We Asked Our Readers for the Best Side Dish Recipe of 2024, and There Was One Clear Winner

The recipe has a 4.9-star average rating from our community.

Best Recipes 2024: We’re back for our 2nd annual Best Recipes showdown! For 2024 we combed through our more than 55,000 recipes to find a winner in each of the following five categories of Party Food: Champion Mains, Top-Notch Apps, Winning Brunch Bites, Gold Medal Sweets, and Prize-Worthy Sides. 

When it comes to entertaining, the right side dishes can really make a party sing. That’s why the Allrecipes team set out to determine the most Prize-Worthy Side dish of 2024 as part of its annual Best Recipes Showdown! With this year’s theme all about party food, the editors began the search for 10 sides that were a step up from standard weeknight fare: appealing to lots of folks, adaptable to feed a crowd, and most importantly, memorable. The nominees–including delicious options like Greek Lemon Rice and Parmesan Cabbage–were all winners in their own right, but a community-wide vote narrowed the field to two semi-finalists.

Is it a surprise that those two featured everyone’s favorite vegetable: the potato? Maybe not, but now it was up to two expert judges who met at our test kitchens in Birmingham to taste each side and cast their votes for the ultimate winner.

Meet the Judges

We brought the judging heat to our Prize-Worthy Sides Showdown. Meet them now!

Nicole McLaughlin: McLaughlin is a senior producer and on-camera talent for Allrecipes. With more than 20 years of experience in the culinary world, she has a bachelor's in restaurant and hospitality management from the University of Alabama and a culinary arts degree from Johnson and Wales University.

Roscoe Hall: Best known for competing in season 18 of Top Chef, Allrecipes contributor Hall began his culinary journey at Chez Panisse, where he trained under the legendary Alice Waters for two years. His cooking chops have taken him all over the country where he’s worked in kitchens from Portland, Oregon to New York City.

Meet the Two Contenders

Bang Bang Potatoes: Developed by Allrecipes test-kitchen assistant Amanda Holstein, this fairly recent recipe has already racked up a 4.9-star average from the community. And for good reason: Here, standard roasted potatoes get a party-worthy elevation with the addition of a creamy yet spicy sauce made from mayonnaise, buttermilk, sweet Thai chili sauce, and sriracha.

Steakhouse au Gratin Potatoes: Submitted by Allrecipes community member Ingalyn, these dreamy potatoes are everything you want in an au gratin-style side dish. The creamy, cheesy, and garlicky flavor will keep guests coming back for more. You have to be careful when bringing this dish to a party, it will be highly requested once friends and family get a taste!

What the Judges Had to Say

Bang Bang Potatoes: Both Hall and McLaughlin were big fans of the spicy aspect of the dish. McLaughlin also noted that the potatoes were “perfectly cooked” which was surely thanks to our outstanding test-kitchen team, but also because the recipe cleverly has you coat the potatoes in a bit of cornstarch before roasting, which leads to extra crispy potatoes every time. Just like the community, each judge gave this recipe a hefty 4.9-star rating!

Steakhouse au Gratin Potatoes: While it’s hard to find fault with creamy, cheesy potatoes, this casserole left our professionals wanting more. Hall wished there was a bit more sauce to the recipe, while McLaughlin thought it needed more salt and pepper. Overall, they both enjoyed the simplicity and creaminess of the potatoes. 

And the Winner Is….

Bang Bang Potatoes!

Once you give this ‘Prize Worthy Side’ dish a try, you’ll never go back to plain old roasted potatoes. Community member minaayindra put it best with this glowing review: “Excellent! Super easy to make, it is a quick and very precise recipe. The crispiness of the potatoes, the crunch of the scallions, the spicing that wasn't too hot for ’regular’ people, all came together in my new favorite recipe. I made it exactly as written and I wouldn't change a thing.” 

Read the original article on All Recipes.