3-Ingredient Cheesy Roasted Purple Potatoes

3-Ingredient Cheesy Roasted Purple Potatoes are an easy side dish with crisp, caramelized edges, tender centers, and plenty of melted mozzarella tucked between the potatoes. The deep purple skins make them especially pretty on the table, but the preparation couldn’t be simpler.

Baby purple potatoes have a naturally creamy texture once roasted. A little olive oil helps the outsides brown, and the cheese goes on near the end so it melts without spending too long in the oven.

I’d serve these with a weeknight chicken dinner just as easily as I would put them on a holiday table. They’re colorful enough to feel a little different from regular roasted potatoes without requiring any extra work.

And since everything cooks in one baking dish, cleanup stays easy too.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

You really do need only three ingredients. There’s no complicated seasoning blend or sauce—the roasted potatoes and melted mozzarella are doing most of the work.

Roasting at 400°F gives the potatoes time to become tender inside while developing browned, slightly blistered edges. Cutting only the larger potatoes in half helps everything finish at roughly the same time.

The mozzarella is added after the potatoes are already cooked. That keeps the cheese soft and gooey with a few lightly golden spots rather than dried out from nearly an hour in the oven.

Ingredients You’ll Need

This simple potato side requires only three ingredients:

• Baby purple potatoes
• Olive oil
• Shredded mozzarella cheese

How To Make 3-Ingredient Cheesy Roasted Purple Potatoes

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400°F and lightly grease a medium ceramic baking dish. Wash and thoroughly dry the purple potatoes. If some are noticeably larger than bite-size, cut those in half so everything cooks evenly.

Step 2: Arrange the potatoes in the baking dish and drizzle them with olive oil. Toss until each potato has a light coating, then spread them out so they aren’t piled too heavily on top of one another.

Step 3: Roast for 45–55 minutes, stirring or turning the potatoes once about halfway through. They’re ready for the cheese when a knife slides easily into the centers and the skins have developed browned, caramelized areas.

Step 4: Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella evenly over the hot potatoes, allowing some of the cheese to fall into the spaces between them.

Step 5: Return the dish to the oven for another 5–8 minutes, just until the mozzarella is completely melted and beginning to develop a few golden spots.

Step 6: Let the potatoes sit for a few minutes before serving. The cheese will still be wonderfully melted, but the short rest makes everything easier to scoop from the baking dish.

Storing Leftover Cheesy Purple Potatoes

Let leftovers cool, then transfer them to an airtight container and refrigerate within two hours. They’ll keep for about 3–4 days.

For reheating, I prefer the oven or air fryer because either method helps bring back some of the roasted texture while remelting the mozzarella. The microwave is fine when you’re in a hurry, but the potato skins will be softer.

What To Serve With 3-Ingredient Cheesy Roasted Purple Potatoes

These cheesy purple potatoes are easy to work into almost any simple dinner. I’d serve them alongside roasted or grilled chicken, steak, meatloaf, or baked fish, with green beans, broccoli, asparagus, or a crisp salad to add something fresh to the plate. They’re colorful enough for a holiday spread too, especially when you want a potato side that looks a little different from mashed potatoes. Since the mozzarella already makes them fairly rich, I’d keep the rest of the sides simple and let those crisp purple potatoes stand out.

Dry the potatoes well after washing them. It seems like a minor detail, but removing that surface moisture helps the olive oil coat them properly and encourages much better browning.

And wait until the potatoes are fully tender before adding the mozzarella. The cheese only needs a few minutes in the oven, so the potatoes themselves should already be completely cooked.

This 3-Ingredient Cheesy Roasted Purple Potatoes recipe is an easy, cheesy side dish made with tender purple potatoes, olive oil, and melted mozzarella—perfect for weeknight dinners, holiday sides, and simple comfort food.

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Prep Time:
15 minutes

Cook Time:
1 hour

Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 1½ pounds baby purple potatoes, washed and dried
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F and lightly grease a medium ceramic baking dish.
2. Cut any larger potatoes in half, leaving smaller potatoes whole.
3. Add the potatoes to the baking dish, drizzle with olive oil, and toss until evenly coated.
4. Roast for 45–55 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until tender and browned around the edges.
5. Sprinkle the mozzarella evenly over the potatoes.
6. Return to the oven for 5–8 minutes, until the cheese is completely melted and lightly golden in spots.
7. Rest for a few minutes, then serve warm.

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