Potato and onion in garlic butter sauce, an easy side dish
Let your oven do all the work
Potatoes and onions are a tried and true pairing. They are both root vegetables and at their absolute best in the fall, just as we are starting to use the oven again for dinners, and this potato, onion and garlic butter sauce side dish is oven baked. There usually isn’t a lot of preparation necessary for something that’s going to be cooked in the oven and after that, your oven does all the work. If there is anything better than making your main course an easy fix by oven cooking, it’s when you pop a side dish in to cook at the same time. And this dinner recipe is perfect for that. It is easy to prepare, uses only a few everyday ingredients and it is absolutely delicious.
Potato onions and butter gives you a blank canvas
Those of us who enjoy cooking, think of it as a way to be creative. This potato and onion casserole is a dish that makes it easy to experiment with flavors. It is like a blank canvas, waiting for you to give it a personal touch. Garlic flavors the butter sauce in this basic version, but Ricky often adds basil or oregano. Those are his “go to” herbs. He uses them a lot in his main courses, so adding them to a side dish is a no brainer. You can do the same with the herbs and spices you like. This dish is easy to make your own.
What’s for dinner?
I am not good at planning ahead, and have had to learn to co-exist with my shortcomings. As far as cooking dinner goes, that has meant having a stock pile of “bail me out” recipes. My “bail me out” recipes are ones that can be made from ingredients I always have on hand. We have a SHOPPING LIST that includes what dinner ingredients Ricky and I would usually have in our kitchens’. Potatoes, onions, and garlic are on that list. I always have butter, and there you have it. All the fixings for this potato and onion side dish, which I can put together in about 5 minutes and then into the oven it goes. Another one of my bail out meals from Ricky’s treasure chest of easy recipes, is his potato and onion FRITTATA. You can have a frittata on the table in about 30 minutes.
Whether you are a person who plans ahead or not, this recipe checks all the boxes. Like most of Ricky’s dinner recipes, it’s easy to prepare. There are only two major ingredients: potatoes and an onion. It is economical and down right tasty too. Bet you don’t make it only once!
Here’s what YOU WILL NEED:
| 3 medium sized potatoes or 2 large potatoes |
| 1 medium yellow onion |
| 3 cloves of fresh garlic |
| 6 tablespoons butter (3/4 of a stick) |
| 1/2 teaspoon salt |
| 1/2 teaspoon pepper |
Make it your way
This is where your creativity begins; the ingredients. This recipe is an easy one to adapt to what you like.
This time around, we are using red potatoes. We wanted the finished product to be bright and beautiful for you 😊. And they are in season now and can be found in larger sizes than usual. You can use any potato you like. Adjust for the difference in size, using more than three if they are small, or two if they are large. Ricky does not peel potatoes in a dish like this. A lot of nutrients are in the potato skins. So why peel them off? People are paying a lot of money for potato skins these days. And let’s face it, it is easier to leave them unpeeled after you wash them well first. We have a whimsical post about what may be lingering on your unwashed fruits and vegetables Wash Before You Eat.
Want some ideas
This dinner recipe calls for a yellow onion. Those are the ones most common in our area. It is one of the strongest tasting onions. Sweet or Vidalia onions are milder, and great in this dish too. We would stay away from red onions for this recipe. Red onions are not a good pick for dishes that are going to be in the oven for a while, they become very bland. Sometimes red onions will turn a sauce or soup blue when used with certain other ingredients. For the most part, both of us think of red onions as being used raw. They are delicious raw in salads and dips. We have a post with pictures of various common onions if you are not familiar with them, take a look About Onions.
As for the garlic butter sauce, you can use any flavoring you want in the butter, or none at all. Butter, salt and pepper is all you need for this butter sauce. You can take it from there. Potatoes are great with rosemary, thyme or parsley, but you may like another herb. I like tarragon and that would be great in this too. We use dried herbs in this recipe, because it will be cooking long enough to rehydrate them and we will get all that concentrated flavor. I sprinkled some fresh Scallions over the top before serving. They have a bright, fresh subtle onion taste which can give a cooked dish like this potato and onion casserole a variety in texture. Adding a fresh herb to the top would work too. There are so many possibilities.
This is WHAT TO DO:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Chop the potatoes into bite sized pieces. Always remember that the larger the piece, the longer it takes to cook. Also, smaller pieces let you get a better mix of ingredients on your plate. Slice the onion in lengthwise slices, by cutting it in half first, putting the cut end flat on the cutting board and then cutting the slices from top to bottom.
Cut the butter in cubes so it will melt faster.
Chop the garlic.
To make the garlic butter sauce, put the cubed butter, chopped garlic and salt and pepper in a microwave safe cup or dish and melt it in the microwave. We used the defrost setting for one minute.
Mix the potatoes and onions in a baking dish.
Bet you know what happens next 🙂. Stir the melted butter sauce, pour it over the potato and onion and mix it in so it all is covered in sauce.
Now all you have to do is put it in the oven
After mixing the butter garlic sauce into the potato and onion in the baking dish, put it in the preheated oven for 45 minutes. After 30 minutes, check to see if the potatoes are tender. Depending on the size of the cut potatoes, the size of the baking dish you are using, and the type of potato,, they may be done in that time. If they are not, (and when Ricky or I make it, 30 minutes has not been enough time), return the dish to the oven for the remaining 15 minutes
Done
And here is your side dish of potato and onion with a garlic butter sauce, right out of the oven, with some chopped scallion sprinkled on top for flavor and texture. And remember it only took 5 minutes to get it ready for the oven!
Serve
served as a side dish
POTATO AND ONION IN A GARLIC BUTTER SAUCE
Ingredients
- 3 potatoes medium sized or 2 large
- 1 onion medium sized
- 3 cloves fresh garlic
- 6 tablespoons butter ¾ of a stick
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
Prepare Ingredients
- Chop the potatoes into bite sized pieces.
- Slice the onion into lengthwise strips, by cutting in half and laying the cut side down and then slicing lengthwise.
- Finely chop the garlic cloves.
- Cut the butter into cubes so it will melt faster and more uniformly.
Cooking Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Put the butter cubes, garlic, salt and pepper in an oven safe bowl or cup. Melt it all together in the microwave.
- Put the cut potato and onion in a baking dish.
- When the butter mixture has melted, pour it over the potato and onion and mix it in so everything is coated with the butter sauce.
- Bake for 45 minutes. Check it after 30 minutes to see if the potatoes are tender. They could be done if your dish is large, or your pieces are small. If the potatoes are not done, return the dish to the oven for the remaining 15 minutes.
- Remove from oven and serve.