Crispy and crunchy on the outside, pillowy soft inside, with a bright, sunny burst of lemon. Is there anything better than sinking your fork into the perfect potato? Roasted Greek Skillet Potatoes will have you smashing plates and saying opa!

Savory, bright, herbaceous, and a little salty from melted feta, these roasted potatoes are the little black dress of sides. Whether you’re looking for the perfect side to serve next to your Bourbon Herb Compound Butter kissed steak, or companion to roast chicken, these easy and delicious skillet potatoes the deliver on both texture and flavor will have you going back for seconds.
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
Cheesy potatoes in general are the ultimate comfort food. They’re tender nuggets that almost hug you at first bite. Roasted Greek Skillet Potatoes are a play on the familiar but with fresh Mediterranean flavors.
- Make Ahead – This recipe uses a two-part cooking process. The baby potatoes are first blanched until almost done, and then finished off in a skillet. You can blanch your potatoes ahead of time, even the night before, making these ideal for a quick and easy weeknight side.
- Textures – Blanching the potatoes with the addition of baking soda helps create a scruffy surface for a crispy exterior while ensuring the tender flesh remains fluffy and soft.
- Accessible Ingredients – All of the ingredients for this recipe can easily be found at your local grocery store.
- Budget Friendly – Combining pantry staples like olive oil and dried oregano with a few fresh and cheerful ingredients like dill and lemon make this dish easy to devour and easy on your wallet.
- Easy Process – These crispy potatoes come together in two simple steps, parboil, and then roast.
- Versatility – These Greek potatoes can be roasted in the oven or on your gas, charcoal, or pellet grill.
Ingredients
No bad decision ever started with potatoes and cheese. With just a handful of simple ingredients, these potatoes give a fun twist to your average roast potatoes.

- Baby Potatoes – You can use all red baby potatoes, gold, or a colorful combination. Using baby potatoes not only helps these cook faster, but they also give the ideal ratio of skin to flesh.
- Salt – Salt not only seasons the potatoes as they roast but is added to the water when blanching them, ensuring they’re seasoned inside and out.
- Baking Soda – Adding baking soda to the water when blanching your potatoes scruffs up their outer surface. This creates additional texture that helps them brown and crisp more when they’re roasted.
- Olive Oil – This adds richness to the flavor of the potatoes while also helping them crisp and roast.
- Dried Oregano – It might be all Greek to me, but you can’t have Greek food without the joy of the mountains. This strong and bright herb that comes from the mint family has a verdant yet peppery bite.
- Granulated Garlic – Adds the savory, bold, and sharp flavor of garlic without the possibility of it burning before the potatoes are crispy.
- Sumac – This ingredient is optional but adds a bright citrusy flavor that compliments the fresh lemon juice at the end. Sumac is a star ingredient of za’atar and is made from ground sumac berries.
- Black Pepper – Potatoes and pepper belong together like Toula Portokalos and Ian Miller. Earthy, woody, and just spicy enough to make your taste buds dance the hasipiko, it also pairs well with lemon.
- Lemon – A squeeze of lemon at the end adds an instant pop of acidic brightness that wakes up all of the flavors.
- Dill – Fresh dill adds verdant and herbaceous flavor with its grassy and slightly sweet anise flavor profile.
- Feta – This brined Greek cheese is salty, savory, and made from either sheep’s milk or a combination of sheep’s and goat’s milk. You want to use block feta, not feta that has already been crumbled for the best texture.
How to Make Roasted Greek Skillet Potatoes
You don’t have to go to Greek school to make these skillet potatoes.
- Parboil – Bring a pot of water to a boil and then add your kosher salt and baking soda. Once dissolved gently add your halved baby potatoes and allow them to cook for 3-5 minutes, or until they are just for tender. Drain them and allow them to thoroughly dry. This step can be done well ahead of time.
- Mix – Mix together your spice rub. Make sure to rub your dried oregano in your hands to release its oils. This helps bring out its full flavor and wakes it up.
- Toss – Add your cooled, dried potatoes, olive oil, and spice mix to a bowl or ziplock back and toss to fully combine.
- Roast – Preheat your grill to 400 degrees. Arrange your potatoes in a cast iron skillet, cut side down. Don’t worry if a few are on top of each other. Place the skillet in your grill and close the lid. Allow them to roast for about 15 minutes before tossing them.

