Have you ever seen a Hasselback potato? My kids had not before I made this recipe. When Charlie tried it, he said, “Please do not make potatoes any other way ever again.” And that, my friends, is what people like me live for.

In this recipe, the potatoes are brushed with a wonderful garlic-infused butter. Then, just before the potatoes finish baking, you slip a slice of melty, nutty cheese between every other slice. The cheese melts gently into the creamy, crispy potatoes, and the end result is every bit as gorgeous and delicious as you might imagine. Essentially, cheesy Hasselback potatoes are a vertical potato gratin! I think Charlie may be right — this might be the best thing that can possibly happen to a potato.

Loaded Hasselback Potatoes: An irresistible Hasselback potatoes recipe with all the good stuff—garlic butter, cheese, bacon, sour cream, chives!

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What Is a Hasselback Potato?

As you’ve probably figured out from the photos, a Hasselback potato is a potato that is thinly sliced — but not all the way through — before baking. The result is almost like a line of thick, chewy potato chips. Sometimes, they are also called accordion potatoes.

They are often brushed with butter or oil before baking, and I’m all over that with some garlicky butter. But with the loaded Hasselbacks, things get even better. Cheese, bacon, scallions, and bacon — so much more to love.

How Did Hasselback Potatoes Get Their Name?

This potato dish originated in a restaurant in Stockholm, Sweden, called Hasselbacken, which has been around since the 1700s. Supposedly, a student chef named Lief Ellison invented them in the 1950s, although, as with many culinary origin stories, there is some dispute about both the inventor and the timeframe. The location seems to be agreed upon, however — Hasselbacken is hard to argue with.

How to Slice Hasselback Potatoes

This Hasselback potato slicing technique is similar to the one I use when cutting bread for garlic bread. You create guardrails of sorts by using chopsticks or the handles of wooden spoons placed alongside the potatoes lengthwise. Then, when you make your slices, the rods stop the knife from cutting all of the way down without you having to be super focused on it. The slices will all be held together at the bottom of the potato. They don’t have to be perfect; your Hasselback potatoes will still look smashing.

Loaded Hasselback Potato Ingredients

• Potatoes – The type of potatoes you use is up to you. It can work with any type; I personally prefer medium Idaho russet potatoes. Scrub them before cooking with them to get any remaining dirt off.
• Unsalted butter – A whole stick. Trust me, it’s necessary.
• Garlic – Finely minced garlic is the key to creating finger-licking-good garlic butter to layer on top of these potatoes.
• Paprika – To round out the flavor of the garlic butter, use sweet, hot, or smoked paprika — dealer’s choice.
• Parsley – Finely chopped flat-leaf parsley adds green freshness to the butter.
• Salt and pepper – To taste.
• Cheese – Cheddar, Gruyere, or some other hard, melting cheese gets slotted between thin slices of potatoes. You’ll want to thinly slice your cheese into pieces that are about 1-inch square, and you’ll need about 48 slices. The prep for this is a great job to delegate to the kids! Or you can buy presliced sticks of cheese, which work really well in this recipe.
• Toppings – How you top the potatoes is up to you. I love them with sour cream and chives. Oh, and also bacon. (Lots of bacon.)

How to Cook Hasselback Potatoes

1. Preheat and prep: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet or a 9×13-inch pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
2. Make garlic butter: In a small saucepan or skillet, melt the butter with the garlic over medium heat, stirring until the garlic is golden but not browned, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat, and stir in paprika, parsley, salt, and pepper.
3. Cut into the potatoes: Place two chopsticks, or the handles of wooden mixing spoons, along the long sides of each potato, one by one, and use a large sharp knife to slice the potatoes crosswise into ¼-inch slices, stopping once the knife reaches the wooden rods.
4. Dress the potatoes: Place the sliced potatoes on the prepared baking sheet or pan, and use a brush to spread the butter mixture between the slices, being careful not to split the potatoes through the bottom. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the garlic butter.
5. Bake: Bake for about 1 hour, until the potatoes are tender and nicely browned along the edges of the slices. Remove the potatoes from the oven, but keep the oven on.
6. Add cheese and remaining butter: Slide one slice of the cheese into the space between every two slices of potato. Repeat for all of the potatoes. Brush the top of the potatoes with the remaining garlic butter. Bake for about 5 more minutes until the cheese is just starting to become melty.
7. Serve: Remove the Hasselback potatoes from the oven and serve hot with the bacon, sour cream, and chives.

How to Reheat Hasselback Potatoes

If you know you are making the Hasselbacks to be reheated later, bake them for 1 hour, but then take them out of the oven before you add the cheese slices. Reheat them in a preheated 425-degree oven for 15 minutes, then slip in the cheese and bake for the final 5 minutes as directed.

If the cheese has already been added, you can still reheat them in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes at 425 degrees, but the cheese will probably get very melty and drip out of the slices. I would use a spatula to scrape any melted cheese from the bottom of the baking dish and slather it over the top of the hot potatoes.

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