Breakfast potatoes aren’t hard to make, but chopping and roasting a fresh batch every morning isn’t something I want to do. Instead, I roast 3 pounds of Yukon Gold potatoes at once and put most of them in the freezer.
The potatoes cook until golden before they ever reach the freezer, so breakfast later is about reheating rather than starting over. Eggs and cheese can turn a portion into a breakfast bowl, or I can put a fried egg on top and use the potatoes for the runny yolk.
Start With 3 Pounds of Yukon Gold Potatoes
Heat the oven to 400°F, scrub 3 pounds of Yukon Gold potatoes, then cut them into bite-size pieces.
Yukon Golds work well here because the centers stay soft while the cut surfaces brown in the oven. Keeping the pieces close to the same size also helps them finish cooking at the same time.
There’s no need to peel them before cutting unless you prefer potatoes without the skin.
Shake the Potatoes With Oil and Seasoning
Put the diced potatoes in a large container with a lid, working in batches if needed.
Add a small amount of olive oil, seal the container, and shake until the pieces have a light coating. Add salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder, then shake again to distribute the seasonings.
Using a container instead of stirring everything on the baking sheet helps spread the oil and seasoning across the potato pieces without pouring oil over each section of the pan.
Roast Until the Potatoes Turn Golden
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and spread the seasoned potatoes across them.
Bake at 400°F for about one hour, stirring the potatoes halfway through. Spreading them across two pans gives the pieces more room than crowding all 3 pounds onto one sheet.
Once the potatoes are golden, take them out and let them cool.
Cool the Potatoes Before Freezing Them
Don’t move hot potatoes straight from the baking sheet into a freezer container. Let them cool first, then portion the amount you aren’t eating and freeze it.
At that point, the potatoes are cooked, browned, and seasoned. You’re freezing finished breakfast potatoes rather than raw potato cubes that still need to be roasted later.
Smaller portions also make it easier to take out only what you need for one breakfast.
Reheat a Portion Straight From the Freezer
Frozen breakfast potatoes can go into the microwave without another round in the oven. A serving takes about 90 seconds to 2 minutes to heat, depending on the portion and microwave.
The microwave won’t recreate the same crisp exterior they had straight from the oven, so an air fryer, skillet, or oven makes more sense when crispness matters. For a fast breakfast bowl, though, the microwave gets them hot without another hour of roasting.
Top them with scrambled eggs and cheese, add a fried egg, or serve them beside whatever else is already on the breakfast plate.
Making 3 pounds sounds excessive until most of the work becomes breakfast for another day. One long roast gives me potatoes for the first meal plus freezer portions I can pull out when I don’t want to chop, season, and wait for another pan to cook.
Would you freeze cooked breakfast potatoes, or do you prefer making a fresh batch each time?
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