Crispy grilled potatoes are a great side dish to complete any meal. Cook in a grill pan with no need for foil, potatoes slices make a delicious alternative to chips or fries.
Introduction
I'm always in search of a good side dish for a grilled meal. This fits most grilled meals with some great taste and crispiness.
Start with your grill already heated for the main course. Slice some potatoes thinly, about ¼ inch. I like red potatoes for this since the skin will caramelize some on the grill and add something extra.
The slices must be thin, or they will not cook completely. Add some chopped onion and olive oil. A little salt and pepper. Grill over a little heat for 30 minutes. Now you have a side that almost everyone will enjoy.
My Rating
I'm happy with it. It did need a little more attention than I wanted.
🥔Potatoes
You will need about 1 ½ to 2 pounds of potatoes. Any potatoes will do, but I suggest avoiding my favorite russet potatoes.
There are several hundred types of potatoes, but I like to divide them into russets potatoes and thinner skin types. Russets are picked when mature and tend to have more starch, but for a recipe like this, it is the thick skin I prefer not to have.
I think any thinner skin potatoes like Red, Yukon Gold, young or baby potatoes would be fine in this recipe. Red potatoes are commonly available and do very good in this recipe.
A medium size red potato (2 ½ to 3 inches) will be about 8 oz each. Obviously there is a large variability here but I'm suggesting 4 medium red potatoes.
Thickness Is Important
The key to this recipe is really the thickness of the potatoes. ¼ inch thick, please. Less will break apart, and thicker will just not get done in the middle.
🌡️At What Temperature is a Potato Done?
I like to use 200°-210°. Cook’s Illustrated recommends 205° to 212°. Potatoes are very forgiving, so a little over is better than under. 200° is usually ok, but 190° is not done.
With this recipe, just going by the browning and fork-tender is fine and seems always to work. If in doubt, check with an instant-read thermometer.
👨🍳The Onion, the Oil, and the Pan
The onion adds a lot of flavor. You could argue it is overcooked. I think it is just great. Skip it if you want or add it halfway through the cooking if you don't want it done crispy.
The olive oil does fine on the grill with this recipe since we are using medium heat. If it is smoking, you have it too hot. If you are worried about it, use a higher temperature oil.
A standard grill pan is also good, but something with sides is preferred. I think a cast iron pan works great here.
📖Grilled Side Dishes
Grilled Whole Baked Potatoes without Foil
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Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
Start with a hot grill and turn one side to medium or medium-low if you have a hot running grill to get a surface temperature of 400° to 450°.
Clean and slice four medium red potatoes into ¼ inch slices. Chop one medium onion.
Mix the potato and onion with 2 tablespoon olive oil. Add ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper and mix well.
Put in a grill safe pan over the medium heat side of the grill. Stir every 5 minutes or so and occasionally rotate the pan. It is done in about 30 minutes with an internal temperature of about 200° or a bit more.
📖 Recipe
Grilled Potato Slices
Ingredients
- 1 ½ - 2 pounds red potatoes - about 4 medium, cleaned and sliced ¼ inch
- 1 onion - medium diced
- 2 tablespoons oil - Olive oil is fine
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Start with a hot grill and turn one side to medium or medium-low if you have a hot running grill. You want the grill surface temperature about 400°-450° max.
- Clean and slice four medium red potatoes into ¼ inch slices. Chop one medium onion.
- Mix the potato and onion with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper and mix well.
- Put in a grill-safe pan over the medium heat side of the grill. Stir every 5 minutes or so and occasionally rotate the pan. It is done in about 30 minutes. It should be nicely brown, fork-tender, and about 200° (190°-210°).
Your Own Private Notes
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- Matches most chicken recipes fairly well.
- The grill surface temperature needs to be 400°-450° but not over.
- The onion will be dark brown. I love that but skip the onion if you want or add it about 15 minutes into cooking if you are concerned.
- The olive oil does well as long as you don't get this too hot. Use a higher smoke temperature oil if you are concerned.
- Any potatoes will work, but I prefer to avoid russets due to the thick skin.
- The key to this working well is the potato thickness of ¼ inch. Too thin and they will break apart. Too thick and they won't cook through.
- I like to use a 10 or 12 inch cast iron skillet for this but any grill pan with sides should work.
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Originally Published May 12, 2019. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Lara
Possibly a goofy question, but do you keep the lid to the grill open during this process?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Closed.
Shariann
We are remodel our kitchen so it is out o commission. I had to turn to our gas grill. Corn bread was great. Thank you! PPP.
Chris
They look good to me, even if they were a little "needy" in the attention department.