Three Ingredient Potato Magic!
Have you ever made Syracuse salt potatoes? ♡
If not, let me introduce you to one of the simplest — and most surprisingly addictive — potato recipes I know. It’s a classic upstate New York dish that comes together quickly and easily and, as my 4-year-old likes to say, has a truly “magical” finish.
All you need are three ingredients — small new potatoes, sea salt, and water. The potatoes are boiled in heavily salted water until tender, then drained and left alone for a few minutes while they steam-dry. That’s when a delicate, powdery salt crust forms on the skins almost out of nowhere, while the insides stay fluffy and creamy. Potato perfection!
I love serving salt potatoes with melted garlic butter on the side and letting everyone drizzle (or dunk) to their heart’s content. It’s one of those versatile side dishes that works with anything from a fancy steak dinner, to a summertime burger night, to a grand holiday feast. Everyone always loves these little guys. And I love that they hardly take any effort to make!!
Recipe Tips
This recipe is incredibly simple, but these tips will ensure that the salt potatoes turn out perfectly each time:
- Use small, evenly sized potatoes. Potatoes about 1 inch in diameter will cook at the same rate and give you that perfect creamy center without splitting.
- Don’t be shy with the salt! It looks like a lot, but most of it stays in the water and doesn’t absorb into the potatoes.
- Fine sea salt matters here. It dissolves completely, creating an even brine and that signature light crust as the potatoes dry. (See note below if you only have Kosher salt on hand — you’ll need to adjust amounts.)
- Definitely do not rinse. Rinsing the potatoes after they have cooked washes away the salty coating you just worked hard to create, so let the steam do its thing.
- Serve immediately. These are best hot, when the interiors are fluffy and the butter melts on contact.
Recipe Variations
Once you’ve mastered the classic version, here are some fun ways to mix things up:
- Nix the garlic. It’s traditional in Syracuse just to dunk these in melted butter, so feel free to skip the garlic if you’d rather!
- Add fresh herbs like chopped parsley, chives, or dill to the garlic butter.
- Make it lemony by adding a squeeze of fresh lemon juice or zest to the butter.
- Add grated Parmesan over the hot potatoes so that it melts into the skins.
- Make it creamy by serving with crème fraîche or aioli alongside the butter.
FAQ
This dish originated in Syracuse, New York, where salt mining was historically a huge industry. The potatoes were traditionally cooked in leftover brine from the salt works.
You can, but you’ll need more by volume since kosher salt is less dense. Fine sea salt gives the most authentic texture and crust.
Nope. The skins are thin and tender, and they’re essential for holding that salty coating.
Usually this means the water wasn’t salty enough, the potatoes were rinsed, or they didn’t have enough time to steam-dry after draining.
More Favorite Potato Recipes To Try
Syracuse Salt Potatoes
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 30 mins
- Yield: 6 to 8 servings 1x
Ingredients
For the potatoes:
- 3 pounds small new potatoes (white or red, about 1 inch in diameter)
- 1/2 cup fine sea salt (see note below if using kosher salt)
- 3 quarts water
For the garlic butter:
- 1/2 cup (1 stick / 113 g) salted butter
- 3 cloves garlic, pressed or grated
- freshly-cracked black pepper (optional)
Instructions
- Boil the water. In a large stockpot, bring the 3 quarts of water to a rolling boil. Stir in the fine sea salt until completely dissolved.
- Cook the potatoes. Carefully add the potatoes to the salted water. Boil uncovered for 20–25 minutes, or until fork-tender.
- Drain and dry. Transfer the potatoes to a colander and let them drain for 2–3 minutes. Do not rinse. As they steam-dry, a light salty crust will form on the skins.
- Make the garlic butter. While the potatoes cook, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and black pepper and cook for 1–2 minutes, until fragrant but not browned.
- Serve. Arrange the hot potatoes in a serving bowl. Serve with the garlic butter on the side for drizzling or dipping.
Notes
Salt quantity: I wrote this recipe using fine sea salt, which is what I primarily cook with. But if you’d like to use Diamond Crystal Kosher salt, you’ll need to increase the quantity to 3/4 cup. If using Morton Kosher salt, you can keep it at 1/2 cup.
These are a summer staple, thank you for creating this recipe! You should look up “spiedies” next and make a copycat recipe. Salt potatoes and spiedies are a classic upstate NY combo that I miss!!
Like Papas Arrugadas
As a native from Syracuse, NY…the only thing you need in the butter…is BUTTER nothing else…no parsley, no cheese…nada…an insult to the proper way to make Salt Potatoes…water, salt, potatoes and melted butter nothing more…taste delicious cold the next morning too…don’t go ruining a good thing by adding extra ingredients that weren’t ever added in the original recipe…not too much salt overload otherwise you’ll feel like your eating a stick of salt (use 1/2 a bag that comes in the bag or eye it like us natives do) Irish legal immigrants were in the mines working to get the salt and needed something easy to eat while in the mines..the salt from the mines went into the pot creating a Syracuse classic…don’t go messing up an Irish ☘️ Syracuse, NY favorite within Syracuse, NY 🥔
I am very excited about this recipe! Right up my potato alley! cant wait to try it. Maybe a side for Valentines Day! ❤️
Wow! Someone discovered our Upstate secret! Love ’em? I grew up on them! A little history of the salt potato for you. Back in the late 1800s, Syracuse was the salt capital of the US, providing 80-90% of the salt used in the country. There is a huge brine aquifer that runs from Syracuse south to the village of Tully, NY and a bit further south of that. On the shores of Onondaga Lake, brine was pumped into a salt house, which evaporated the brine into salt. There were also large glass-covered trays that held brine to evaporate in the sun. The predominantly Irish and immigrant laborers used the brine to make salt potatoes for their meals. Here is the best part. Salt production stopped in the early 1900s. That is, until a foodie decided to bring salt production back. His company, a father/daughter deal, is Syracuse Salt Company, HTTP://syracusesaltco.com. And you can pre-packaged salt for salt potatoes to make authentic salt potatoes. He makes all kinds of flavored salt there as well. I use his salt in my seasoning mixes at Clean Slate Farm. (BTW, Gimme Some Oven is one of the two, yes two, sites I search for recipes. And I’m a former chef! Great site you have here. Thanks.)
As a native of Central New York I was so excited to see this summer BBQ staple recipe! When j first moved to the KC area I would bring back the little bag of potatoes and salt when I went home to NY for visits. ☺️
FYI for those who have access to Wegmans, they usually have salt potato kits with the appropriate amount of salt included in late fall/early winter when potatoes are in season! Also, as a WNY native I do have to say garlic butter is a travesty. 😉 I’m sure it’s delicious but the only way you’ll ever find salt potatoes in Western and Central New York is with plain butter!