Easy Greek Roasted Potatoes With Fresh Herbs

I love going to the farmer’s market. There are regional and seasonal varieties of basic vegetables you won’t get by going to the regular supermarkets. Dozens of varieties of tomatoes, potatoes, and apples are always to be experimented with. So when I saw these beautiful rosy-colored Amarosa fingerling potatoes, I had to experiment with them.

Now I realized asking you to go around looking for Amarosa fingerling potatoes is really too much work for a simple side dish. Really any kind of fingerling potatoes or yukon gold potatoes will suffice for this recipe. You will achieve the same potato texture. You just won’t get the rosy hue!

Both fingerling potatoes and yukon golds have a creamy, buttery texture that just melts in your mouth and are the best potatoes to use for any roasted potato recipe. Yo don’t want to use floury potatoes like Idaho potatoes or Russet potatoes.

So what is the secret ingredient to bring out the lemony flavor? Well, actually there are two.

There is a lot of Arabic history in Greece and you will find culinary influences and similarities with Levantine countries like Lebanon, Jordan and Syria. So if you cook Middle Eastern food, these ingredients may already be familiar to you.

• Sumac – Sumac is the dried berry of a plant in the cashew family. Sumac is a primary spice used throughout Levantine cuisines – often used as a finishing spice and often used to flavor meat dishes and salads. It has a tart, lemony flavor.
• Aleppo Pepper – Aleppo Pepper is a member of the capsicum family. It is basically a type of pepper, with a mild chili flavor. Used throughout the region of the Mediterranean and Levantine countries. It goes by different names like pul biber in Turkey and halebi bibar in Armenia. It is less spicy than crushed red pepper flakes, so really is quite mild, but with a smoky, lemony flavor.

These special ingredients will bring out the bright flavor of lemons and citrus, without using real lemons in this delicious side dish. Not only in this great side dish, but using sumac or Aleppo Pepper will add a little lemon flavor to any thing it is added to.

These are two spices it is smart to keep in your pantry, for when you don’t have any fresh lemon juice and want to elevate the flavor of whatever you are cooking like these lemony potatoes – without lemon 🙂

These spices in addition to the combination of herbs add Greek flavors that we all love into this easy side dish.

Now let’s see what other ingredients you are going to need to pick up from the grocery store. In this version I have used all fresh ingredients, but you can always substitute dried herbs. However, the flavor won’t be the same.

• fingerling potatoes or yukon golds
• olive oil
• garlic
• fresh rosemary
• fresh oregano
• fresh parsley
• Aleppo pepper
• sumac
• Salt

• Toss potatoes with olive oil, garlic and herbs.
• Place the potatoes in an even layer on a baking dish.
• Roast in the oven.

• Use dried herbs, if you do not have access to fresh herbs.
• You can also utilize other herbs also commonly used in Greek cuisine such as thyme and dill.
• To serve, add some melted butter on top for a rich flavor.
• You can also garnish with feta cheese, if you desire.

This go to potato side dish is one your family will love and I have no doubt you definitely will be adding it to the weekly repertoire.

• Allow your roast potatoes to cool down completely.
• Place them in an airtight container.
• Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
• Reheat oven-roasted potatoes in the oven at 400 F.

• Keftedes (Greek Meatballs)
• Pita Bread
• Galaktoboureko (Greek Custard Pie)

Need more culinary inspiration? Check out the Recipe Index with over 1500 Recipes from Around the World with lots of Vegetarian 🥕🍆🍅and Gluten Free Recipes!