These Cheesy Leftover Mashed Potato Pancakes are the perfect easy meal or snack made with leftover mashed potatoes, cheese, ham, and all the fixings you love!
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I don’t know about you, but my kids are in this phase right now where they’ve decided they no longer like basic foods like rice, or mashed potatoes. Thankfully they still wolf down salads, grilled chicken, and all kinds of fruits and veggies, but this potato-hating phase is starting to get to me. I’m always left with a mass of mashed potatoes after all the other leftovers are gone, and so I’m forced to get creative! These Cheesy Leftover Mashed Potato Pancakes are the PERFECT way to re-purpose leftover mashed potatoes AND they’re totally kid-friendly. Even if your kids are potato-haters at the moment like mine.
How to Use Leftover Mashed Potatoes
Not only is this recipe the perfect way to re-purpose leftovers, it’s also totally flexible. Feel free to add whatever you have in your fridge that you need to get rid of – diced red peppers, grated carrots, onions, leftover ham – and add whatever spices you want too! A little bit of cayenne for heat, taco seasoning for a Mexican twist…they sky is the limit. These Cheesy Leftover Mashed Potato Pancakes make a great appetizer or side dish, or even an easy meal idea with a side salad or some steamed veggies. Our family loves these Cheesy Leftover Mashed Potato Pancakes!
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How to Make Mashed Potato Pancakes
Making these mashed potato pancakes is SO easy!
- Start with room temperature mashed potatoes. They’ll be so much easier to mix this way, and they won’t be so crumbly.
- Add some cheese. Cheese helps keep the mashed potato pancakes together AND it adds a delicious flavour and texture!
- Add some flour. A little bit of flour helps absorb any excess liquid, creating the perfect texture for frying!
- Add some eggs. Eggs help these mashed potato pancakes stay together, and they add some protein!
- Don’t forget the flavour! Adding some spices, herbs, green onions, bacon, or even ham is a great way to make these mashed potato pancakes taste great!
- Fry to perfection! Only about 5 minutes per side for pancakes about 1.5 centimetres thick.
- Serve with sour cream. What could be better than creamy sour cream on top of these delicious mashed potato pancakes?!
How to Freeze Leftover Mashed Potatoes
Simply freeze mashed potatoes in an airtight container or freezer bag and defrost to room temperature before making it into mashed potato pancakes.
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! Let me know in the comments below, what’s your favourite way to use up leftovers? I’d love to know!
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KITCHEN PRODUCTS I RECOMMEND:
Looking for even more delicious meal ideas like this one? Try these!
- Easy Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches
- One Pot Creamy Enchilada Pasta
- Easy Honey Garlic Shrimp
- One Pan Sesame Orange Chicken
- Skillet Pesto Caprese Stuffed Chicken
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Recipe Video
Watch the video below to see exactly how I make this easy snack. You can find more delicious recipe videos on my YouTube channel
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Are you trying this recipe? Use the comment form below to share your take; now with support for image uploads and comment voting!
Leftover Mashed Potato Pancakes
Recipe: Equipment
- potato masher
Recipe: Ingredients
- 3 cups leftover mashed potatoes (plain is best, but garlic mashed potatoes work too!)
- 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (I like a combination of cheddar and mozzarella)
- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/3 cup chopped green onions plus more for garnish
- 1/3 cup crumbled cooked bacon OR chopped ham
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley (or 2 teaspoons freshly chopped parsley, if you have it)
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste (about 1/2 tsp salt for flavour, at least)
- a small amount of vegetable oil for frying
- sour cream for serving
Recipe: Instructions
- Add the leftover mashed potatoes to a large bowl. They shouldn't be cold from the fridge if you can help it - let them stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before adding any other ingredients OR mash them up well again to break up the clumps with a warm potato masher.
- Add the cheese, flour, green onion, bacon or ham, eggs, garlic powder, thyme, and salt and pepper.
- Stir all the ingredients together very well until everything is fully incorporated and the mixture is smooth.
