Do you love good roasted potatoes as much as I do? I’ve never been one to walk away from them! But in the summer, especially when it’s been as hot as it’s been in Chicago recently, the grill is definitely my friend. The little tabletop gas grill on our balcony serves us well: she’s small, but mighty!
While the small propane canister this grill uses doesn’t really lend itself to hours-long smoke sessions, it’s perfect for things that take less time. And coming in at less than 30 minutes, these grilled roasties are ideal! I can’t call this a “recipe”. It’s really just about combining simple ingredients that you can tailor to your own taste, which is truly my kind of cooking: use what you have and make it delicious!
You can use as many small potatoes as you wish, but I almost always have one of those 1.5-lb bags of small potatoes on hand and that’s what I used here. I like the mix of red and yellow potatoes pictured above. You’ll need some neutral (that is, unflavored) high-heat oil like grapeseed, canola, or avocado, salt and pepper, and a handful of whatever fresh herb (or mixture of herbs) you wish. I like to use extra virgin olive oil for finishing, so I keep that handy, as well.
Get your grill nice and hot and be sure to oil it.
You may have a larger grill (I doubt you have a smaller one!), and yours may be charcoal instead of gas. So, bear those things in mind as you read on about how I did these. You may need to adjust your heat setting and/or timing, depending on your grilling set-up.
Drizzle the neutral oil (I used avocado oil) over the potatoes and season generously with salt and pepper. You only need enough oil to lightly coat the potatoes but do make sure they’re coated on all sides. Toss well to evenly coat.
Once your grill is hot, tip the bowl of potatoes onto the grill. There’s no need to place them one-by-one, but once they’re on the grill, use tongs to space them out enough so that they aren’t touching one another. Cover the grill. For my grill, I leave it on high heat and let the potatoes go for about 10 minutes. At that point, use tongs to quickly lift one or two of the potatoes just to check if the grill marks on the bottom are to your liking. How dark do you want them? If you want darker grill marks, replace the cover and let them go for another few minutes before checking again.
Once you’re satisfied with the grill marks on the bottoms of the potatoes, use tongs to turn each one over. Again, make sure to spread them out enough so they aren’t touching. Cover the grill again and check them in 5-10 minutes.
While the potatoes are roasting, give your herbs a quick chop. I feel fortunate to have an assortment of herbs flourishing on our balcony garden, and for tonight I picked some marjoram. It’s one of my favorite summer herbs. I say “summer” because I rarely find it fresh at the supermarket in the winter, so I really only use it when it’s outside my door. It’s kind of citrusy-floral that I find really brightens up a dish. Other fresh herbs that work well here are thyme, oregano, rosemary (a bit tougher, so be sure to chop it finely), and chives, just to name a few. Follow your heart!
Give your potatoes a quick “knife test” to see if they are done. The tip of a knife should insert and release with little-to-no resistance. Here’s what I mean by that:
In total, the potatoes were on my grill for about 25 minutes. Again, your timing may differ.
Once the potatoes are done, move them to a sheet pan and while they’re still warm, give them a light drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and add the chopped herbs. I like to also add some large-crystal finishing salt such as Maldon. Toss everything together. A silicone spatula should do the trick, since the potatoes may be too hot to toss with your hands.
Once finished, you can eat them right away or let them sit and enjoy them at room temperature. After they cool, you could also cut them in half to use in a “roasted potato salad” that you then chill, just as you would with boiled potatoes.
I let the potatoes sit while I grilled chicken for dinner. I had some aioli in the fridge, so I set that alongside for dipping. It’s almost like “lazy potato salad” since aioli is, essentially, garlicky mayonnaise! If you want to make your own aioli, check out Easy Kitchen Forearm Workout: Make Aioli from Chef Matt. You’ll see that you can whisk it all together by hand or use a food processor. I promise your fridge will never be without it once you make it!
From steak to fajitas and pineapple to pizza, The Chopping Block’s outdoor grill patio is roaring in August! Check out our grilling classes and have some fun learning more about grilling.
