Skillet Fried Potatoes and Onions with Sherry Aioli
Potatoes and Onions with Sherry Aioli is a one-skillet dish that delivers bold flavor and comfort in every bite. It’s right at home for breakfast, lunch or dinner, and works as a party appetizer, too.
Seasoned Skillet Potatoes & Onions Recipe
This recipe has everything you want in a rustic, down-home side dish, but with a little gastropub vibe. The potatoes and onions are pan fried with an array of seasonings for a nice depth of flavor and just a little kick to warm your tastebuds. The spuds end up tender on the inside, with golden brown, crispy edges. And, the onions…sweet, caramelized goodness.
You could stop there and have a perfectly cozy potato dish, but you really shouldn’t. The super easy sherry aioli is tangy, garlicky and a delicious counterpoint to the earthy, sweet potatoes and onions. Honestly, you’ll end up dipping more than just potatoes in it!
This is an easy recipe you can enjoy as breakfast potatoes or a dinner side dish. All the cooking is done in one skillet, from steaming to sautéing, so clean up is a breeze, too.
Gather Your Ingredients
It’s time to raid your spice cabinet to add some spicy flair to everyday potatoes! This list also includes substitutions to suit your palate.
- Sherry aioli – mayonnaise, garlic, dry sherry (or sherry or apple cider vinegar), Dijon mustard.
- Spices – kosher salt, garlic powder, paprika, dry mustard, cayenne pepper (optional), black pepper.
- Cooking fats – unsalted butter + avocado oil.
- Yukon Gold potatoes – there’s no need to peel thin-skinned potatoes, so keep those on and get a few extra nutrients in the process. Just give them a scrub before using. You can also use red or yellow potatoes. Save the russets for making fries!
- Yellow onion – red or white onions work, too. While the onions will sweeten up as they cook down, sweet onion varieties might be overwhelmingly sweet for this dish.
- Fresh thyme – you can also use rosemary, parsley or chives.
How to Make Skillet Potatoes and Onions
- Make the sherry aioli – combine the mayo, garlic, dry sherry, Dijon and 1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme in a bowl. Season with kosher salt + black pepper, to taste. Set aside.
- Steam the potatoes – melt butter in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add the potatoes and season with kosher salt; stir to coat with butter. Cover the skillet with a lid or sheet pan and cook for about 10 minutes. Flip them with a spatula a couple of times so they have a chance to brown on both sides.
- Combine the spices – while the potatoes steam, combine the kosher salt, garlic powder, paprika, dry mustard, cayenne and black pepper in a small bowl.
- Add the onions + spices – remove the lid. Add the oil, onions and spices. Toss with the potatoes. Continue cooking for another 10 to 15 minutes, uncovered, flipping often to caramelize all the onions.
- Add the thyme – when they are just about done, stir in the thyme and cook for one more minute. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, as needed.
- Serve hot – transfer to a platter and serve with sherry aioli on the side.
Helpful Recipe Tips
- Best tools for the job – use a large nonstick skillet. A cast iron skillet is perfect for this recipe since it distributes heat evenly and is naturally nonstick if seasoned properly. A flexible turner can get under the potatoes and onions to flip and move them around the pan better than a wooden spoon.
- Cutting the potatoes – I purposely chose to cut the potatoes into small wedges because the shape provides a good amount of surface area, they’re thin enough to cook up tender all the way through, and I like their rustic, home-cooked vibe. To do this, cut the potatoes into quarters, then carefully cut each quarter into 4 wedges. They don’t have to be perfectly even or shaped, just roughly the same size.
- How to julienne onions – starting with a whole onion, cut off the root and tip. Cut the onion in half from the root through the tip; peel away the skin. You’ll see striations in the onion running from the root to the tip. Lay the flat side down, and following those striations, cut the onion into wedges about 1/4″ thick. Again, they don’t have to be perfect. This cut helps the onions will hold their shape as they cook down.
What to Serve with Potatoes and Onions
First off, these potatoes and onions can be served on their own or for breakfast, lunch and dinner!
