Perfect Home Fries

By
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes and articles in her 20 years as a food writer.
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Updated on 05/30/24
Perfect Home Fries

The Spruce Eats / Christine Ma

Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 25 mins
Total: 35 mins
Servings: 4 servings

These deliciously crispy home fries are the perfect side dish for a special breakfast or brunch. They are browned to perfection with onions and butter–a simple yet amazing combination.

Serve the potatoes with eggs and bacon, ham, or sausage, along with toast or English muffins. A side dish of baked beans is also delicious with a big breakfast. Put some ketchup on the table for those who think it's a must with home fries and your breakfast is complete. Home fries are also a great swap for roasted potatoes at dinnertime.

The Best Potatoes for Home Fries

This recipe calls for waxy potatoes, such as red bliss or round white, because they repel water and hold their shape well when cooked. If the season is right, small new potatoes also make incredible home fries.

Make This Recipe Your Own

If you aren't a fan of onions, you can certainly leave them out. Or add some red and green bell pepper for color and extra flavor. See the recipe variations below the recipe for some flavor and add-in ideas, including bacon home fries, garlic home fries, cheesy home fries, and more.

Tips for Making Home Fries Recipes

  • Cook separately - If you don't have a large skillet or you like to have total control over the doneness of both your potatoes and onions, you can cook the onions separately in 1 tablespoon of vegetable until golden brown and add them to the potatoes near the end of the cooking time.
  • The fat - This recipe calls for butter because it imparts its wonderful flavor to the potatoes and also helps them brown. Bacon fat is another great choice.
  • The onions - You can use any onion you like for this recipe. Just be sure to chop them rather than dicing them finely since smaller pieces of onion are likely to burn before the potatoes are crisped well.
  • The spices - Great home fries need little more than salt and pepper but we also like to add a bit of paprika for flavor and color. You can use sweet paprika or smoked paprika—either will be delicious. Add the paprika and other dry seasonings at the end of cooking so they don't burn.


What You'll Need to Make This Perfect Home Fries Recipe
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A Sharp Chef's Knife
Best Skillets
A Heavy Skillet
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A Handy Dandy Spatula

"These home fries were rich, crispy, and perfectly seasoned! I served them with fried eggs for a hearty and tasty brunch. The leftovers kept well too." - Megan O. Steintrager

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Ingredients

  • 4 medium red potatoes or other waxy potatoes

  • 1 cup chopped onions

  • 4 tablespoons butter

  • 1/4 teaspoon paprika, or to taste

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Perfect Home Fries ingredients

    The Spruce / Christine Ma

  2. Leave the 4 medium red potatoes (or other waxy potatoes) unpeeled or peel them, depending on the condition of the skins and your preference. Cut into small dice. You should have about 4 cups of diced potatoes.

    chopped potatoes on a cutting board

    The Spruce / Christine Ma

  3. Put the diced potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Bring the water to a boil and lower the heat to medium-low. Cover and continue boiling until just barely tender, about 4 minutes. Drain well. Add the 1 cup chopped onions to the hot drained potatoes and toss gently. 

    diced potatoes and onions in a bowl

    The Spruce / Christine Ma

  4. Heat the 4 tablespoons butter over medium heat in a large, heavy skillet; add the diced potatoes and chopped onions.

    potato, onion mixture in a skillet

    The Spruce / Christine Ma

  5. Cook, bringing potatoes up from the bottom of the skillet with a spatula occasionally for even cooking and browning. Cook until the potatoes and onions are tender and golden brown, about 20 minutes.

    potatoes cooking in a skillet

    The Spruce / Christine Ma

  6. Season with 1/4 teaspoon paprika, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper.

    Perfect Home Fries in a skillet

    The Spruce / Christine Ma

How to Store Home Fries Recipe

Store in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for up to four days. Reheat in the microwave or, for crispier results, on the stovetop.

Feeling Adventurous? Try This:

  • Home fries with bacon - Before cooking the potatoes, fry about 6 strips of bacon in the skillet until crisp. Use a slotting spoon to remove to a paper-towel-lined plate. Leave about 1 tablespoon of bacon drippings in the skillet. Reduce the amount of butter to 3 tablespoons. Place the skillet over medium heat and proceed with the recipe. Just before serving, crumble the bacon and add the crumbles to the home fries.
  • Home fries with ham - Add about 1/2 cup of diced ham to the skillet along with the potatoes and onions.
  • Cheesy home fries - Top the finished home fries with shredded Cheddar, pepper jack, or another cheese.
  • Garlicky home fries - Add 3 or 4 cloves of minced garlic to the potatoes and onions towards the end of the cooking time, or season with about 1 teaspoon of garlic powder.
  • Home fries with bell peppers - Add about 1/2 cup of diced red bell pepper or green bell pepper along with the onions. Or add a combination of both colors.
  • Spicy home fries - Substitute 1 teaspoon of Cajun seasoning or Creole seasoning for the salt and black pepper. If the seasoning is salt-free, taste and add salt as needed.
    Smoky home fries - Swap out the regular paprika for smoked paprika or chipotle powder.
  • Home fries with parsley - For a fresh flavor, toss the finished potatoes with 2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley.
  • Home fries with chives - Garnish the potatoes with fresh snipped chives or thinly sliced green onion tops.


Nutrition Facts (per serving)
282 Calories
12g Fat
40g Carbs
5g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 282
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 12g 15%
Saturated Fat 7g 37%
Cholesterol 31mg 10%
Sodium 378mg 16%
Total Carbohydrate 40g 14%
Dietary Fiber 4g 14%
Total Sugars 5g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 25mg 124%
Calcium 33mg 3%
Iron 1mg 8%
Potassium 1046mg 22%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)