- Form the mixture into 12 patties about 1.5 centimetres thick.
- Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat and add a small amount of vegetable oil (around 1-2 teaspoons).
- Fry the patties in batches (don't overcrowd your skillet!) for about 5 minutes per side or until golden brown and completely cooked through.
- Enjoy warm with a dollop of sour cream, some more sliced green onions, and some extra cheese, if desired.
Recipe: Notes
Freezer Instructions
Store mashed potatoes in the freezer until ready to use. Bring to room temperature before making into mashed potato pancakes.Storage Instructions
Store the leftover pancakes in the fridge in an airtight container.Recipe: Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
Just made these potato pancakes and just wanted you to know how awesome they are. I improvised and used what cheeses I had, cheddar and pecorino. I also used mixed blend of dried Italian spices since I didn’t have parsley or thyme. Thank you so much!
Those additions sound SO good! Glad you enjoyed them!
Can I cook these in the oven ?
They need to fry on both sides, so I wouldn’t recommend that!
Thanks for the binder suggestions. Once I got to the actual recipe, that is.
Everyone, add more spices than the recipe suggests so it isn’t so bland. Consider tripling the garlic and adding powdered mustard, as a start. The thyme isn’t really optional.
Feel free to add extra spice, etc. if you prefer! Since I have young kids I’ve got to be careful with too much spice 😉
Wow! After reading your comment, “anon”, I know who to go to if I need to borrow a cup of snark.
To pack 3-4 insults and/or backhanders into so few words is such an accomplishment!
Chrissie, the recipe is clear and makes for a great meal. Thanks for sharing it.
Lol agreed!
Your comment sounds so rude.
How hateful! Loved this recipe! Your food must taste awful because food is prepared from the heart and it seems you don’t have one. Thank you for sharing Chrissie!!
Thanks for your support! We’re so glad you love this recipe as much as we do! 🙂
I loved this recipe! We had about 5 cups of left over garlic mashed potatoes from Christmas dinner and this was a great way to use them up. i did use some Italian bread crumbs to the recipe. It gave it just a little extra flavor. will be using this a lot in the future
So glad you loved this recipe as much as we do! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment! 🙂
Can you freeze them?
Thanks.
I wouldn’t recommend freezing them, no. The texture of the potatoes after frozen is not the best 🙂
Just made these pancakes. Substituted dill for parsley (love dill with potatoes). The are perfection! Thank you!
So glad you liked them!!
Wow, was this ever good. I think I will make this again and again!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
I added a cup of spicy panko crumbs for a lil kick. Awesome!!
Thanks so much! Glad you liked them! 🙂
My family cannot get enough of these ! So delicious !!
So glad you love them as much as we do! 🙂
The perfect way to use leftover mashed potatoes!
I know,right!? I hope you give them a try!
I would eat some right now! These pancakes look so inviting!
Thanks so much! I hope you give them a try!
Cheese and potatoes; my two favorite things combined! Can’t wait to give these a try!
Thanks so much! Hope you love them as much as we do!
This is seriously making me hungry! I gotta make this! Looks great!
Thanks!
Oh my Gosh!! These are faaantastic!! I can’t wait to try them!!
Thanks! I hope you enjoy them!
I’m so glad I found this recipe, these are so much better than frying raw potato pancakes. The spices were just perfect, I didn’t have any thyme, so I added dill and garlicpowder..
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the positive feedback!
Just made these with all of our leftover potatoes from Thanksgiving. I was on baby duty, so I threw them in the oven for 30 minutes, and then broiled on each side until crispy…they turned out amazing! Thanks for the recipe! I always feel guilty for throwing out all of the leftovers after holidays.
so glad you liked these!!
Awesome idea! Thank you too cause my apartment is so small It fills with smoke so fast and I made them and it was a smoke filled mess!!! This is the way I will do it next time !!
These are good! I had mashed potatoes & baked brown sugar ham going to waste from Thanksgiving. I used shredded white cheddar and left out the thyme & parsley. I fried them in oil as suggested & they came out with a nice crust and a loaded baked potato tasting filling. Nice job.
