Name: Crispy Mashed Potato Cakes
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 2 cups cold leftover mashed potatoes; 1 whole egg; 1/4 cup flour (all-purpose or self-rising); 2 tbsp finely diced onions (optional)

These Mashed Potato Cakes are my favorite way to transform leftover mashed potatoes into a crispy, golden side dish in just 20 minutes. Using cold mashed potatoes, an egg, and a touch of flour, this old-fashioned recipe creates a patty that is crunchy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. They’ll simply melt in your mouth!

A Quick Look At The Recipe

Recipe Name: Crispy Mashed Potato Cakes
Ready In: 20 minutes
Serves: 10 potato cakes
Main Ingredients: cold leftover mashed potatoes, egg, flour, finely diced onions
Why You'll Love It: These Mashed Potato Cakes are my favorite way to breathe new life into leftovers. Instead of just reheating a bowl of potatoes, you’re turning them into something with a salty, golden-brown crust and a center that stays incredibly fluffy. It’s a simple, three-ingredient trick that takes about 20 minutes from start to finish.

The Best Way to Use Leftover Mashed Potatoes

We’ve all been there: staring at a container of leftover mashed potatoes after a big Sunday dinner or Thanksgiving feast. While you could just reheat them in the microwave, I highly recommend transforming them into a serving of these flavorful mashed potato cakes.

I love making these because they remind me of the simple, resourceful cooking my grandmother used to do. It’s a “handy dandy” way to make sure nothing goes to waste while putting something on the table that’s crispy on the outside but tender on the inside! Honestly, these might be in contention to be the family favorite, right alongside our Easy Roasted Potatoes!

Now to the good stuff!

Ingredients for mashed potato cakes recipe.

Recipe Ingredients

Flour (either self-rising or all-purpose flour; whatever you have on hand)
Cold mashed potatoes (don’t use instant. Trust me).
Eggs

Helpful Kitchen Tools

Recipe Notes

If you can’t resist the addition of cheese, add 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese or shredded cheddar cheese to this potato cakes recipe.
Add some seasoning to your crispy potato cakes with dried herbs, like thyme, parsley, basil, or rosemary. Alternatively, opt for spices like onion powder or garlic powder.
If you want to sneak some veggies into these leftover mashed potato cakes, add some mashed cauliflower, chopped spinach, or finely shredded carrots.
The flour and egg act as a binder to keep these fried potato cakes together. But you can also refrigerate the batter before frying to ensure they don’t fall apart.
There are several variations on this potato cakes recipe if you want to change things up! For example, add diced pepperoni and mozzarella cheese to your batter to make pizza potato cakes. You could also add leftover taco meat, cheese, and diced bell pepper for taco cakes. If you’re feeling Greek-inspired, opt for sundried tomatoes and feta cheese.

How to Make Mashed Potato Cakes

1. Mix the Base

Mix all ingredients for mashed potato cakes together in mixing bowl.

To your mashed potatoes, add egg and mix them up really well. Then add flour. Stir it up really well with a fork until well blended like this. It will be very thick and sticky.

You can also add some finely diced onion or green onion at this point as well.

2. Prep the Skillet

Heat just a little bit of butter or oil (about two tablespoons of either vegetable oil or olive oil, it doesn’t take much) in the bottom of a large skillet and place it over medium heat for two to three minutes, or until hot.

This is important because if you don’t heat your oil first, your potato cakes will be greasy.

3. Scoop and Flatten

mashed potato cake spoonfuls in skillet.

Flattening spoonfuls of mashed potato in skillet with back of spoon.

Drop heaping spoonfuls of the potato mixture into the hot oil. Use the back of an oiled spoon to gently press down on each scoop, shaping them into patties about 1/4-inch thick.

4. Fry to Golden Perfection

mashed potato cakes draining on paper towel-lined plate.

Fry the cakes until the bottoms are deeply golden and crispy. Carefully flip them over and brown the other side. This usually takes about 3–5 minutes per side.

Once they are golden on both sides, remove them to a paper towel-lined plate to drain any excess oil. Serve them while they’re hot and crispy!

Storage

If you have leftovers, they store well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To get that crunch back, I highly recommend using an air fryer or a skillet over low heat. The microwave will make them soft, but a quick toast in the air fryer at 350°F for a few minutes will make them taste just-fried again. You can also freeze these for up to 3 months; just wrap them individually in foil first!

How To Serve Mashed Potato Cakes

Serve your potato cakes with turkey leftovers over the holidays or as a side alongside main dishes like meatloaf, roasted chicken, or beef brisket any time of the year. You can even serve them with bacon and eggs for breakfast or as an appetizer with apple sauce or sour cream for dipping. The choice is yours!