Use your leftovers to make yummy Mashed Potato Loaded Fritters, filled with bacon, green onions, cheddar cheese, & coated with crispy panko crumbs!
I love potatoes! We always enjoy baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, chili and cheese stuffed spuds, potato hash with rosemary, loaded hash browns-waffle-style, au gratin potatoes, and our family favorite, potato salad!
The question is… what can you make with mashed potato leftovers? We usually have a small amount left over after a big meal. Well, I was wondering the same thing when I had some leftovers a while ago. I put on my thinking cap, and came up with this recipe for mashed potato loaded fritters, made them, and thought they were fantastic!
Here’s how easy it is to make this tasty side dish using leftover mashed potatoes. I even used leftover cooked bacon, too! The results were worth it, because the fritters turned out to be quite delicious!
Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page
Prepare The Mashed Potato Loaded Fritters
Place mashed potatoes, crumbled bacon, green onions, regular bread crumbs, flour, egg, salt, pepper, garlic powder and cheddar cheese in a medium sized mixing bowl. Stir these ingredients together until all have been fully blended into the mashed potatoes.
Pour the panko crumbs out onto a dinner plate. Divide the potato mixture into 4 equal sized balls, and then shape and flatten them out in your hands to form a patty.
Place the potato patties, one at a time in the panko crumbs on plate, and gently cover all sides with the crumbs, lightly pressing them onto patty to adhere. Once fully coated, set aside and repeat until all 4 potato fritters are covered with panko crumbs.
Time To Cook The Mashed Potato Loaded Fritters!
Now you’re ready to cook them until crispy! Pour enough oil into a large skillet to cover the bottom with about 1/2″ of oil. Heat oil on medium-high heat until very hot (but not smoking!).
Carefully (use a spatula) place each of the mashed potato loaded fritters into the hot oil. You should hear it sizzle when the fritters go into the hot oil. Do not move them once they hit the skillet, to ensure a good pan-searing.
Let the fritters cook for approximately 3 minutes in the hot oil, until the bottom side is deep golden brown and crispy! Carefully turn the fritters to the other side, and continue cooking for an additional 3-4 minutes until golden brown and crispy on the bottom side again.
Once done (and crispy brown on all sides), transfer the mashed potato loaded fritters to a wire rack to drain off any remaining oil. I placed a sheet of aluminum foil under the rack for easy cleanup. Let them drain for just a minute, and then they are ready to serve!
Serve The Mashed Potato Loaded Fritters
To serve these delicious, crispy potato fritters, transfer them to a platter or individual plates. This recipe makes 4 fritters total (1 fritter per serving). Serve hot, and dollop the fritters with sour cream and chopped chives or green onions before serving, if desired.
I definitely recommend topping them with sour cream and chives, because that adds more delicious flavor to this veggie side dish! Grab a fork and dig in! These mashed potato loaded fritters are delicious! They’re crispy on the outside and soft on the inside!
TIP: Be sure to serve these fritters immediately after making them, because they are BEST, when served fresh! They still will taste good, but will lose their crispy crunchiness if allowed to sit for hours or are refrigerated.
Hope you will consider trying these mashed potato loaded fritters! They are a GREAT way to use up those leftover mashed potatoes! Have a GREAT day!
Looking For More POTATO Recipes?
You can find ALL my recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. I have some delicious recipes featuring potatoes you might enjoy, including:
- Fully Loaded Potato Soup
- Crispy Homemade Hash Browns
- Cheesy Skillet Potatoes
- Roasted Hasselback Potatoes
Interested In More Recipes?
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Use your leftovers to make yummy Mashed Potato Loaded Fritters, filled with bacon, green onions, cheddar cheese, & coated with crispy panko crumbs!
- 1¼ cups mashed potatoes (prepared)
- 2 slices bacon (pre-cooked) , crisp and crumbled
- 1 large egg
- 1 stem scallion (green onion) , sliced (green & white parts)
- ¼ cup cheddar cheese
- 3 Tablespoons dry bread crumbs (regular)
- 1 Tablespoon all purpose flour
- ⅛ teaspoon salt, pepper, and garlic powder ( ⅛ tsp. each)
- vegetable oil , enough to cover skillet with 1/2 inch
- 1 cup PANKO bread crumbs , to roll fritters in
- sour cream and chopped chives (OPTIONAL, for garnish)
Place mashed potatoes, crumbled bacon, green onions, regular bread crumbs, flour, egg, salt, pepper, garlic powder and cheddar cheese in a medium sized mixing bowl. Stir together until all ingredients have been fully blended into mashed potatoes.
Pour panko crumbs out on a dinner plate. Divide the potato mixture into 4 equal sized balls, and then shape/flatten them out in your hands to form a patty. Place patties, one at a time in the panko crumbs, and gently cover all sides, turning and lightly pressing them onto patty to adhere. Once fully coated, set aside. Repeat until all fritters are covered with panko crumbs.
Pour enough oil into a large skillet to cover the bottom with about 1/2" of oil. Heat oil on medium-high heat until very hot (but not smoking!). Carefully (use a spatula) place each of the mashed potato loaded fritters into the hot oil. You should hear it sizzle.. Do not move them once they hit the skillet, to ensure a seared crust on the outside. Let fritters cook for approx. 3 minutes, until the bottom is deep golden brown and crispy! Carefully turn the fritters to other side, and continue cooking an additional 3-4 minutes until golden brown and crispy on the bottom. Once done (and crispy brown on all sides), transfer fritters to a wire rack to drain off any excess oil. I placed a sheet of aluminum foil under the rack for easy cleanup. Let them drain for just a minute, and then they are ready to serve!
Place potato fritters on a platter or individual plates. Serve hot, and dollop each fritter with sour cream and some chopped chives or green onions, if desired (recommended). Enjoy!
Caloric calculation does not include optional garnish of sour cream and chives.
Here’s one to pin on your Pinterest boards!