- Squeeze – Squeeze the lemon juice over the top and allow them to roast for another 10 minutes.
- Top – Top with feta and dill and let them cook until the feta is beginning to melt.

Substitutions
While baby potatoes work best for these potatoes, you can use this same method and recipe for cubed potatoes as well. Russet potatoes will give you the best crispy exterior if cubing potatoes. Make sure to cut them into fairly even sizes.
In addition, you can also cut your Russet potatoes into wedges for roasted Greek fries. They will take a slightly longer time to parboil. Just swap out the cast iron skillet for a baking sheet so they can be spread out in an even layer.
Variations on Roasted Greek Skillet Potatoes
- Spicy – Spice is the stuff of life. Give these potatoes a little kick by adding a pinch of either cayenne pepper or crushed red pepper flakes to your spice mix.
- Dairy Free – While cheese really does make everything better, you can keep this recipe both Dairy Free and vegan by leaving the feta off or using Dairy Free feta.
- Parmesan/Basil – Take a trip to Italy by swapping the feta in this recipe for freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. The nutty flavor pairs well with the bright kiss of lemon. Instead of adding fresh dill at the end add fresh basil.
Tools
A cast iron skillet is your best friend for this recipe. Not only do is it made for the high heat of the oven or grill, but it also conducts heat evenly and helps create that crispy exterior. However, if you don’t have a cast iron skillet you can use an oven/grill safe skillet or even a baking sheet.
Tip From the Beach
Parboiling potatoes is a great way to reduce the cooking time and make them part of your weekly meal prep. When you add baking soda, the alkaline water helps break down the pectin of the potato faster and draw out the natural starches, creating a scruffy surface. That extra texture allows them to get even crispier and more golden brown.

When making your parboiled potatoes ahead of time allow them to completely dry and cool. I like spreading them out on a baking sheet lined with paper towel and chilling them in the fridge.
Are you looking for more easy side dishes? Make sure to check out Mediterranean Farro Salad with Grilled Vegetables.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why parboil potatoes ahead of time?
Parboiling potatoes allows you to cut down on the cooking time while getting that crispy exterior and tender, fluffy interior.
Why add baking soda to the water when parboiling potatoes?
The baking soda makes the water alkaline. This helps draw out the natural pectin and starches in the potatoes which both begins breaking down the potato while also creating texture and a scruffy surface. This helps the potatoes get even more brown and crispy.
Do I have to roast these potatoes on the grill?
This same recipe for Roasted Greek Skillet Potatoes can be made in the oven.
Roasted Greek Skillet Potatoes
Crispy yet pillowy baby potatoes are drenched in a bright squeeze of lemon juice and topped with melted feta and fresh dill.
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Roast
- Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds baby potatoes, halved
- 1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano, crushed
- 1/4 teaspoon sumac, optional
- Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
- 1 lemon
- 1/3 cup block feta, crumbled
- 1/8 cup fresh dill, finely chopped
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the salt and baking soda and let dissolve.
- Gently add the potatoes into the boiling water and cover. Allow them to boil for 3-5 minutes until they are just fork tender.
- Drain potatoes and let them thoroughly dry.
- Preheat grill to 400 degrees.
- Add your spices to a small bowl and mix together.
- Add your potatoes, olive oil, and spice mixture to a bowl or plastic bag and mix to combine. Pour the potatoes into a cast iron skillet, positioning as many potatoes cut side down as possible.
- Place the skillet in your preheated grill and close the lid. Allow them to roast for 15 minutes or until they are bronzed and crispy.
- Toss the potatoes and squeeze fresh lemon juice over the top. Allow them to grill for another 10 minutes.
- Top with feta and fresh dill. Let the potatoes cook until the feta is just melted.
- Serve with additional lemon and dill if desired.
Notes
This same recipe can be made in the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and then follow the same steps.