Smashed Potatoes with Gremolata makes for a great spring or summer side dish. Gremolata is an Italian herbed condiment made with parsley, lemon zest, garlic and olive oil. It's super flavorful and can be enjoyed with fish, meat, and a variety of vegetables.
When I buy herbs at the grocery store, I have the best intentions to use them up right away but unfortunately, that doesn't always happen. Is there anyone else that will buy parsley at the grocery store to only use a handful and then it just wilts away at the bottom of the produce drawer? Phew, glad it's not just me!
Something I love doing during the summer is make a bunch of basil pesto and freeze it for the upcoming winter months. Once we went into lockdown mode from COVID-19, I had two large bunches of parsley that I didn't know what to do with. I was determined not to let these two bunches slowly rot away in my fridge. Gremolata was the answer! This gremolata is light and full of fresh flavor. It was a nice mix up from the pantry staples we've been living on for the past few weeks.
A couple notes about Smashed Potatoes with Gremolata:
Mix it with mayo:
My husband is the sauce king. He loves all sorts of sauces with his food. If I make him a meal and there is not some sort of sauce to go with it, he will walk to the fridge and pull out the mayo. It was only a matter of time before he decide to mix the gremolata with mayo. He swears by the combo and suggests you try it too!
While both use herbs are the base, pesto uses basil as the base while parsley is the main herb found in gremolata.
While chimichurri contains parsley like gremolata, it also uses oregano. Another difference between the two is that chimichurri has vinegar added.
What to serve with Smashed Potatoes with Gremolata:
- Whole roasted chicken and grilled asparagus
- Steak filet and roasted broccoli
- Erin's amazing Baked Herbed Salmon
- Or keep it simple with grilled hamburgers!
Looking for more easy recipes? Try this 30 minute Spicy Thai Basil Pork!
Smashed Potatoes with Gremolata
Ingredients
For the gremolata
- 1 cup fresh parsley, firmly packed
- 1 large clove of garlic
- 1 lemon, zested
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 2 pinches red pepper flakes
For the potatoes:
- 12-16 red skin potatoes
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
For the gremolata:
- Combine the fresh parsley, lemon zest, garlic clove, olive oil, salt and pepper in a food processor and process until the parsley is finely chopped. The gremolata is processed enough when the parsley resembles a basil pesto
For the potatoes:
- In a large sauce pot, add enough water to cook the potatoes and a good amount of salt. Bring the water to a boil
- Once the water is boiling, add the potatoes and cook until fork tender and until the skins start to peel away from the white flesh of the potato
- While the potatoes are boiling, preheat the oven to 425 degrees and place a baking tray into the oven
- Once the potatoes are cooked in the boiling water, remove the baking tray from the oven and spray with cooking oil. I like to use avocado oil since it can withstand high temperatures. Place the potatoes on the tray. With a metal spatula or a large serving spoon, press down on the potato until it flattens but is still held together. Continue with the rest of the potatoes. Spray each potato with cooking oil and a sprinkle of salt. Place bake into the oven for 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are golden brown and crispy on the edges
- Remove the potatoes from the oven once they are golden brown. Place on a serving platter and spoon a small amount of gremolata on top of each potato right before serving. Enjoy!
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