potatoes (cut-side-down) and onions. It goes in the oven at 450°F until the potatoes are tender and browning, about 40 minutes.
Making It All Crispy
The cheese sticks to the potatoes at the edge of the pan and gets crunchy. In the middle of the pan, the cheese stays a bit gooey. I actually like to leave it like that so that some cheese is more melted and some is crunchy.
However, you can also get it so that all of the cheese is crunchy. To do that, once the edge potatoes have a crust, move them to the middle of the pan, moving a less crispy potato from the middle over to the edge to take it’s place.
Type Of Pan To Use
The best kind of pan to use for these potatoes is a non-stick baking sheet. The pan in the photo above was not non-stick and it was really hard to get the Parmesan off. Since then, I’ve used non-stick every time and it’s the best.
You can use parchment paper to line the pan, but the cheese doesn’t get as crispy. I don’t recommend that you use aluminum foil though since the cheese really sticks to it and you lose some of that amazing crispy cheese to the foil.
If you don’t have a non-stick baking sheet, the best thing to do is to use whatever you have, not lined with anything. Add an extra tablespoon of oil to the pan before you add the Parmesan and make sure the pan is well-coated. When you want to get the potatoes off of the pan, use a metal lifter to get really under the cheese.
Note: If you are using a non-stick baking sheet, do not use a metal lifter at all. Use a plastic one.
I can’t wait for you to try this potato recipe. It’s one of my favorites and I just know you’re going to love it!
More Potato Recipes
If you’re like me and can’t get enough delicious potatoes, try these great recipes too or browse my full collection of side dish recipes.
Podcast Episode: Making Parmesan Potatoes
Listen to me explain briefly about how to make these potatoes, with some great tips along the way, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
Print
Parmesan Potatoes Recipe
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
The potatoes are roasted on a bed of shredded Parmesan cheese that browns and forms an amazing, cheesy crust on the potato.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs. of small red potatoes, halved
- 4 medium-sized onions, peeled and quartered
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil (divided)
- 3 cups (about 4 oz.) shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp. coarse salt
- 1 tsp. dried thyme leaves
- 2 Tbsp. roughly chopped chives (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Rub a large non-stick baking sheet with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil.
- Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese all over the oiled pan in an even layer.
- In a large bowl combine the potato halves, onion quarters, the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, salt, and thyme.
- Place the potatoes on top of the Parmesan cut side down. Scatter the bits of onion all around.
- Roast in the oven until the potatoes are really tender and browning on top, the onions are browning on the edges, and the Parmesan cheese at the edges of the pan (and maybe further towards the middle) is crunchy and brown, about 35-40 minutes,. If you want all of the potatoes to have a crunchy crust, move some crispy ones from the edge to the middle, and middles ones that haven’t gotten as crunchy to the edge and roast for another 10 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven.
- Scatter the chives, if using, over top to serve.
Love this recipe? I’d appreciate it if you could scroll down and add a *5 star rating* to help others know they’ll love it as well!
This post originally appeared in May of 2013 and was revised and republished in March 2024.
Very good! I’m not sure I used enough olive oil on my pan, so had a bit of sticking, but that was my error. Love the addition of onions, and even though it is late October, I did find a Vidalia onion at the grocery store.
I listen to your podcast just about every day. Love the quick recipes!
Thank you, Barb! I’m so happy to hear that you’ve been enjoying both the podcast and the recipes. I’ve been doing Recipe of the Day for a year now and love to hear from listeners.
Ladies, I’m a true potato lover & this is one of the best recipes I’ve ever tasted! Tried one new trick though & it worked beautifully. Instead of rubbing the baking sheet with olive oil, I used Pam EVOO spray instead. Browned beautifully & got crispy – was delicious – & cleanup was a breeze. Give it a try. Christine, thanks so much for sharing this recipe. My family of 6 all love it. ?
Rose, I’m so happy you liked it! Thank you for letting me know!! <3
Has anyone tried using the foil that is coated to keep food from sticking? I’m curious to know if that would solve the problem of the mess on the baking tray.
Great idea, Liz. I’m going to look for that foil and give it a try!
USE ALUMINUM FOIL DOPE
Hi Dikk, I actually tested the recipe with aluminum foil. It was a disaster. You see, the cheese not only melts but it starts to brown and crisp up. When that happens, it adheres to the foil. When you try to scoop off the potatoes later, a lot of the cheese is completely stuck to the foil so it doesn’t end up on your plate. And worse, some foil tears and comes to your plate along with the potatoes. I also tested this recipe using parchment paper to line the pan. This was slightly better in that the cheese didn’t stick to it. But it didn’t brown as well and get that nice crunchy Parmesan crust. Hope that makes me seem like less of a dope :). Have a great day! -Christine
OMG…..these were hot-diggidy-danged-dog-delish! didn’t have chives so had to finely minced the green part of a green onion……everyone acted like their lives depended on eating these spuds up, fighting over the “crusties” totally a thumbs-up LIKE ;0)
I am so so so happy that you liked this recipe. It is one of my all-time favorites. Thanks so much for letting me know!
Yowsers! I love those potates!
Everything about these sounds absolutely delicious! I have such a weakness for potatoes. :)
ummm potatoes are my absolutely favorite and a must for any breakfast/brunch! I must give your recipe a try! Thank you again for organizing such a wonderful event!!!
Yummm perfect recipe to use for my Black Gold Farms red potatoes!!!
Exactly! Have you tried the Black Gold Farms potatoes yet? Totally delicious!!!
This is exactly what I need, for I cannot seem to master the usual home fries that tend to grace brunch tables everywhere. Throw it all in the oven and let it be–just my style! Thank you for organizing Brunch Week and doing all the hard work–the rest of us just do what comes naturally–share our food love. <3
Carrie,
You’re welcome. I really enjoyed it and am so very grateful that you contributed such beautiful recipes and for your enthusiastic participation throughout the week. It meant the world to us. Thank you! And glad you like the looks of my potatoes. I am also a throw-it-all-in-the-oven kind of girl. If it’s in the oven, I can focus on other things.
Your BrunchWeekers appreciate you, too! :) And those potatoes look delicious.
Thanks Allison! Loved having you along for the ride. We need to meet up at some point so we can talk all things food and linguistics. So funny to have found someone with whom I have so much in common!
The only word I can think of is yummy.
This BrunchWeeker loves you. You and Terri have pulled of an amazing week long event filled with enticing recipes, amazing giveaways and outstanding women. We all thank you!
These potatoes look fantastic! I can’t wait to try them. And hey, the messier the pan the better the food!