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    Home » All Recipes

    Fried Mashed Potatoes

    Jan 31, 2020 · 7 Comments

    Jump to Recipe

    Wondering what to do with leftover mashed potatoes? Fry them! Fried mashed potatoes are easy-to-make, you only need a skillet and some butter, and taste even better than freshly made mashed potatoes. 

    Fried mashed potatoes in a bowl topped with chopped green onions.

    Why You’ll Love Fried Mashed Potatoes

    • You’ve got leftover mashed potatoes. 
    • They taste amazing. Crispy and soft and potato-y. 
    • You can serve them almost anything. (They’re especially good with eggs and a salad.)

    What You Need to Make Fried Mashed Potatoes

    • a nonstick skillet. 
    • leftover mashed potatoes
    • butter. 

    To state the obvious, mashed potatoes are one of life’s perfect foods. (You can even make instant pot mashed potatoes when you need them in a flash.) But leftover mashed potatoes? Those are…fine. While I know there are ways to reheat mashed potatoes to bring them back to their freshly-made glory, I always find them a bit meh. 

    Fried mashed potatoes, however? They’re a thing of beauty. 

    They’re crispy and soft and sort-of-like a hash brown but better.  And the best part? They are ridiculously easy to make. 

    How to Make Fried Mashed Potatoes

    Fried mashed potatoes in nonstick skillet topped with chopped green onions and black pepper.

    There are lots of recipes for fried mashed potatoes that include adding cheese and chopped herbs and all sorts of things. Those recipes also have you pat the mashed potatoes into patties and dredge them in breadcrumbs and flour. 

    This is not that recipe.

     My “recipe” isn’t really a recipe at all. You simply take a big pat of butter and put it in a nonstick skillet. Then melt the butter, over low-medium heat, until it gets light brown. Once that happens, add the cold mashed potatoes to the pan. Press them down into a large cake and cook. Every once in a while, turn parts of the cake over with a spatula. (The kind you flip pancakes with.) That’s it. 

    Turning the potatoes as they cook, ensures there are bits of crispy potatoes all through the mashed potatoes. This doesn’t go fast. Fried mashed potatoes take a little while (we’re talking at least 10 minutes) to get nice and brown and crispy. But it’s worth it.

    Troubleshooting Fried Mashed Potatoes

    Closeup of fried mashed potatoes topped with green onions.

    My fried mashed potatoes burnt. 

    Ok. Two things happened here. Either the heat was too high or…you wandered off and forgot that they potatoes were on the stove. (It’s okay, bb, we all make mistakes.)

    Keep the heat on medium-low and turn them occasionally and you’ll avoid burning your mashed potatoes. 

    Mine taste bland.

    Did you start with bland mashed potatoes? Because all of the flavor comes from your original mashed potatoes. 

    If your original mashed potatoes were bland, let’s fix that! 

    First, add a bit of salt. You don’t want them salty but a bit of salt enhances the flavor of mashed potatoes. If that doesn’t do it, add a bit of garlic powder. That should fix them right up. 

    I don’t have leftover mashed potatoes but I want to make these. 

    Ok. We can fix this. But it will involve a run to the store. Get a package of premade mashed potatoes. The kind they sell in the refrigerator section, not the kind sold at the hot buffet bar. You want cold mashed potatoes.  Use as directed. 

    Fried mashed potatoes in nonstick skillet topped with chopped green onions and black pepper.
    5 from 4 votes
    Print

    Fried Mashed Potatoes

    Easy fried mashed potatoes. All you need are leftover mashed potatoes and butter.

    Cook Time 15 minutes
    Servings 4 people

    Ingredients

    • 1 tablespoon butter
    • 2 cups cold mashed potatoes
    • salt
    • freshly ground black pepper

    Toppings, Optional

    • chopped green onions
    • grated parmesan cheese

    Instructions

    1. Melt and brown the butter. Heat butter in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Cook until butter just begins to brown.

    2. Brown the Mashed Potatoes. Add cold mashed potatoes to the pan. Spread evenly into pan. Cook until brown. Turn the mashed potatoes occasionally. Cook until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

      Before serving, top as desired. (optional)

     

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. James Faherty says

      February 14, 2020 at 4:09 pm

      You didnt say what to do what to do with cheese and other ingredients

      Reply
      • Elizabeth says

        February 14, 2020 at 4:18 pm

        You can top with cheese and green onions before serving. This is an optional step. The recipe has been updated to reflect this. 🙂

        Reply
        • Betsy says

          June 29, 2020 at 8:14 pm

          5 stars
          My mother made this exact “recipe” every time there were leftover mashed potatoes when I was growing up, and I swear part of the reason my husband married me was because I knew how to make them, too. Now my kids specifically ask for them when they come home to visit.

          Reply
        • christopher miller says

          July 04, 2021 at 7:59 am

          Thank you I’m going to try this fearlessly!

          Reply
    2. Bob Cochran says

      May 03, 2020 at 1:08 am

      5 stars
      This is the absolute BEST and EASIEST way to “dispose” of leftover mashed potatoes.

      Excellent.

      Reply
    3. zzz says

      January 20, 2022 at 1:05 pm

      5 stars
      delicious and simple!

      Reply
    4. James says

      May 18, 2022 at 6:41 pm

      5 stars
      This is just genius. As an asian I do this all the time with leftover rice, can’t imagine why I never thought to do it with mashed potatoes. Browning the butter first is the stroke of genius here, but better have the potatoes handy. Butter goes from browned to burnt in an instant.

      Reply

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    Elizabeth Barbone

    Elizabeth Barbone is the founder and recipe developer behind Cook Fast, Eat Well. A food writer for over 15 years, she's built a reputation for creating easy recipes that work.

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