So glad you like the recipe!! 🙂
Made this rexioe exactly how you wrote it and they were amazing. Served alongside homemade applesauce.Thanks for sharing!
They really are 😉. Thanks Dianne!
Thanks so much for the great recipe. Made them last night! They were so delicious my boys ate them all up. Only problem was I smoked up the whole house when frying them.
So glad they liked it so much 😊and I’m sorry for the inconvenient!
Can I form these ahead of time?
Yes!
Can I use regular flour for this recipeOr does it have to be wheat ?
Use any kind of flour you like. 🙂
I used almond flour and they came out delicious!!! Thank you! Will definitely be making these again.
Sounds amazing! Thank you for letting us know it works with almond flour too.
I made these with my leftover Christmas potatoes. There very good. I will definitely make them again. Thank you.
Thank you Linda! So glad you liked them!
Hey does it need to be wholemeal flour? Can you use plain flour?
Yes, you can use plain or all purpose flour.
These were wonderful with over easy eggs. My son put salsa on his. My husband who had told me time and again how much he disliked mashed potato pancakes, ate two and nibbled at more. I used my mashed potatoes that I always add sour cream, olive oil and garlic to, so I didn’t add that much garlic powder to the mix. Next time I’ll add more garlic and thyme. I also need to not make them so big. They are difficult to turn if you make them too big!
So glad you liked them!
These were great! I’ve made other recipes before that haven’t turned out as well. I have kids who don’t like spicy food so it was just perfect!
Thank you Karen!!🙂
Nummy Good!!! These are a delish IOU’s way to clean out the fridge of leftovers. I had chopped green onions I threw in too!! Thanks for the post!!
You’re welcome Tammy!! Thanks for the review!🙂
This recipe was absolutely delicious.
Thank you so much Nancy!!🙂
Made these tonight, but at the last minute so had to make substitutions. While frying the bacon, I added diced sweet onion and three cloves of minced garlic since I had neither scallions nor garlic powder. I stirred all that into the cold potatoes first, then added everything else. I upped the thyme and added Italian seasoning, lots of black pepper and extra salt. Family loved them! Next time I will use sharper cheese. I think these would be great with Swiss.
Thanks so much for your feedback Deirdre!!
Delicious! What a way to use up those leftovers. I would warn everyone to use fresh thyme judiciously here- it transforms the taste from breakfast to lunch/dinner. I only used a half a sprig and it was pretty strong. Next time I would skip. I had 3 leftover that I plan to freeze and reheat in the oven. YUM!
Thanks for your feedback and for the tip on using fresh thyme, I know it can be quite flavourful, that’s why I recommended the dried version.😊
Delicious! Cooked them a little more for crispness and made them a bit smaller. Will make again with leftover mashed potatoes. Thank you for the great recipe. 2 thumbs up!!
Thanks so much Deborah!!🙂
Should have another 1/2 cup flourand maybe one less egg. They were a little sloppy to make and fry.. Taste as good
The consistency of the pancakes depends a lot on the leftover mash that you use. We don’t add milk to our mashed potatoes(only some butter) so it tends to be a little on the dry side. If your mash potatoes have milk or they are more hydrated feel free to add a bit more flour or leave out an egg. Happy cooking☺️
Love your recipes, a lot of them are very simple BUT so good. Thank you for putting the option to change the serving quantity! It is super helpful!!!
You’re welcome Susan! Thank you for noticing!! Glad you find it helpful🙂
I wasn’t sure about using leftover instant potatoes but it worked, However I used only 1 egg and followed the rest of your recipe adding 2 tsp of garlic powder, no thyme and white flour (didn’t have brown). I’m saving this recipe and will definitely make it again. Thanks
I’m happy you enjoyed it! Happy cooking ☺️
made for the 1st time tonight, didn’t change a thing! best ever! my new favorite side!
Thanks so much Mary Anne!!
I have tried more than one recipe like this and always hoped for delicious potato cakes…only to get mediocre taste and satisfaction.
