Brown Butter Mashed Potatoes

Brown Butter Mashed Potatoes- Garlicky mashed potatoes are made slightly more decadent by swapping out regular butter for brown butter.

November 23, 2025 by Nicole Collins

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Today, we’re making Brown Butter Mashed Potatoes!

In an attempt to not keep making the same mashed potatoes over and over every year, I did a little Thanksgiving research to see if a different kind of potato could make the cut. Scalloped, twice baked, roasted…I could’ve gone in any direction. But it turns out that when it comes to Thanksgiving, mashed is the only way most people go.

So in the name of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, we’re basically making the same mashed potato recipe we make every year. They’re just that good! But this year, we’re going to make one small tweak that makes these taters even more rich and decadent.

As usual, we’re going to start with some Yukon gold potatoes. In my opinion, these are the elite potato to use for mash as they’re naturally creamy and buttery. We’re going to boil the potatoes in some salted water until they’re fork tender which shouldn’t take any more than 15 mins. Just as a quick note, we are going to start the potatoes in cold water in order to ensure even cooking on all the potatoes, so make sure to account for the extra time it will take for the water to go from cold to boiling.

To make this mash nice and garlicky, we’re going to toss a couple smashed garlic cloves right into the water to boil with the potatoes. This is a trick that I learned in a cooking class I took a few years ago, and I’ve never looked back. Adding the garlic to the water both infuses the potatoes all the way through while also softens the garlic so it can be mashed right into the potatoes.

While the potatoes are cooking, we can work on our special ingredient: brown butter. Instead of going straight into the potatoes with regular butter, we’re going to gently simmer our butter in a small saucepan until it becomes golden and fragrant. This extra little step adds a beautiful nuttiness to the mash that makes these feel fancy and luxurious.

When the potatoes are done, we’ll drain them, add them back to the hot pot with the garlic, then start the mashing. We’ll pour in our brown butter, some heavy cream, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Then, we’ll mash the potatoes until they’re the consistency that we like. I like a lumpy mash so I leave the skin on the potatoes. If that’s not your vibe, peel them.

The magic of these potatoes is hidden in the background. On the surface, they’re creamy garlic mashed taters. But in the background, you get richness from the cream and nuttiness from the butter which really takes this mash to the next level. I also love that you can see the flecks of brown butter speckled throughout the potatoes. It’s so pretty!

Ok, everyone. We’ve got gravy and dessert left to go. Then, you’ll be all set for the holiday!

I’ll see you then. And, let’s eat!

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Brown Butter Mashed Potatoes             

Serves: 4          Print

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs yukon gold potatoes, quartered

• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed

• ½ stick (4 tbsp) unsalted butter

• ¼ cup heavy cream

• 1 tbsp salt, plus more to taste

• Pepper, to taste

• Minced thyme, for garnish

Directions:

1. To a large pot, add potatoes, garlic, and 1 tbsp salt; then cover with cold water, making sure there's about an inch of water above the top of the potatoes. Heat to high, and bring to a boil. Boil for 12-15 minutes until the potatoes are fork tender. Remove from heat. Drain water from pot. Put potatoes and garlic back in the pot.

2. Meanwhile, brown the butter. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook the butter until it's golden and smells nutty, stirring frequently to prevent the butter from burning, about 5-10 mins. Remove from heat.

3. Add butter to the potatoes, and use a potato masher to mash the potatoes to your desired texture. Add heavy cream along with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir until potatoes are creamy. Transfer to a serving dish, and garnish with fresh thyme. Enjoy!
   

Recipe notes:

*I like my mashed potatoes lumpy, so I leave the skin on my potatoes. If you're not into that, feel free to peel the potatoes first.

*The butter goes from light to burned quickly, so watch it closely.