Irish Roasted Red Potatoes with Caramelized Onions & Bacon

IRISH ROASTED RED POTATOES with CARAMELIZED ONIONS & BACON

3/3/2020

Roasted Red Potatoes with Caramelized Onions & Bacon

These Irish Roasted Red Potatoes with Caramelized Onions & Bacon are so good that you may be tempted to eat them for dinner all alone! Tender oven-roasted baby red potatoes, sweet caramel-colored ribbons of caramelized onions and bacon, sprinkled with parmesan cheese and fresh herbs are beyond wonderful! Try these with corned beef on St. Patrick’s Day, or serve with your favorite grilled steak. Possibly the best potatoes you will ever have – there are never any leftovers when I make these!

Caramelized Onions & Bacon

TIPS FOR CARAMELIZING ONIONS:

For best flavor and texture, always use yellow onions for caramelizing, even though it is tempting to use sweet onions! Yellow onions start off sharp and pungent, but transform into sweet caramel-colored ribbons of sweet onion!
Always slice onions from top to bottom when preparing caramelized onions. If you slice the onions horizontally (as you do for onion rings), they tend to dissolve more during the long cooking time and loose their shape.
Low and slow is the key to perfect Caramelized Onions! Be patient and stir frequently. Don't be tempted to pull the pan off the stove when they start to get golden! The real magic happens AFTER they are golden, keep cooking until they are a deep golden brown as they start to sweeten up and caramelize magically!
If a brown coating forms on the bottom of the pan during the cooking process, add a few tablespoons of water and stir; repeat as necessary.

Roasted Red Potatoes with Caramelized Onions & Bacon

TIPS FOR ROASTING POTATOES:

Use fresh baby red potatoes or smaller red potatoes for roasting - the skin on the potatoes adds a lot of flavor and helps the potatoes keep their shape when cooking.
Roasting potatoes adds flavor and texture you won't get from other cooking methods.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a rimmed 1x13-inch baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Lightly dust with flour and shake out the excess.
Place the prepared baking sheet in the oven and allow it to heat up to 400 degrees before you add your potatoes! This will help keep your potatoes from getting soggy and sticking to the pan, and also promotes golden edges.
Roast in preheated oven and on preheated pan for 45 minutes, flipping every 15 minutes or until the edges are golden.
Use a flat metal spatula to turn the potatoes. Even when the baking sheet is greased and dusted with flour you'll probably find a few still sticking, so a thin spatula will help you turn them.

Irish Roasted Red Potatoes with Caramelized Onions & Bacon

ROASTED RED POTATOES WITH CARAMELIZED ONIONS & BACON

These Roasted Red Potatoes with Caramelized Onions & Bacon are so good that you may be tempted to eat them for dinner all alone! Tender oven-roasted baby red potatoes, sweet caramel-colored ribbons of caramelized onions and bacon, sprinkled with parmesan cheese and fresh herbs are beyond wonderful! Try these with corned beef on St. Patrick’s Day, or serve with your favorite grilled steak. Possibly the best potatoes you will ever have – there are never any leftovers when I make these!

Roasted Red Potatoes with Caramelized Onions & Bacon

INGREDIENTS:
Caramelized Onions & Bacon:
3 medium (about 2 lbs) yellow onions, sliced
8 ounces hickory smoked bacon (regular, center cut or thick-sliced)
2 Tablespoons butter
1 Table spoon extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, finely chopped (or ½ teaspoon dried thyme)

Roasted Potatoes:
2 1/2 lbs baby red potatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks
3 Tablespoons virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (or 2 teaspoons dried rosemary)
½ tablespoon crushed fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)
1/2 tsp salt and pepper, or more to taste
3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tablespoon)
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

HOW I MAKE THIS:

