By Tracy Morin
To the uninitiated, potatoes on pizza may sound like starch-and-carb overkill. But when done properly—with restraint, balance and the right prep—potato pies can offer up remarkable flavor and eye appeal.
“Potatoes are a wonderful pizza topping for many reasons,” says Bret Lunsford, executive chef at New Haven, Connecticut-based Sally’s Apizza, with seven locations. “They are available year-round and can add a variety of textures, depending on what kind and how you use them. Potatoes are such a versatile and popular vegetable that it’s truly hard to go wrong. It’s one of those perfect blank canvases that chefs always love to work with and just about every person loves to eat.”
Craft Notes: Mashed and Fried
Fried, baked, mashed, cubed, sliced or sauteed, potato prep options seem endless. But when you’re putting them on a pizza, you’ll need to think beyond mere flavor—to the finished product and customer experience. “When using mashed potatoes, be super careful on the amount,” warns Sean Dempsey, owner of Dempsey’s Brewery Pub & Restaurant and Danger von Dempseys, based in Watertown, South Dakota, with four locations total. “Small dollops are much easier to work with—and better for the customer. Ever taken a spoonful of fresh, hot mashed potatoes? It’s scalding good times!”
Dempsey uses mashed potatoes in his Thanksgiving Pizza (pictured below). Available in November, it features a gravy base, mozzarella and turkey-and-sage stuffing, then post-bake mashed potatoes and cranberry jelly. “We strategically place smaller dollops to maximize space coverage—but not too many, which will weigh it down,” he says. “And I would recommend seasoning your potatoes well. They’re ‘fighting against’ other toppings, so they need to stand out, not just blend blandly into the mix.”
Joe Lajoie, owner of River City Wood Fire, with two mobile locations in Richmond, Virginia, has also found success with mashed-potato pies run as annual specials—an Irish-inspired pie in March and a German-inspired pie in October. The Luck O’ the Irish has light olive oil, whipped Irish cheddar potatoes, braised cabbage, house-smoked corned beef, Irish cheddar and mozzarella, plus a mustard-horseradish drizzle after wood-firing. In October, the Sehr Guht combines whipped thyme-garlic potatoes, bratwurst, caramelized onions, mozzarella and white cheddar, plus a creamy mustard drizzle post-bake, served with a side of sauerkraut.
Running a mobile operation means Lajoie had to experiment with ways to apply the right amount of mashed potatoes, quickly and with minimal mess. “After trying spooning, pinching with our fingers (creating very messy gloves!), etc., we came upon the easiest method we’ve found,” he says. “We cook the potatoes until soft, strain them and mash them with butter and heavy cream. Then we add salt, pepper and other ingredients (such as thyme-roasted garlic or melted cheddar). We whip them with more heavy cream, using an immersion blender, until they are so soft and smooth that we can put them in a squeeze bottle and ribbon them onto the pizza. If you also ribbon a squirt of olive oil in the opposite direction, the potatoes will melt evenly over the pizza, under the cheese.”
Another of Dempsey’s pizzas, From Saskatoon, With Love (pictured above), requires a totally different prep. Poutine-inspired, it’s decked out with country savory sausage, brown gravy, smoked bacon and mozzarella, then finished post-bake with an order of French fries fresh out of the fryer, immediately topped with chopped white cheddar cheese curds.
“We add the fried potatoes post-bake, as soon as possible, then send it out the door,” Dempsey explains. “It’s racing against the clock—the fries go from crispy and delicious to soggy and not so great. For to-go and delivery orders, we add instructions and send the fries on the side, so customers can add them after they get it. And the pizza and the fries have to be carefully balanced, so as not to weigh down the crust.”
Craft Notes: Sliced and Roasted
At Sally’s, the Potato and Rosemary pie (pictured below) features sliced potatoes, crisped in superhot coal-fired ovens. “It’s a traditional offering on the western side of Italy, in the Lazio, Tuscany and Liguria regions, where it’s called pizza patate e rosmarino,” Lunsford explains. “We prefer to use potatoes on the waxier side—they hold their shape better and don’t oxidize and brown as fast as one with a higher starch content might. A potato like a Yukon Gold will hold its integrity well, giving you a creamy bite with a little bit of crunch that can also stand up to the coal-fired ovens.”
When using potato as a topping, Lunsford advises slicing it thinly enough so that it cooks in your oven, but not so thin that it will burn. “I’d also suggest soaking them in cold water to pull off some of that residual starch,” he adds. “When ready to use, be sure to dry them as best as you can, so you don’t end up with a soggy, soupy mess.”
Meanwhile, at Federal Pizza, with two locations in Phoenix, the Sweet Potato pizza is one of the top three vegetarian best sellers. It combines a garlic-oil white sauce, pizza cheese, sweet potatoes (sliced and roasted with an oil blend, kosher salt and black pepper), ricotta cheese and fresh minced sage. After baking in the wood-fired oven, it’s topped with sea salt, diced chives and cracked black pepper.
A light touch and smart prep are keys to making this pie work. “We thin-slice our sweet potatoes and put just enough on the pizza,” notes Cynthia Rivera, general manager. “The combination works because we roast the sweet potatoes, which brings out their natural sugars and enhances the sweetness. You get a richer flavor, too. Guests love it. They often seem surprised at how delicious it is!”
Spud-spiration
Outside-the-box potato pies can reap rave reviews and online attention. “For me, having unusual pies is a great way to stand out above the competition—and get some serious clicks from the photos,” Dempsey says. “The Thanksgiving and Saskatoon pizza photos are worth a thousand words.”
Similarly, the potato-rosemary pie at Sally’s remains a customer favorite—and easy to customize further. “Vegetarians and meat eaters alike enjoy something a little different than the standards found in most pizza restaurants,” Lunsford says. “Velvety potatoes, creamy mozzarella, earthy rosemary, with a hit of tangy Pecorino cheese and the kiss of a coal-fired oven—it’s very hard to resist. Sometimes, I’ll add a few slices of bacon and really send it over the edge.”
Rivera adds that potatoes are a naturally gluten-free option, while sweet potatoes offer a nutritional boost, increasing appeal for a wide range of guests. Federal Pizza’s Sweet Potato pizza also hits the mark by combining complementary flavors and textures. “Ricotta adds a creamy balance to the potatoes’ sweetness, while fresh sage adds a little herbal taste,” Rivera says. “Sometimes, non-vegetarian guests add sausage to it for a sweet and savory flavor. It’s unique, and we like to offer items on our menu that no one else has.”
For marketing, Dempsey uses social media—with mouthwatering photos and storytelling—to pique customer interest. “A good, solid LTO grabs people’s attention,” he says. “When we craft new pizzas, we try and look at a meal or a food experience and re-create that—such as Thanksgiving dinner. I like for each pizza to have a story and a reason it’s on our menu.
“We offer the Thanksgiving pie as part of our Pizza of the Month promo, and it sells really well in November,” Dempsey continues. “People have ordered this, saying they know they won’t be home for Turkey Day, and this pizza reminds them of being with their family. And, of course, on social media, a solid photo works magic. Share a short inspiration for the pizza, a great shot of it completed, and you’ll have nothing but people tagging others in the post—and comments asking when can they order it.”
Tracy Morin is PMQ’s associate editor.