Having a get-together for game day or just serving appetizers for a party? These dippable flavor bombs are a perfect stand-alone dish.
Make them the main attraction for breakfast by tossing in some crumbled breakfast sausage and sautéed bell peppers, then top with fried eggs! Serve them as a side along with Zucchini Egg White Casserole, a Croque Madame, or this Ham + Egg Dutch Baby.
As a side, they’ll add tons of flavor and fun to dishes like Chicken Gumbo Sloppy Joes, Pan Roasted Chicken Breasts, Grilled Adobo Chicken and Turkey Burgers!
Storing + Reheating Leftovers
Transfer leftovers to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Store potatoes and aioli separately.
Reheat quickly in the microwave for a couple of minutes. A better method is to scatter them on a parchment lined sheet pan and reheat in a 400°F oven for 8 to 10 minutes. The best method is to use an air fryer…heat for 4 to 5 minutes at 375°F. Be sure to preheat your oven or air fryer first. I don’t feel that any additional oil or cooking spray is needed.
More Delicious Potato Recipes
- Rosemary Parmesan Roasted Baby Potatoes
- Olive Oil Whipped Potatoes on Russet Coins
- Roasted Garlic + Mascarpone Mashed Potatoes
- Hasselback Sweet Potatoes with Pumpkin Seed Pesto Butter
- Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole
Skillet Fried Potatoes and Onions with Sherry Aioli
Equipment
- cast iron skillet, or large nonstick pan
Ingredients
Sherry Aioli
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced or grated
- 1 tablespoon dry sherry, or 1 tsp apple cider or sherry vinegar
- 2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Skillet Fried Potatoes
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon dry mustard
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1½ pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into small wedges (see note 1); I prefer to leave the skin on
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil, or more, as needed
- 1 small yellow onion, julienned (see note 2)
- 2 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped, divided
Instructions
- Make the sherry aioli: combine mayo, garlic, dry sherry, Dijon and 1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme in a bowl. Season with kosher salt + black pepper, to taste. Set aside.
- Melt butter in a large cast iron skillet (or other heavy bottomed non-stick skillet) over medium heat. Add the potatoes and season with 1/2 tsp of kosher salt; stir to coat with butter. Cover the skillet with a lid or sheet pan and cook for about 10 minutes. Flip them with a spatula a couple of times so they brown on both sides.
- While the potatoes steam, combine the remaining 1/2 tsp kosher salt, garlic powder, paprika, dry mustard, cayenne and black pepper in a small bowl.
- Remove the lid. Add the oil, onions and seasonings. Toss with the potatoes. Continue cooking for another 10 to 15 minutes, uncovered, flipping often to caramelize all the onions.
- When they are just about done, stir in the thyme and cook for one more minute. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, as needed.
- Transfer to a platter and serve with sherry aioli on the side.
Notes
- How to wedge the potatoes – cut the potatoes into quarters, then carefully cut each quarter into 4 wedges. They don’t have to be perfectly even or shaped, just roughly the same size.
- How to julienne onions – starting with a whole onion, cut off the root and tip. Cut the onion in half from the root through the tip; peel away the skin. You’ll see striations in the onion running from the root to the tip. Lay the flat side down, and following those striations, cut the onion into wedges about 1/4″ thick. Again, they don’t have to be perfect.
- Storing leftovers – transfer leftovers to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Store potatoes and aioli separately.
- Reheating leftovers – Reheat quickly in the microwave for a couple of minutes. A better method is to scatter them on a parchment lined sheet pan and reheat in a 400°F oven for 8 to 10 minutes. The best method is to use an air fryer…heat for 4 to 5 minutes at 375°F. Be sure to preheat your oven or air fryer first. I don’t feel that any additional oil or cooking spray is needed.
Nutrition
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I basically love potatoes in any and all forms, and this recipe sounds divine. I usually have some kind of dish like this as a Sunday dinner side, so this is going on the rotation!