This recipe is the winner !! So satisfying and tasty. My husband and son really liked them and kept saying so! My son ate 4!
Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe.
I’m so happy you and your family enjoyed them! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
I am making these as I type this review. I followed the recipe plus added in some dried dill, Italian seasoning, and organic no salt seasoning. I also added chopped ham and crisp fried bacon. I am cooing them in my air fryer for 3 – 4 minutes on each side They are delicious! My daughter just ate the first 2 and told me they are very good and I agree! Next time I might add some left over corn or sautéed bell pepper. So many different ingredients and combinations can be used in this recipe. It’s a plus that they are very easy to make.
Thank you for your feedback! I’m happy you and your family enjoyed it! We sometimes add other ingredients too, depending on what leftovers we have.
Sooo good, I never get a chance to freeze them.
I’m so happy you enjoyed them! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback.
So yummy thank you!!
I’m so happy you enjoyed them! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
This recipe was absolutely delicious.
I’m so happy you enjoyed them! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
I made these for dinner last night…so delicious! I was able to use up lots of mashed potatoes I had leftover! Thank you for this recipe!! I’m heavy handed with spices so I just eye-balled them. It was a hit in my house, and I will make them again!
We’re so happy you enjoyed them! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback! Every time we have mashed potatoes in the menu we make sure to make more specifically so we can make these pancakes after ☺️
Chrissy,
Thank you! This was an entire family hit and we will definitely make them again. I added non dairy cheese and red pepper flakes (to mine, not the kids)- DELICIOUS!
We’re so happy you enjoyed them! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
These are awesome. Been looking for a good potato recipe. Tried a few they were ehh but this is GREAT.
Question- I was looking for a zucchini muffin or bread recipe. Searched your site but came up empty. After your banana nut muffins were amazing I figured a zucchini bread/muffin would be too.
Do you have a recipe for either ?
We’re so happy you enjoyed them! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
We have recipes for:
–Baked Zucchini Fritters (https://thebusybaker.ca/baked-zucchini-fritters/)
–Zucchini Slice (https://thebusybaker.ca/zucchini-slice/)
And for a sweet twist:
–Zucchini Chocolate Cake (https://thebusybaker.ca/zucchini-chocolate-cake/)
–Double chocolate zucchini muffins (https://thebusybaker.ca/double-chocolate-zucchini-muffins/)
–Zucchini Blueberry Muffins (https://thebusybaker.ca/zucchini-blueberry-muffins/)
These were delicious. Only had 2.25 C of mashed potatoes so added an extra egg and .75 C of panko instead of 1/2 C flour. Used (somewhate grated) brie and grated semi hard parma-type cheese. Otherwise followed directions. Absoulutely delicious!!
We’re so happy you enjoyed them! The cheese combo sounds amazing. Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
How do you make the mix into patties, mine seemed a bit too gooey to do that?
If your mashed potatoes were a little more moist and your batter is also a bit moist, you could add an extra tbsp of flour or form the patties straight in the pan like a pancake. Hope this helps ☺️
I did make the recipe. I didn’t put bacon in mine because we were already having a meat dish and I was serving this as a side. Also decided to pat them in some panko crumbs before frying. They were a great way to use my leftover potatoes.
That panko addition sounds great! Thanks for taking the time to leave your feedback.
I loved the recipe but what would happen if there wasn’t any flour added?
They wouldn’t hold together as well.
Hello, I’m planning on making these panckakes tonight, can you use plain flour or does it have to be whole wheat flour? Thank you!
You can use plain flour ☺️
Hello again….only have 2 cups leftover mash making these for my daughters this eve- will 2 eggs be enough?
Yes! For sure.
These were absolutely delicious!! I have IBS so I avoid gluten and made with gluten free flour and they were tremendous. Definitely one that I am adding to my recipe book to make again and again.
We’re so happy you enjoyed our recipe! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
Can i make this without eggs?
Well the eggs are a binding agent so if you omit them your pancakes might be a bit crumbly.