Leftover Mashed Potato Cakes
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These mashed potato cakes are the ultimate way to turn leftovers into something crave-worthy, with crisp golden edges and a soft, creamy center. Rich, cheesy, and perfect for dipping into sour cream, they’re comfort food at its very best.
Is there a better way to use leftover mashed potatoes? I honestly don’t think so. These mashed potato cakes fry up with deeply golden, crisp edges that give way to a soft, creamy center that’s everything you want from mashed potatoes—only better.
The flavor is rich and savory, thanks to plenty of cheddar melted right into the cakes, with little pockets of cheesiness throughout. Pan frying them creates that irresistible contrast between the crunchy exterior and the fluffy, tender middle, so every bite has texture. Finished with fresh green onion and a generous dollop of sour cream, they lean into that pierogi-like comfort I love so much—warm, salty, creamy, and just indulgent enough. This is comfort food at its best, and the kind of leftovers glow-up I look forward to every time.
Tips for perfectly crisp mashed potato cakes
- Dough consistency: The amount of flour you’ll need depends on how much milk and butter you used when making your mashed potatoes. If you have dough that’s on the loose side, you’ll need more flour to help it bind together and not fall apart while cooking.
- Get the oil hot: Heating the oil in the pan will help ensure the mashed potato cakes don’t taste too greasy.
- Give them space: Avoid overcrowding the pan when you add the potato cakes. This will help them get nice and crispy. If they’re too close together, they will steam instead of fry.
Variations to try
The beauty of these mashed potato cakes is that you can easily make them exactly how you or your family like them. If you have other leftover ingredients from a big meal, you can incorporate them into your mashed potato cake side dish. Here are some variations to try:
- Cheese: You can incorporate other cheeses if you prefer, like mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, or feta.
- Veggies: Adding sliced peppers, spinach, or sweet potato is also a welcome flavor change-up.
- Combinations: If you add mozzarella and pepperoni you will get a pizza-style potato cake. Try using feta, peppers, and spinach to get a Greek-style mashed potato patty.
Recipe FAQs
I don’t have leftover mashed potatoes. Will this work with a fresh batch?
Absolutely! If you’re keen to make mashed potato cakes but don’t have any leftovers in your fridge, make the mashed potatoes first, then follow the rest of this recipe to turn them into cakes. Just make sure your mashers are cold before incorporating them into this recipe.
Why do mashed potato cakes fall apart?
This can happen when there’s not enough starch to keep the cakes together. Try adding some more flour to the mixture if your dough looks too loose or runny.
Can you freeze mashed potato cakes?
Yes! Once they’ve cooled, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and freeze the potato cakes for a couple of hours. They should be completely frozen patties before you store them in a reusable, freezer-friendly bag. They will keep for 2-3 months in the freezer.
Leftover Mashed Potato Cakes Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups cold mashed potatoes
- 1 ½ cups grated cheddar cheese
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup flour (plus more for breading)
- Neutral flavored oil (see notes)
- Sour cream and sliced green onions (to top)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together the cold mashed potatoes, grated cheese, and eggs. Mix in the flour, adding more if needed, until the mashed potatoes form a soft and slightly sticky dough.2 ½ cups cold mashed potatoes, 1 ½ cups grated cheddar cheese, 2 large eggs, ½ cup flour
- Form the dough into eight balls then press the balls down to form patties. Put a little flour into a bowl and then coat each of the mashed potato cakes in flour so they are no longer sticky.
- Heat a splash of oil in a medium-sized cast iron or non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add half of the leftover mashed potato cakes. Let the cakes fry for 3-4 minutes, or until the bottoms are golden brown and crispy. Carefully flip the cakes over and fry until the other side is golden, too. Repeat with the remaining cakes.Neutral flavored oil
- Serve the leftover mashed potato cakes with some sour cream and green onions on top.Sour cream and sliced green onions
Video
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
Hi can I freeze these??
You sure can! Freeze them in a single layer on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Once they’re frozen you can store them all together in a freezer bag.
LOVE…Easy and Yum ..No more waste of leftover potatoes. And I Do Thank You for all your recipes..Please send more..Just love the fact I do not need to spend a day shopping for 15 ingredients and 10 herbs..Times are Tough..Your Recipe is Amazing…Thank You
My kids are going to love them and I know now what we are going to have for dinner tonight. The potato cakes look absolutely delicious……and the sour cream on the side just makes it perfect!
Hope you love them as much as I do!!
Ha ha … you totally should! It’s definitely worth it. 🙂
Thanks, Justin! It’s fun for me too to look back and see the progress. I cringe a little, but most have a laugh.
Hope you’re liking Grammarly. I bit the bullet and upgraded within about a week of first trying it. It doesn’t catch everything, but it catches a lot. It’s been really helpful for me!
Well, these potatoes got a nice photo makeover. And I can tell they taste amazing! Pinning to try soon.
Thanks, Suzy! They really were good. 🙂
Hi Kristen,
I was just reading your monthly blog report this morning when your kind comment showed up on my blog. I need some inspiration and help on monetizing so I’m studying you! lol. Love that you do this 🙂
I saw these gorgeous pancakes being shared on FB and knew they had to belong to you. Your lovely photography style is now familiar to me because I drool over your recipes!
Such a wonderful way to use up mashed potatoes. Going to use this for the morning after Thanksgiving Sunday to feed my houseful of company. Thanks so much!
I love that you knew they were mine! Seriously, that’s really awesome!
Gorgeous. Kids and I absolutely adored them. Kids say this recipe is a keeper. No photos this time as they looked more like your first attempt!
I’m so happy you liked them!
I’m sure your pictures were totally great. It’s always tough to take great food shots on a phone without proper lighting.. I often get photos that look like my old one when I try to take shots at the dinner table too 🙂
Nah, it was more the appearance of the actual food! Bit sloppy probably because the mash had been made with butter and cream already 🙂
I bet they were extra good with all the butter and cream!
It feels good, doesn’t it? I found so many recipes that are hidden away and that I want to share. I think it’s a fun way to bring them out and give the old stuff a little facelift. 🙂
Ha ha great minds think alike!!
These look and sound amazing. I just might make them for Christmas dinner as ours tends to be a buffet-style meal. Thanks for sharing this!
They would be perfect for a buffet dinner! Hope you love them as much as I do!!
I love potato cakes, they are so good, and so fattening at my age. That said, living in the Caribbean, there is usually one person that cooks a big meal, including potato’s, so I don’t get left overs!! I need to have a dinner with mashed potato’s so .I can make these. That is afer we loose our vacation Lbs. and more?
I totally know what you mean! We’re going on vacation in a couple weeks and I thought to myself after eating all of these, “Maybe that wasn’t such a smart thing to do.” They were totally delicious though and worth eating salads for the rest of the week. 🙂
Where does the 1/2 cup flour go? In batter with the cheeses , potatoes,egg or are thy dredged in flour before frying?
Hi Edgar, The flour is for dredging the cakes in before you fry them. You’ll see that missing step in the recipe directions now. Thank you for pointing that out!
Is that half a cup of flour?
It only says 1/2 flour :/. I’ll try anyway and see how the mixture seems to have a good texture.
Hey FeliCity,
Oops, my bad! Yes it is a half cup of flour 🙂
Lol you’re right, these things were a little bit dangerous. It was hard to stop after just a couple!