Sage Hasselback Potatoes: A Fragrant and Flavorful Side Dish for Any Occasion

Are you looking for the perfect buttery side dish that can be ready in 45 minutes? Or one that can serve as a comforting main meal when you don’t want to put a lot of effort into cooking, but can’t look Taco Bell in the face?

These sage-infused, butter-enveloped hasselback potatoes are your ticket to taste-loving nirvana.

And they are simple to make. Get a sack of baby golds, and wash them. Grab a wooden spoon, place the spuds one at a time in the hollow (so they don’t roll around), and make quick slices. Throw them in a pan, smother with olive oil and butter, and then toss salt, pepper, and sage on top. Easy peasy.

Once you’ve processed the entire bag and they are all clustered on the cookie sheet, simply throw them into a hot oven (I like to use a large convection toaster oven for these sorts of things) and bake.

In forty-five minutes, what was cold, raw starch has become hot, soft and tender, fragrant, and flavorful. The skins have wrinkled and darkened, and the juices have sunk in deep.

Hasselback potatoes are really something special, requiring just a bit of effort to make something very impressive. I think they look like little snails, but that doesn’t sound particularly appetizing to me, so let’s say they look like little fans – waves that are crusty and golden, juicy and crispy.

And the bit of effort that goes into creating them – the slicing and stuffing, which is mindless work, really – yields great returns when you look at these, but even more when you taste them.

Sage Hasselback Potatoes

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★★★★★

5 from 1 review

• Author: Shanna Mallon
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x

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Description

Are you craving that perfect buttery comfort food? You really should try these Sage Hasselback Potatoes! Crisp and soft, buttery and rich, and topped with the pungency of sage. The cuts in the potatoes allow the butter and herbs to fully permeate the potatoes, creating a side dish your friends and family will love. And they’re super easy to make to boot!

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1.5 pounds baby gold potatoes
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• 3 Tablespoons salted butter
• 9 grams chopped fresh sage (small bunch)
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). Drizzle a baking sheet or roasting pan with olive oil to prevent sticking.
2. Take the potatoes one by one, and set on a wooden spoon, slicing top to bottom along the width of each at even intervals. To make the slits larger, you can slice tiny bits of the potato out by slicing at alternating diagonals.
3. Set the sliced potatoes on the oiled baking sheet, being careful not to break them apart. Drizzle with olive oil. Insert bits of butter between the openings in each potato. Sprinkle sage all over. Sprinkle salt and pepper all over.
4. Bake for 25-35 minutes, tossing the potatoes once after 20 minutes.

Notes

The recipe calls for salted butter – but whether you have salted or unsalted butter on hand, it really doesn’t make any real difference. If using unsalted, you may need add a little salt at the end.

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Category: Side Dish
• Method: Roasting
• Cuisine: Dinner

Keywords: sage, hasselback, potatoes, roasted, buttery

Cooking By the Numbers…

Step 1 – Preheat and Prepare

Chop the sage roughly into 1/4 to 1/2-inch pieces.

Set the oven to 425°F (220°C) and allow about 10-15 minutes to preheat. Add a light coating of olive oil to the surface of a baking sheet or a roasting pan to keep the spuds from sticking. If your pan is not nonstick, you can line it first with a sheet of aluminum foil, to facilitate easy cleanup.

Step 2 – Slice the Spuds

Using a sharp petty or smaller slicing knife, cut slits into each of the potatoes across the full length. If you have trouble keeping them still while slicing, you can set them one at a time in the cavity of a wooden spoon. This should keep them from moving around too much.

If you want the slits to be a bit larger, you can cut V patterns in them and remove tiny slices of each spud to create bigger gaps. I did this with some and not with others, and found that either way works fine.

Step 3 – Butter and Season

Place all of the sliced spuds on the oiled pan. Be a bit careful, so they don’t fall apart.

Lightly coat with olive oil and then add a thin slice of butter to each of the slits. Sprinkle your fresh sage, salt, and pepper over the top.

Step 3 – Bake and Enjoy!

Time to slide that pan into the oven! Bake for 25-35 minutes, and gently toss once after 20 minutes.

What would you serve these with? A good roast? Pan seared steak? Or would you simply eat them on their own? Let us know in the comments below, and please rate this recipe if you’ve tried it.

And if you love a good potato recipe, then these will you tickle your tongue as well:

• Roasted Rosemary Reds
• Quick and Easy Smashed
• Buttered Miso Roasted
• Potato Tian
• Lemon Baby Potatoes
• Garlic Parsley Mashed Potatoes

Photos by Mike Quinn, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published on May 6th, 2009. Last updated: October 24, 2020 at 21:13 pm. With additional writing by Mike Quinn.

Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.

About Shanna Mallon

Shanna Mallon is a freelance writer who holds an MA in writing from DePaul University. Her work has been featured in a variety of media outlets, including The Kitchn, Better Homes & Gardens, Taste of Home, Houzz.com, Foodista, Entrepreneur, and Ragan PR. In 2014, she co-authored The Einkorn Cookbook with her husband, Tim. Today, you can find her digging into food topics and celebrating the everyday grace of eating on her blog, Go Eat Your Bread with Joy. Shanna lives in Nashville, Tennessee, with Tim and their two small kids.

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