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These Ukrainian Pan fried potatoes aren’t difficult but there is a trick to getting that crispy crust and tender, buttery interior consistently. Continue reading to see how.
I have officially joined the working world and I’m likin’ it! They gave me my name tag today and I can’t even tell you how official I felt walking through the halls with my very own RN badge. It’s on one of those pull string thingy’s and I can swipe doors with it. Yep, that’s pretty official.
I came home from work today and Vadim (the husband) surprised me with this. Classic. I can’t count how many times we’ve eaten these Ukrainian pan fried potatoes. We just never thought to post the recipe.
My husband is the potato master in our house. See the hunk in the picture below? That’s him (and our son sleeping in his arms). He cooked this, typed out the recipe, edited and uploaded photos and did all the food styling on his own. He’s my hunk. I like him. I love him. I had a baby with him. And, yes, I’m married to him. Wow, I couldn’t ask for a better man.
Ingredients for Fried Potatoes:
4 medium-large potatoes
1/2 of onion (optional)
1 Tbsp of butter
2 Tbsp of Oil (I used Grapeseed Oil)
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
1/4 tsp of pepper or to taste
How to Make Ukrainian Fried Potatoes
1. Peel potatoes and cut them into small wedges/fries, keeping them proportional for even cooking. A Mandoline Slicer
2. Rinse peeled potatoes in water, then lay them out on a cutting board and pat dry with paper towel. This is done to get rid of starch, which will make potatoes more crisp. Patting them dry reduces oil splatter.
3. Dice 1/2 of the onion. Melt 1 Tbsp of butter in the frying pan and saute onion for around 3 min on medium-high heat, stirring frequently.
4. Next, add potatoes and 2 Tbsp of oil, mix everything together. Cover and cook on medium high for around 4-5 min covered until golden. Use a dome-shaped lid for best results.
5. Reduce heat to medium and cook potatoes for approx. 15 min, stirring every 3-4 min.
6. Towards the end of cooking, sprinkle potatoes with salt and pepper (better to under-salt than over-salt :D, speaking from experience ). When potatoes are salted before or during cooking, they release juices and tend to fall apart.
7. Check for doneness by breaking one of the bigger potato slices. It’s done when the potato breaks easily.
* Optional Add-ins: When potatoes are almost finished – you can add eggs, minced garlic, garnish it with dill or parsley. Or just enjoy them with a fresh cucumber…like I did 🙂
Ukrainian Pan Fried Potatoes Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 medium-large potatoes
- 1/2 of onion, optional
- 1 Tbsp of butter
- 2 Tbsp of Oil
- 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
- 1/4 tsp of pepper or to taste
Instructions
- Peel potatoes and cut them into small wedges/fries, keeping them proportional for even cooking.
- Rinse peeled potatoes in water, then lay them out on a cutting board and pat dry with paper towel.
- Dice 1/2 of the onion. Melt 1 tbsp of butter in the frying pan and saute onion for around 3 min on medium-high heat, stirring frequently.
- Next, add potatoes and 2 tbsp of oil, mix everything together. Cover and cook on medium high for around 4-5 min covered until golden. Use a dome-shaped lid for best results.
- Reduce heat to medium and cook potatoes for approx. 15 min, stirring every 3-4 min.
- Towards the end of cooking, sprinkle potatoes with salt and pepper.
- Check for doneness by breaking one of the bigger potato slices. It's done when the potato breaks easily.
Notes
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
Hi Natasha, for Step 5 is the lid on or off? thanks
Reduce heat to medium and cook potatoes for approx. 15 min, stirring every 3-4 min.
Hi George, We keep them covered the whole time, except to stir.
Looking for a French fries recipe without using an air fryer
It would be nice if the recipes using an air fryer had recipes for us that don’t have any interest in using an air fryer
Hi Elizabeth, this recipe can be useful for you at the moment as another french fries recipe that I have is using an Air Fryer.
This recipe was our weekly meal in the 90-th, when we lived in Ukraine and Russia. As someone mentioned before you need unrefined Sunflower oil and not Olive oil, it will add nutty flavor. In the end, I add fresh minced garlic and dill with parsley. Thank you for reminding me about this recipe, this is what we’ll have tonight.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me. Mila!
Hello! Is it necessary to peel the potatoes? I often see fries with peels on.
Thanks for so many great recipes!
Hi Tracy, it depends on your personal preference but both ways work!
These are the best thank you so much for your website. I find myself on here every other day. And I hope your family is safe. I am so sorry for what is going on in this crazy world.
Aww! That’s just awesome! Thank you so much for stopping by, Nanette!
Just made these glorious potatoes. So delicious. I love being Ukrainian, but this potato obsession is seriously troubling!! Thank you, Natasha for another winner!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it Christina!
Just a small note – to get authentic taste you may want to use sunflower oil (ideally unrefined) as opposite to Olive oil or Canola oil.
Hi Alex, thank you for the tip! We don’t usually cook with sunflower oil because it has a low smoke point, but we sure love it on salads for that authentic flavor you are referring to – I know exactly what you mean! 🙂
Can these be used for french fries with ketchup?
Hi Ellie, these look a little like fries and are great with ketchup but it is easiest to eat these with a fork since they are pan fried and stick together much more than fries would.
Hi Natasha
I made this and it was super delicious, not to mention easy. My husband loved it. I added minced garlic and eggs towards the end. Will serve it with cucumber or dill next time. Thanks.
Sofia, thank you for the great review and great job on improvising :).
I love potatoes any way shape or form and if I could, I would eat them for every meal of the day, every day! Yes, that’s how much I love potatoes…especially fried potatoes. Fried potatoes are my dad’s specialty! We make them slightly different though. We cut them into thin rounds and fry the potatoes first and once they start to get a bit color on them, I add sliced onions (i cut onions in thin half rounds) and then finish frying like that. However, my VERY favorite is to either add some cut up bacon or Canadian bacon (I think it’s slightly healthier). My dad even added ground beef at some point and it come out delicious as well! My favorite side dish with them is Russian sour sauerkraut!
Olga, thank you for sharing your version of making these potatoes, I will definitely give them a try :).
YES potatoes
the onions are not gona get burned cooking the whole time w potatoes? i usually always add them like the last 10 min of cooking
Adding butter to the skillet prevents them from burning vs using oil. You can also saute them separately and add them 5 min before potatoes are done. Hope this helps :).