Bratkartoffeln (German Pan-Fried Potatoes)

Bratkartoffeln are German pan-fried potatoes that are crispy on the outside and addictive! I love cooking my potatoes with onion and bacon, then topping them with fresh chives.

Bratkartoffeln is super popular in Germany and one of the many many ways that Germans love to eat potatoes (over 100 pounds a year per person). Germans like them as a main course or side as an alternative as other popular sides like Spätzle (German egg noodles) or Kartoffelknödel (potato dumplings).

When making German fried potatoes as a main course, I love adding some sunny-side-up eggs on top like my Oma always did. Bratkartoffeln are also commonly served as a side with Schnitzel, Hackbraten, Frikadellen, or Currywurst.

How to make German pan-fried potatoes

Making German pan-fried potatoes is easy. Simply follow my step-by-step instructions below to recreate this German staple food at home wherever you are.

Boil the potatoes

Start by boiling your potatoes with the skin on until done. To boil the potatoes, first rinse them and brush off any dirt, leaving the skin on. Place them on the bottom of a large pot and fill them with water until the potatoes are just covered. Add some salt, place a lid on top, and bring them to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and let them cook until done. You can check the doneness by carefully poking them with a sharp knife. If it easily slides into the potato, they are done cooking.

Peel the potatoes

When the potatoes have cooled enough so you can handle them, peel them by pulling the skin off. It will come off super easy using a small paring knife.

Cut into slices

I then cut the potatoes into ½-inch or about 1-centimeter thick slices.

Cook the bacon and onion

Cut the bacon into small dice, then add it to a large skillet (don't add any oil or butter at this time). A couple of minutes into cooking, add the onion and cook until the bacon is crisp and the onion is starting to brown. Remove the bacon and onion from the pan, leaving any remaining bacon grease in the pan.

If not using bacon, cook onion over medium heat in a little bit of butter, then remove from the pan and add a little more butter and oil in the next step.

Cook potatoes

Melt the butter into some of the grease, then add the avocado oil or other high-heat cooking oil. This is to bring up the smoke point and not have your potatoes burn as easily while still giving it amazing butter and bacon flavor. Add the potatoes into your skillet next to each other, slice by slice, and season with some salt. Cook until browned on one side before flipping over and repeating the process. Cook in batches until all potato slices have been crisped and browned.

Serve

Add the bacon and onion mixture on top and sprinkle with some sliced chives.

If serving as a main dish, I like to cook some sunny side eggs to add on top.

Ingredients

You only need a few ingredients for my German fried potatoes and I added a few helpful ingredient notes below.

• Potatoes. See the note on the best potatoes to use below. Waxy potato varieties like Red Bliss, Red Adirondack, French fingerlings, baby potatoes, and new potatoes work best. Yukon Gold is great, too.
• Butter. I like to add butter to the bacon grease for added flavor. Feel free to skip adding butter and only use oil.

• Oil. I also use high-heat cooking oil, usually avocado oil, in addition to using butter since butter burns easily.
• Bacon. I use a thick-cut bacon that I then cut into small dice.
• Onion. I use yellow onion and small dice the same size as the bacon dice.
• Chives. I like topping my Bratkartoffeln with fresh sliced chives for a mild, fresh onion flavor.

Best potatoes to use for Bratkartoffeln

It's hard to find the same kind of potatoes in America that you would use in Germany for Bratkartoffeln, but here are some tips on how you can come really close.

Generally speaking, you want to use waxy potatoes, which have a low starch content and keep their shape during the pan-frying.

Waxy potatoes that are ideal for German fried potatoes are Red Bliss, Red Adirondack, French fingerlings, baby potatoes, and new potatoes.

Yukon Gold potatoes work great, too. They are an all-purpose potato that tastes great while not falling apart too much.

If you're in Germany, the following types of potatoes are ideal: Cilena, Linda, Nicola, Annabelle and Belana.

The best way to store potatoes

It's best to store potatoes in a dark area without much moisture and good airflow. That means taking them out of the bag they came in and transferring them to a basket or crate that has good breathing holes.

Do not store your potatoes right next to onions because onions emit ethylene gas which causes potatoes to sprout and spoil.

More German potato recipes

Hungry for more German potato recipes? Check out my Oma's creamy German potato salad, Bavarian potato salad, potato dumplings, potato pancakes, and Schupfnudeln (potato noodles).