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.
🥔Ingredients
Red or yellow potatoes
Onion
Oil
Salt and pepper
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I'm always searching for 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 because 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 direct heat for 30 minutes.
How to Grill Potato Slices—Step-by-Step
1. 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°.
2. Clean and slice four medium red potatoes into ¼ inch slices. Chop one medium onion.
3. Mix the potato and onion with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper and mix well.
4. 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.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
Other Grilled Side Dish Recipes
If you're like me, you are always looking for grill side dish recipes. Here are a few of my favorites. For potatoes, try Baked Potatoes on the Grill Without Foil, Grilled Red Potatoes, or Grilled French Fries.
For non-potato dishes, don't miss Grilled Mixed Vegetables, Grilling Asparagus, Grilled Stuffed Tomatoes, Grilled Peaches, and Grilled Pineapple.
🥔What potatoes to use
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 russet 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 this recipe would be fine with any thinner-skinned potatoes like Red, Yukon Gold, young potatoes, or baby potatoes. Red potatoes are commonly available and do very well in this recipe. Yellow potatoes are another excellent choice.
A medium-sized red potato (2 ½ to 3 inches) will be about 8 oz each. There is a large variability here, but I suggest 4 medium red potatoes.
Thickness Is Important
The key to this recipe is the thickness of the potatoes. ¼ inch thick, please. Less will break apart, and thicker will not get done in the middle.
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👨🍳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.
When to serve grilled potato slices
The grill temperature matches most grilled chicken and pork recipes. Try them on the gas grill when grilling drumsticks, grilling chicken breasts, grilling pork chops, or grilling pork tenderloin.
❓FAQ
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.
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Have you tried this recipe, or have a question? Join the community discussion in the comments.
📖The Recipe Card with Step-by-Step Instructions
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
Step-by-Step 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°).
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.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Originally Published May 12, 2019. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Lara says
Possibly a goofy question, but do you keep the lid to the grill open during this process?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Closed.
Shariann says
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 says
They look good to me, even if they were a little "needy" in the attention department.