Pommes Lyonnaises
Sliced potatoes fried in butter and oil with plenty of slowly browned onion until golden, finished with parsley, ready in 45 minutes.
Photograph credit: Potatoes lyonnaise by Glane23 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons · this resized copy is shared under the same licence
Where This Goes Wrong
Cook the onions and potatoes in separate pans.
Leave the slices undisturbed for 4 minutes to form a crust.
Use a mix of butter and oil so nothing burns.
Making Pommes Lyonnaises
Tap a step to highlight it, or turn on Cook Mode for large type and step-by-step focus.
-
Boil the potatoes in their skins for 15 minutes until just tender. Drain, cool, peel and slice 5 mm thick.
-
Heat half the butter and oil in a wide pan over medium heat and cook the onions with a pinch of the salt for 20 minutes, stirring, until golden. Lift out.
-
Heat the remaining butter and oil and fry the potatoes in a single layer, in two batches, for 8 minutes each, turning once, until golden.
-
Return all the potatoes and the onions to the pan, add the rest of the salt and the pepper and toss for 2 minutes.
-
Scatter with the parsley and serve.
Something wrong or unclear in this recipe? Report a problem with this recipe.
What's Going On Here
Most home versions come out soggy, and the fix is to cook the potatoes and the onions separately. If they go in the pan together, the onions release water and steam the potatoes, and neither browns.
Precook the potatoes in their skins, cool them, peel and slice them about 5 mm thick. Fry them in a wide pan in a single layer, in two batches if the pan is small, in a mix of butter and oil so they brown without burning. Let them sit undisturbed for 4 minutes before turning, so a crust forms. If you stir too soon the slices break and stick.
The onions take longer than you expect. Cook them in a separate pan over a low heat for about 20 minutes, until they are soft and golden. Fold them into the potatoes for the last 2 minutes, with salt, pepper and a handful of chopped parsley. The dish is a classic with roast chicken, steak or sausages, and it is also good with a fried egg on top for a supper.
Leftovers, Reheating and Keeping
Best fresh. Reheat in a hot pan.
Good With
- Roast chicken
- Steak
- Sausages
- Fried eggs
Nutrition per Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
Cooked this? Keep a note for next time
Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .
You Might Also Like
More French cooking and dinner ideas from Weekly Delight.
Pommes Anna
Thin potato slices layered with melted butter in a pan, baked until the base is golden and crisp, then turned out…
Pommes Persillade
Potatoes fried in oil until golden and crisp, then tossed with chopped garlic and parsley.
Petits Pois a la Francaise
Peas braised with butter, lettuce and spring onions in a little stock until sweet and tender, ready in 30 minutes.
Pommes Sarladaises
Sliced potatoes fried slowly in duck fat until golden and crisp, then finished with garlic and parsley, ready in 45…
Boulangere Potatoes
Thinly sliced potatoes and onions baked in chicken stock with thyme and butter until soft and golden on top.
Aligot
Potato purée beaten with fresh tomme until it becomes elastic enough to lift in ropes. From the Aubrac, and the…