PREPARE CARAMELIZED ONIONS & BACON: Remove onion skins and cut the tip and root from the onions; cut in half (lengthwise). Lay each half flat and cut into ¼-inch slices, again cutting from tip to root. (If you slice the onions horizontally, they tend to dissolve more when cooking and loose their shape.) Cut bacon slices into ¾-inch pieces.
Melt butter in a heavy stainless steel or cast iron skillet over medium heat, then add olive oil. Add onions and bacon pieces and toss to coat with butter mixture. Sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper.
Let cook for 40-45 minutes, while reducing heat to medium-low as needed if they are browning too much. Stir frequently with a wooden spoon. Onions should be nice and golden brown and have a rich caramelized flavor.
MEANWHILE, PREPARE ROASTED POTATOES: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray large rimmed baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Lightly dust with flour and shake out excess. Place the prepared baking sheet in the oven and allow it to preheat as well before you add your potatoes! This will help keep your potatoes from getting soggy and sticking to the pan, and also promotes golden edges.
In a large mixing bowl, toss potatoes with olive oil. Add rosemary and thyme and season with salt and pepper to taste, toss to evenly distribute.
Pour mixture onto prepared baking sheet and spread into an even layer.
Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, turning every 15 minutes. At 30 minutes, sprinkle with the minced garlic and grated parmesan cheese and turn carefully. Continue baking about 15 minutes longer or until potatoes are light golden brown and tender. Remove from oven.
Place roasted potatoes in a large serving bowl – they may stick slightly to the pan, so use a thin metal spatula to lift from pan.
Add caramelized onions and bacon to roasted potatoes and toss or stir gently until combined. Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.

YIELD: 4-6 servings

RECIPE TIPS:

Use fresh grated parmesan rather than the canned (shelf-stable) stuff – fresh grated parmesan will give you a fresher and more “cheesy” taste. Also, shredded parmesan doesn’t coat as evenly as grated parmesan – for best results, go with fresh grated!
If you don’t have fresh herbs on hand, I’ve also made these with Italian seasoning, using 1-1/2 teaspoon (instead of fresh thyme, rosemary and parsley).
For a delicious flavor twist, sprinkle potatoes with 1 teaspoon smoked paprika before roasting.
Wait to add the garlic at the 30 minute mark so that it doesn’t burn and turn bitter.
Use a flat metal spatula to turn the potatoes. Even when the baking sheet is greased and dusted with flour, you’ll likely find a few pieces still sticking, so a thin spatula will help turn them. Non-stick foil also works well!
If you find that the potatoes don’t brown enough to your liking, try using a darker baking sheet the next time. The dark coating on these pans promotes browning, but the potatoes will roast faster and can burn easily – watch them carefully!

CARAMELIZED ONION TIPS:

For best flavor and texture, always use yellow onions for caramelizing, even though it is tempting to use sweet onions! Yellow onions start off sharp and pungent, but transform into sweet caramel-colored ribbons of sweet onion!
Always slice onions from top to bottom when preparing caramelized onions. If you slice the onions horizontally (as you do for onion rings), they tend to dissolve more during the long cooking time and loose their shape.
Low and slow is the key to perfect Caramelized Onions! Be patient and stir frequently. Don't be tempted to pull the pan off the stove when they start to get golden! The real magic happens AFTER they are golden, keep cooking until they are a deep golden brown as they start to sweeten up and caramelize magically!
If a brown coating forms on the bottom of the pan during the cooking process, add a few tablespoons of water and stir; repeat as necessary.

TIPS FOR ROASTING POTATOES:

Use fresh baby red potatoes or smaller red potatoes for roasting - the skin on the potatoes adds a lot of flavor and helps the potatoes keep their shape when cooking.
Roasting potatoes adds flavor and texture you won't get from other cooking methods.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a rimmed 1x13-inch baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Lightly dust with flour and shake out the excess.
Place the prepared baking sheet in the oven and allow it to heat up to 400 degrees before you add your potatoes! This will help keep your potatoes from getting soggy and sticking to the pan, and also promotes golden edges.
Roast in preheated oven and on preheated pan for 45 minutes, flipping every 15 minutes or until the edges are golden.
Use a flat metal spatula to turn the potatoes. Even when the baking sheet is greased and dusted with flour you'll probably find a few still sticking, so a thin spatula will help you turn them.

Originally posted July 2013; revised and reposted March 2020.

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