These Easy Pesto Potatoes are crispy roasted potatoes tossed in a homemade pesto sauce. It’s a side your family and friends will always be excited for!
I was at a restaurant once in San Diego and was trying to figure out what was sooooo good about the potatoes I was eating. The restaurant was clearly using fresh ingredients (no brainer), but there was something else… Basil, they had some sort of seasoning that incorporated Basil and for sure olive oil into the sauce the potatoes were tossed in. This amazing meal experience inspired me to come up with this Easy Pesto Potatoes recipe. It really is simple, the hardest part is separating the potatoes on the pan to get them crispy. The rest is literally just blending the pesto and cutting up potatoes. I'll also let you in on my tried and true secrets to super crispy potatoes. So far it’s worked every time!!!
I recommend small fingerling potatoes. Feel free to use what you have though. You can pretty much use any potatoes, however: Yukon, red, purple are the ones I recommend the most!
Pine Nuts are classic for pesto. Walnuts are a bit more wallet friendly and taste just as good!
I recently ran out of olive oil and used canola oil. Not quite as recommended for pesto, but it honestly tasted good! I even had guests over and I don’t think they’re even noticed. Avocado oil would be my second choice, of course olive oil is first!
This pesto is designed to be used for more than just this dinner, it’s a double batch. Use it again and save some sweat equity. Add the left overs into some pasta salad for lunch... Top it off with buratta for the full experience. Feel free to even dilute the left over pesto with greek yogurt to make a pesto green goddess salad dressing. Toss it in cucumbers and chickpeas for a nice side salad. There's sooo many options. Potatoes are some of the most sustainable things you can eat. They grow like crazy and in poor soil while also not requiring much water. They also make french fries so that’s a win on itself. :D
25 mini potatoes (2 regular red and/or Yukon… or even purple potatoes)
3/4 cup Olive oil
1/2 cup Parmesan
1 cup pinenuts (or walnuts)
2 teaspoon salt
Six cracks of pepper
2 cups of basil
3/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves
Set oven to 425 F
Make a large bowl of ice water and oil a sheet pan. I like to line mine with foil.
Chop potatoes into wedges and place them into the bowl as you chop. This helps clean them but also gets them crispy! I suggest making the cuts long and angled to expose more flesh. More flesh = more potential crispiness! I love leaving skin on each pieces for the skin contrast in textures. Lastly, of course, cut them in as similar sizing as possible for even cooking.
Drain potatoes and pat dry on a rag
Put potatoes back into bowl with salt, pepper & olive oil (1 teaspoon salt, pepper to taste (I did 6 fresh cracks which is approx 1/4 teaspoon) and 3/4c olive oil. Toss to evenly coat.
Place on the prepped baking sheet. Spread them out evenly, try to get them to not touch if possible. Tip: Place the largest skin side down facing the pan to get the most crisp cooking early.
Place in oven. Bake for 30mins. Rotate the pan so sides are on opposite ends each time the 10min timer goes off (this helps evenly cook each side.) When you set the timer for the last of the 3 10 minutes, toss the potatoes and flip. Do your best to get the non fave down/not as crispy sides to face down on the pan now.
Get out all ingredients and measuring tools for the pesto. TIP: Now is a good time to work on any other salads or place chicken on the grill etc.
Roughly chop parmesan (1/2 cup) pieces up if in a block and not pre sliced or grated.
Add the rest of your ingredients to the food processor (or blender):
Blend until finely grated and melded together. You’ll want it to look like the below image.
Once potatoes are done. Toss using a spatula (tongs will tear up the potatoes more). Scoop about 1/2c of the pesto. Mix together. Add more if you want!
And just like that your Pesto Potatoes are ready to serve.
When adding the potatoes to your pan, try not to let any access oil pool into the pan. It will take away the crispiness and make your potatoes soggy! Trust me, I’ve learned the hard way. Just a light even layer of pam spray or oil will do.
If you have left over potatoes, use them in this delish Pink Goat Cheese Potatoes recipe. (Coming soon)
Pair these Easy Pesto Potatoes as a side with grilled chicken and a basil caprese salad. Add these delicious croutons on top while you’re at it!
Try these Rainbow Honey Glazed grilled Carrots as another delicious side.
Will store well for up to 8 days! Keep in an airtight container.
These Easy Pesto Potatoes are crispy roasted potatoes tossed in a homemade pesto sauce. It's delicious and easy to make!
Put potatoes back into bowl with salt, pepper & olive oil (1 teaspoon salt, pepper to taste (I did 6 fresh cracks which is approx 1/4 teaspoon) and 3/4c olive oil. Toss to evenly coat.
Place in oven. Bake for 30mins. Set a 10 minute timer 3 separate times. Each time it goes off, rotate the pan so the short sides are on opposite ends each time (this helps evenly cook each side.) When you set the timer for the last of the 3 times, toss the potatoes and flip the pan again. Do your best to get the non face down/not as crispy sides to face down on the pan now.
To reiterate:
1. 10 minute timer & rotate pan 180 degrees
2. 10 minute timer & rotate pan 180 degrees
3. 10 minute timer, rotate the pan 180 degrees and also flip the potatoes as best you can so they're all on a new side.
Thank you so much for choosing one of my recipes to cook today! I hope you enjoy the cooking process. I love to hear any and all recipe suggestions. Please reach out to me for any questions or comments! :)
Have a wonderful day!
Hanna
hannabeeeatin@gmail.com