Diner-Style Home Fries
Inspired by techniques from America's Test Kitchen and NYT Cooking.
Diced potatoes are parboiled until just tender, then fried in butter and oil with browned onion and paprika for a crisp, golden diner-style breakfast side.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
- 1
Brown the onion. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in the frying pan over medium-high and cook the chopped onion for 8-10 minutes, stirring now and then, until deeply browned. Tip it into a bowl and set aside; browning it separately builds a sweet, caramelised flavour without it turning mushy once mixed back in later.
- 2
Parboil the potatoes. Cover the potato cubes with 1 cm of cold water in a saucepan, add the salt and bring just to the boil, about 6 minutes. Drain immediately and let them steam-dry for 2 minutes in the colander. This brief par-cook softens the inside of the potato so it's tender by the time the outside turns crisp in the pan.
- 3
Fry in a single layer. Heat the remaining oil and the butter in the pan over medium-high until the butter is foaming. Add the potatoes in a single layer so each piece touches the hot pan, then leave them undisturbed for 4-5 minutes until browned underneath. Resisting the urge to stir lets a solid crust form before the pieces are turned.
- 4
Turn and crisp further. Turn the potatoes and repeat the process 2-3 more times, for 12-15 minutes in total, until crisp and golden on every side. A thin metal spatula makes it easier to get underneath the crust without tearing it.
- 5
Finish with onion and spice. Stir the browned onion, paprika, salt and pepper into the pan and cook for 1 minute to warm through and let the spice bloom in the hot fat. Scatter over the chopped parsley just before serving for a fresh finish.
Storage
Keep in the fridge for up to 2 days in an airtight container; they don't freeze well, as the texture turns soft on thawing. Reheat in a hot pan until piping hot (74°C) rather than in the microwave, to bring back some crispness. Cool leftovers in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours (within 1 hour on a day above 32°C).
EU nutrition claims
- Low sugars: 1.9 g sugars per 100 g (limit ≤ 5 g)
- Source of fibre: 1.8 g fibre per 100 kcal (needs ≥ 1.5 g)
Per 100 g of the finished dish, worked out from the nutrition per serving and the lowest likely cooked weight (about 175 g a serving), so the true values are, if anything, lower. Thresholds from the Annex to EU Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006. How we decide
Free sugars
0 g per serving
0 % of the 50 g daily maximum · 0 % of the ideal 25 g
Free sugars under 50 g a day, ideally about 25 g, based on WHO free-sugar guidance (not endorsed by WHO). The share shown is the share of one serving. WHO
Equipment
- large heavy frying pan (30 cm), cast iron if possible
- medium saucepan
- colander
- thin metal spatula
- small bowl
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 288 kcal |
| Protein | 4.7 g |
| Carbohydrate | 39 g |
| of which sugars | 3.3 g |
| of which free sugars | 0 g |
| Fat | 13.5 g |
| of which saturates | 2.8 g |
| Fibre | 5.1 g |
| Salt | 1.25 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
1.6 g High Protein needs ≥ 5 g (20% of energy)
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
