RECIPE: No-hassle hasselback potatoes
The sweet potato is one of the most iconic Southern vegetables. It thrives in our climate, stores well over the winter months, and is highly nutritious. I used to think I didn’t like sweet potatoes, because they were so sweet; then, I realized it wasn’t the vegetable I didn’t care for — it was the copious amounts of sugar typically heaped upon them in the holiday classic dish candied yams.
Leave the brown sugar and marshmallows off, and put your knife skills to work with a technique known as hasselback. The name comes from Hasselbacken, a restaurant in Stockholm, Sweden, where the recipe was introduced. Typically, white potatoes, such as Yukon golds or russets, are used, but we’re going full-on fall by using sweet potatoes. Hasselback potatoes have the crispy edges of fried potatoes, but with a creamy mashed-style middle — the best of both worlds. And, despite their name and fancy appearance, they take no more time, and little more effort, than a baked sweet potato.
It’s important to follow a few simple steps: Slice straight down into the sweet potato, but stop just short of cutting all the way through. To achieve this, place two wooden chopsticks or wooden spoons on either side of the sweet potato to use as a guide, so you don’t slice all the way through. Aim for slices that are between ¼-inch and ⅛-inch thick.
Top with this savory orange herb butter, or other toppings, such as butter, cane syrup or Sriracha.
You’ll love this kitchen technique any way you slice it.
- 2 medium sweet potatoes
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped parsley
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- zest of 1 orange
- pinch cayenne pepper
- coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil, or a nonstick silicone baking mat.
- Place a sweet potato between the handles of 2 chopsticks or 2 wooden spoons. Slice the potato widthwise into thin slices, leaving ¼ inch of the bottom unsliced; the chopsticks will prevent you from slicing the potato all the way through. Repeat with the remaining potato.
- Place the potatoes on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until tender and crisp, about 45 minutes. Halfway through the roasting time, remove the potatoes from the oven and run a fork gently across the tops of the potatoes, using light pressure, to fan the slices and separate them from one another.
- Meanwhile, combine the butter, parsley, garlic, orange zest and cayenne pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Once the potatoes are tender, remove them from the oven. Serve immediately, with the orange herb butter. Serves 2 to 4.
Nutritional information
Per serving: Per serving, based on 4: 110 calories (percent of calories from fat, 60), 1 gram protein, 14 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 6 grams total fat (4 grams saturated), 15 milligrams cholesterol, 58 milligrams sodium.Virginia Willis is an Atlanta-based Food Network Kitchen chef, James Beard Award-winning food writer and author of seven cookbooks. Follow her at virginiawillis.com.
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