Dad’s Kentucky Home Fries

  4.4 – 42 reviews  

tasty fried potatoes with a Kentucky taste. Simple to prepare at home or while camping. For a quick microwave breakfast on the run, leftovers keep well in the refrigerator. Add diced green pepper for an East Coast twist.

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 25 mins
Servings: 4
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

  1. 2 tablespoons bacon drippings
  2. 4 large potatoes, peeled and sliced
  3. ½ Vidalia onion, chopped
  4. salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Heat the bacon drippings in a large skillet over medium heat. Add potatoes and onion, and stir to coat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender and golden brown, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, and serve.

Reviews

Michael Peterson
Like many here I have made this type of potato all my life but they were never quite right. These were outstanding. I loved the bacon grease. I used a mandolin so had even, thin sliced potatoes and I didn’t cover them on the advice of one of the readers. I used onion powder this time. They were great and I can hardly wait to make them again. It will be a regular now.
Angela Jordan
This is a good, basic home fries recipe. I gave the potatoes a head start in the microwave and then finished in my cast iron skillet. They came out wonderfully.
Mark Sullivan
Delicious home fries! Bacon grease makes everything better, right? We omitted the onion as we had friends coming over and some don’t care for it. I also used baked potatoes to start the recipe to make sure they were cooked all the way through since I’m not the best cook of home fries.
Mary Daniels
Very tasty, but takes a lot longer than 15 minutes to cook the potatoes.
Denise Morrison
I sprinkled the potatoes with a little Johnny’s seasoning salt (instead of regular salt) and fresh ground pepper but other than that, I followed the recipe exact. Delicious. I made these to go along chili dogs. My husband said this is exactly how HIS dad made home fries.
Elizabeth Bradley
These are the same potatoes I’ve eaten for the past 52 years … just plain ‘ol southern country cooking. Here’s a yummy tip … cover your skillet and cook on medium, turning every few minutes to keep the potatoes from burning until the potatoes are soft then uncover, turn up the heat and brown til they’re nice & crispy on the bottom. I also liberally add onion powder w/the salt & pepper.
Andrew Brewer
With butter, this was pretty heavy, would probably be heavier with bacon grease.
Pamela Roth
Great recipe. But to kick them up try adding some fresh thyme. Mmmm Mmmm good!
Casey Morrison
These are good. We just call them fired potatoes. I have eaten them all my life and have prepared them this way all 34 yrs I have been married.
Dawn Jones
I grew up in the fiftys eating fried potatoes this way. It’s the only way eat good home cookin. I will occasionaly fix them this way for me and my granddaughter, she loves them almost as much as I do. Sweetrose46
Patricia Cherry
They are probably called Kentucky Home Fries because of the bacon, back in the day…everything would have been cooked in bacon grease, plentiful and very yummy.
Ryan Macdonald
I’m over 65 and my mom used to make potatoes like this. We just called these Fried Potatoes, I’m from PA and we were Italian so this isn’t just Southern or Kentucky cooking – I think it’s good old American cooking. Yummy – especially when the slices on the bottom of the pan get nice and crunchy. I agree with another reviewer who said you need an iron skillet for these – that what my mom and grandmother used! I don’t make these often but now and then as a special treat.
Brandy West
Yes, they are good. I add green pepper, yellow squash, and a little green tomato. Also I dice my potatoes.
Eileen White
Good but not great.
Jennifer Johnson
Very good! Lots of flavor & easy to make even for a camping trip foil dinner.
Zachary Dean
Don’t know why they’re called “Kentucky” homefries. I’ve always made them this way and am Canadian. (I also cook my pancakes in a small amount of bacon fat.) As suggested, I add onions half-way through. I don’t any any salt, pepper, garlic granules or spices (summer savoury is my choice) until the last few minutes; otherwise, they burn and don’t add much flavour. I don’t recommend covering with a lid as someone suggested; they’ll be soggy because they’ll be steamed! If we have leftover steak from the night before, I slice and add for the last 5 minutes.
Ryan Black
I grew up with these potatoes and still make them this way for my family. They’re the best but even better with more onion and some garlic salt. Cayenne pepper makes them really special.
Ms. Michelle Lee DDS
These are the best fried potatoes you’ll ever make. My mom made this recipe when I was a child, and she called them “American Fried Potatoes.” The secret is the bacon drippings!!! If you use any other kind of oil, your results will be mediocre at best. I use more onion than this recipe calls for, and more bacon drippings too. I also add garlic powder. I add potatoes to the heated drippings/skillet, cover, cook ten minutes on one side, flip potatoes over and cook another ten minutes. Perfection!
Thomas Miller
You can’t go wrong with this one and it’s always a hit! If you’re feeling lazy, you don’t even have to peel the potatoes.
Joel Richardson
a very good but a bit bland ! cooked bacon put aside added potatoes used red and russet , didnt peel or cube so put in microwave for 3 minutes before cooking cooked potatoes for a few minutes i added green onions, onions, salt and pepper.
Mary Lee
Delicious! These “Kentucky style” home fries were very easy to prepare and very good. I cut the recipe in half and partially microwaved my potaotes to cut down on cooking time. The bacon drippings while I admit aren’t the most “healthy” really gave the home fries a nice flavor. All I added a little garlic, a bit of salt and peper with a dash of paprika and they were perfect with eggs, bacon and toast. What more could you want for breakfast?

 

Leave a Comment