Here's your new go to roast potato recipe! This layered potato casserole is topped with tomato sauce, oregano and mozzarella, just like your favorite pizza. Patate alla pizzaiola is the ultimate crowd pleasing side dish!
I have never met a potato I didn't love. Whether they're boiled; fried; stuffed and baked; with broccoli; pasta with potatoes or in a cheesy casserole with swiss chard, any way you prepare them I'll devour them. And this roasted potato dish is no exception!
Potatoes lightly covered in tomato sauce flavored with garlic, fragrant oregano and topped with melted mozzarella cheese, what's not to love?
What does pizzaiola style mean?
If you love pizza (who doesn't?) as well as potatoes, this recipe is a match made in heaven! Pizzaiola style refers to a dish made with the same ingredients as pizza, that is tomato sauce, garlic, mozzarella and oregano.
Pizzaiola can also be prepared with steak or other types of meat, but this vegetarian variation with potatoes is the perfect side dish and flavorful alternative to your basic oven roasted potatoes!
Patate alla Pizzaiola Ingredient List
- Potatoes: Yukon Gold, new potatoes or red potatoes hold their shape after boiling
- Tomato passata: tomato purée
- Mozzarella: or any cheese that melts well
The following are step by step instructions with images to guide you through this recipe. Please scroll to the end of this post for the detailed printable recipe card.
How to make Patate alla Pizzaiola
- Begin by peeling the potatoes, cover with salted water in a large sauce pan. Bring to a boil and cook until slightly underdone (about 25 minutes). That is, when you pierce the center of the potatoes with a sharp knife there is some resistence. Set aside and let cool slightly.
- While the potatoes boil, prepare a basic tomato sauce. Heat olive oil in a medium sized sauce pan, add garlic and let cook for 30 seconds. Pour in tomato passata, a little water and let simmer for 30 minutes. Add salt, to taste, and if you have, fresh basil leaves.
- Cut the mozzarella into cubes or shred it, if you prefer.
- When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice them into ¼ inch slices.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish with the prepared tomato sauce (about 3 spoonfuls). Top with sliced potatoes to cover the bottom of the dish.
- Lightly season with salt, olive oil (about 1 tbsp.) and 1 teaspoon oregano. Then top with ½ of the cubed mozzarella and 1 tbsp. grated Parmigiano cheese.
- Top with ½ of the remaining tomato sauce.
- Continue with another layer of potatoes, salt, olive oil, oregano and grated cheese. This time top with the remaining tomato sauce before adding the rest of the mozzarella, and if you like, a little extra oregano on top.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is completely melted and bubbling. Serve hot.
Recipe FAQs
You may top each layer of potatoes with thinly sliced onions. Use 2 onions, 1 per layer of potatoes.
Yukon Gold, new potatoes as well as red potatoes all hold their shape well after boiling therefore making them easy to slice without falling apart.
You'll notice that I lightly sauced my potatoes. This is personal preference as I don't like my potatoes drowning in sauce, however if you prefer you may double the amount of tomato sauce.
If you tried this recipe or any other recipe on my blog please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how much you enjoyed it in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
More Italian potato recipes!
Patate alla Pizzaiola Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 large potatoes about 1.25 kg
- 300 ml tomato passata about 1¼ cups
- fresh basil leaves optional
- 250 grams mozzarella cheese
- 3 teaspoon dry oregano
- 2 tbsp. grated Parmigiano cheese
- 4 tbsp. olive oil divided
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Begin by peeling the potatoes, cover them with water in a large sauce pan. Bring to a boil and cook until slightly underdone (about 25 minutes). That is, when you pierce the center of the potatoes with a sharp knife there is some resistence. Set aside and let cool slightly.
- While the potatoes boil, prepare a basic tomato sauce. Heat 2 tbsp. of olive oil in a medium sized sauce pan, add garlic and let cook for 30 seconds. Pour in tomato passata, a little water and let simmer for 30 minutes. Add salt, to taste, and if you have, fresh basil leaves.
- Cut the mozzarella into cubes or shred it, if you prefer.
- When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice them into ¼ inch slices.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish with the prepared tomato sauce (about 3 spoonfuls). Top with sliced potatoes to cover the bottom of the dish.
- Lightly season with salt, olive oil (about 1 tbsp.) and 1 teaspoon oregano. Then top with ½ of the cubed mozzarella and 1 tbsp. grated Parmigiano cheese.
- Top with ½ of the remaining tomato sauce.
- Continue with another layer of potatoes, salt, olive oil, oregano and grated cheese. This time top with the remaining tomato sauce before adding the rest of the mozzarella, and if you like, a little extra oregano on top.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is completely melted and bubbling. Serve hot.
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