Homemade Potato Tots
Crispy potato morsels that are fun to make and use pantry ingredients
Ingredients
- Nonstick cooking spray
- 1 pound medium russet potatoes -about 2 potatoes
- 1 large red potato --4 ounces total
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more for seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons olive oil—divided (see below)
- Fresh chives snipped into small pieces
- Ketchup and mustard for dipping
Instructions
- Place the russet potatoes into a medium pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower heat to medium and cook until halfway done, 5 to 9 minutes. Drain, then while holding each potato with a kitchen towel, remove the skin from each by scraping with the side of the tines of a fork. (The fork will also allow you to dig out any blemishes). Discard skins. Allow potatoes to cool for 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Spray two 12-cup mini muffin tins generously with cooking spray.
- Measure out 1 ½ tablespoons of olive oil to use in potato mixture. (The rest will be for brushing on top of the tots before they bake.)
- Mix the flour, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and cayenne pepper in small bowl.
- Grate the par-cooked russets with a box grater, using the large holes, into a big bowl. Toss the strands of potato with the flour mixture, using two forks to separate the strands. (Mine clumped together quite a bit at first.) Then grate the red potato into the mixture in the bowl and drizzle 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil over everything. Gently combine everything with the two forks and by hand.
- Using your fingers, scoop about one tablespoon of the potato mixture into each mini muffin cup, filling each to the rim, pressing flat with your fingers. Brush each unbaked tot with olive oil. Bake until brown at the edges, 15 minutes. Remove from oven and using two spoons, flip each tot so that the underside can brown. Tuck any stray stands of potato into each cup. Brush the tops with a light coat of olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Return to the oven and bake until browned, another 10-15 minutes. (I baked mine 12 minutes.)
- Remove from oven and again using two spoons to cradle each tot, transfer to platter to serve. Sprinkle with freshly chopped chives.
- Serve with ketchup and mustard for dipping.
Notes
Recipe can be doubled.
1 ½ teaspoons of Cajun seasoning (like Tony Chacere’s) can be substituted for the salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and cayenne pepper.
Adapted from a recipe by Damaris Phillips