Roast Lemon Potatoes (Patates Fournou Lemonates): A Sunny Citrus-Spiked Greek Side Dish

Little potatoes slow roasted until tender in olive oil and lemon juice and sprinkled with herbs. An easy to make side dish that livens up the plate. These sunny Roast Lemon Potatoes or Patates Fournou Lemonates are from Foods From Many Greek Kitchens by Tessa Kiros.

Tessa says, "These are good with grilled foods. They are not crusty like regular roast potatoes, but soft and moist. You can add more lemon here depending on what you will be serving them with. I use a nonstick oven dish, about 8 1/2 x 12 inches."


Roast Lemon Potatoes (Patates Fournou Lemonates)
From Food From Many Greek Kitchens
(Serves 6)

2 lbs 10 oz potatoes, peeled and rinsed (I used a bag of baby gold potatoes)
juice of 1 large lemon
6 Tbsp olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 heaping tsp dried oregano

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Halve the potatoes lengthwise then cut each half into 2 or 3 wedges, depending on the size of your potatoes. Spread them in a non stick baking dish. Splash the lemon juice and olive oil over them, and add salt and pepper generously. Crush the oregano between your fingers, letting it fall all over the potatoes. Turn the potatoes to coat them well with everything. Drizzle 2 cups of water down the sides of the dish and give it a shuffle.

Roast until the potatoes are tender and melting and a bit golden here and there with still a bit of sauce in the dish, about 1 1/2 hours, turning and basting them every 20 minutes or so. add more salt and pepper to taste and serve hot.


Notes/Results: Perfectly lemony little potatoes, tender and creamy. I made a half-batch but used the entire lemon that the recipe called for. Since the flavor gets diluted from the water it wasn't overpowering at all--just full of bright citrus flavor. In addition to the dried oregano, I sprinkled some fresh lemon thyme from my container herb garden before serving for an extra herbal touch. Although I ate these as more of a main dish with a spinach salad for dinner, they would be a wonderful side dish for fish. I will make these again, maybe with some garlic added.


At I Heart Cooking Clubs it's time to Fight Scurvy -Eat More Citrus! this week. To see what citrus-spiked dishes the other IHCC participants made, go to the post and follow the links.