This article follows Weber’s own published method, How to Grill Roasted New Potatoes, from Weber’s Real Grilling by Jamie Purviance. It is a five-ingredient side dish that cooks directly on the grate, and Weber lists it as serving 6 to 8 people.
Halved new potatoes are tossed with olive oil and rosemary, then turned every few minutes over medium heat until they brown. Nothing here is complicated, which is the point: the grill does the work, and the potatoes need only a wide spatula and some attention.
Ingredients
Metric conversions are ours, rounded; Weber’s page gives US measures.
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (30 ml)
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 pounds (about 900 g) new potatoes, each 1½ to 2 inches (roughly 4 to 5 cm) across, scrubbed and cut in half
Method
- Set up the grill for direct cooking over medium heat. Weber’s page gives medium heat as 350°F to 450°F (about 175°C to 230°C) in one version of its instructions and 375°F to 425°F (about 190°C to 220°C) in another.
- In a medium bowl, combine the oil, rosemary, salt and pepper. Add the potatoes and stir until they are evenly coated.
- Brush the cooking grates clean.
- Grill the potatoes over direct medium heat with the lid closed until tender and browned on all sides, 15 to 20 minutes. Scoop and turn them with a wide spatula about every 5 minutes.
- Move them to a serving bowl and serve warm.
Weber’s method gives the time as a range, so treat 15 to 20 minutes as a guide and judge doneness by tenderness and browning rather than by the clock alone.
Weber’s Parboil Tip
A separate Weber article, Grilled Potato Tips, offers two habits for better results. The first is to use a grill basket, because shuffling small potatoes one by one across the grates is tedious; the trade-off, Weber notes, is that you lose grill marks.
The second is a parboil. Weber’s writer places the potatoes in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes, then cools them immediately in a colander under cold running water to stop the cooking. After grilling, the article says, this gives a crunchy crust with a soft, hot middle.
That tip is not part of the recipe above, and Weber does not publish an adjusted grilling time for parboiled potatoes, so we have not invented one. If you try it, judge doneness by browning and tenderness.
Choosing the Potato
Meathead Goldwyn’s Science of Potatoes page at AmazingRibs.com sorts potatoes into three groups. New potatoes are young, usually about golf-ball size, thin-skinned and low in moisture and starch. Starchy potatoes such as Russets, by contrast, can disintegrate if boiled too long.
Serving Them Safely
The FDA’s page on handling food safely while eating outdoors says to rinse produce under running tap water and to rub firm-skinned items under the tap or scrub them with a clean vegetable brush. Weber’s recipe already asks for scrubbed potatoes.
Because these are served warm, the hot-holding rule applies. The FDA says hot food should be kept at or above 140°F (60°C), and that food should not sit out for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour when the outdoor temperature is above 90°F (32°C). If it has been left longer, throw it away.
Use a clean platter and utensils at the grill, too. The FDA warns against reusing anything that held raw meat, poultry or seafood unless it has been washed in hot, soapy water, which matters when the potatoes share a grill with steaks or chicken.
Diet Note
As Weber publishes it, every ingredient is a plant or a mineral: potatoes, olive oil, rosemary, salt and pepper. That makes the recipe vegan as written. Check any variations you add, such as butter or cheese.
Keep reading
- Weber’s Creamy Grilled Sweet Potato Salad, Kept Cold Safely
- Weber’s Paradise Grilled Pineapple with Orange Sauce
- Meathead’s Old-Fashioned Potato Salad, Kept Cold Outdoors
- Weber’s Grilled Mussels with Parmesan and Garlic