Crispy smashed potatoes on the Blackstone griddle with a parmesan-mozzarella cheese crisp, bacon, and a sprinkle of green onions. The griddle side dish that steals the show.
Smashed foods are some of the most popular recipes to make on a Blackstone griddle – from smash burgers to smash tacos to our favorite smashed meatball sliders. That’s because smashing foods on to the hot surface of the griddle creates incredible browning and flavor.
And the same goes for potatoes.
Boiled potatoes on their own are one of the most bland foods you will ever make. But smash them on a hot griddle in some bacon grease, char them to perfection, and add some cheese and bacon, and you’ve got a winning side dish.
*And be sure to check out our other Blackstone potato recipes too – like these smashed potato skins and our cowboy butter potatoes.
Why Smashed Potatoes Work So Well on the Griddle
Smashing the potatoes flat isn’t just for looks. It gives you way more surface area, and surface area is everything on a flat top. More surface touching that hot steel means more crispy, crunchy edges. That’s the entire point.
A regular whole potato only gets crispy on the outside skin. A smashed potato gets crispy everywhere. That’s why this recipe works so well, specifically on a griddle instead of in the oven.
Choosing the Right Potatoes
For this recipe, we’re using a 24 oz bag of baby gold potatoes. You want something with a little substance to it, not the tiniest baby potatoes you can find. If your potatoes are too small, you won’t have much width to work with once you smash them, and you’ll lose that crispy surface area we’re after. Slightly larger reds or golds are a great option if that’s what you can find.
How to Make Smashed Potatoes on the Blackstone
1. Parboil the potatoes
Add the baby gold potatoes to a pot of water with a generous amount of salt. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, about 15 minutes. You don’t want them falling apart, but they do need to be fully tender before they hit the griddle, since they won’t cook through much further once they’re smashed.
2. Cook the bacon and save the grease
While the potatoes are boiling, cook the bacon slices on the griddle until crispy. Then chop them into small pieces. Don’t clean off that bacon grease. You’re going to use it to cook the potatoes, which adds a ton of flavor and helps them crisp up.
*TIP – If you’re cooking smashed potatoes on the Blackstone, you should be able to use your griddle scraper to scrape the excess bacon grease towards one corner to reserve it. This is why I don’t like having my griddle perfectly level or slanting towards the grease trap.
3. Smash the potatoes
Place your parboiled potatoes onto the griddle in the reserved bacon grease. Using a burger press or a griddle spatula, gently smash each potato. You’re not smashing these like a smash burger, so don’t press too hard. If a potato breaks apart a little, that’s fine. It’ll still crisp up nicely. *In fact, expect the potatoes to break apart some. The cheese in the next step helps to fix that.
Season the potatoes with Shake That All-Purpose Seasoning or salt and black pepper. Let the smashed potatoes cook on the first side for 4-5 minutes to develop some good char.
4. Build your cheese crisps
Add a small mound of shredded parmesan directly onto the griddle surface, in front of each potato. Top that with a small mound of shredded mozzarella. The mozzarella acts like glue, helping hold everything together once the potato goes on top. Sprinkle some of the chopped bacon on top.
5. Slide the potatoes on the cheese crisps
Once you’ve got a nice char on the bottom, slide each potato onto one of your cheese mounds so the parmesan and mozzarella crisp up underneath it. That cheese crisp acts as glue, holding the potato together even if it started to break apart when you smashed it.
You can also flip the smashed potatoes back over so that the other side of the potato can crisp up.
6. Top and serve
Transfer the smashed potatoes to a serving platter, and top each with a few pieces of chopped bacon and sliced green onion. Serve with a dollop of sour cream if you’d like.
Tips for the Best Blackstone Smashed Potatoes
- Don’t skip the bacon grease. It adds flavor and helps the potatoes crisp instead of steam.
- Cheese goes on the griddle, not the potato. This is the step people miss. The cheese needs direct contact with the hot surface to crisp up properly.
- Go easy when smashing. You want the potatoes broken open, not pulverized. A little bit of texture is a good thing.
- Watch your temperature. Griddles can run hotter than the dial suggests, especially on low. Keep an eye on your potatoes so the cheese crisps instead of burns.
What to Serve with Smashed Potatoes
These make an easy side for pretty much anything coming off the griddle or the smoker, from Blackstone pork chops to a smoked meatloaf. Any main course that would benefit from a potato side dish works. And here are some topping suggestions for your smashed potatoes:
- Sliced green onions
- Dollop of sour cream
- Chopped crispy-cooked bacon
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Parmesan cheese
- drizzle of Ranch dressing
Blackstone Smashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 24 oz bag baby gold potatoes
- Salt for the boiling water
- 6 slices bacon
- 1½ cups shredded parmesan cheese about 1-2 tablespoons per potato
- 1½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese about 1-2 tablespoons per potato
- Shake That all-purpose seasoning or substitute salt and pepper
- sliced green onions for garnish
- sour cream for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the griddle to medium-low (around 425°F).
- Add potatoes to a pot of generously salted water. Bring to a boil and cook until fork-tender, about 15-20 minutes.
- While the potatoes are boiling, cook bacon on the griddle until crispy. Transfer to paper towels to drain, then chop into small pieces. Leave the bacon grease on the griddle.
- Place the parboiled potatoes onto the griddle in the bacon grease. Gently smash each one with a flat spatula or burger press. Press down with light, even pressure until the potatoes "smash". They will probably fall apart, and that's okay. Let the smashed potatoes cook undisturbed for 4-5 minutes to develop a good char on the bottom.
- When the potatoes are almost done cooking on the first side, add a small mound of shredded parmesan directly onto the griddle surface in front of each potato. Then top the parmesan with a small mound of shredded mozzarella and a sprinkle of chopped bacon.
- Season the potatoes with Shake That seasoning or salt and pepper. Once charred, slide each potato onto a cheese mound to crisp underneath. When the cheese has crisped up a bit, flip the potatoes to cook and crisp up on the 2nd side, about another 3-4 minutes. *Be sure to add the potatoes to the cheese mounds before the cheese crisps up, while it's still melty. This will help hold the potatoes together.
- When the potatoes are done to your liking, transfer to a serving platter. Top each potato with sliced green onion and/or sour cream. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Cheddar cheese can be substituted for parmesan or mozzarella if that’s what you have on hand.
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