My grandfather swore by this simple trick for early spring dinners. Just 3 ingredients tossed together and covered tight so they come out incredibly tender and dripping with savory flavor.

This slow cooker 3-ingredient butter parsley potato recipe is straight from my grandfather’s playbook for early spring dinners. He used to say that if you keep the ingredients simple and trap in all the steam, the potatoes turn out incredibly tender and dripping with savory, buttery flavor. It’s the kind of set-it-and-forget-it side dish that works on a busy weeknight or alongside a roast for Sunday dinner. With just baby potatoes, butter, and parsley, everything happens in the slow cooker—tightly covered—so the potatoes almost baste themselves as they cook.

Serve these buttery parsley potatoes straight from the slow cooker (or transfer to a warm serving bowl) alongside roast chicken, grilled pork chops, or pan-seared salmon. They’re also great with simple sautéed green beans, steamed broccoli, or a crisp side salad to balance the richness of the butter. For a casual night, I’ll spoon them into bowls with some sliced sausage or leftover rotisserie chicken on top for an easy all-in-one meal. They’re delicious warm, but they also reheat well, so they’re perfect for meal prep or bringing to a potluck.

Servings: 6

2 pounds small baby potatoes, rinsed and well dried

Prep the potatoes by rinsing them under cool water and patting them very dry with a clean kitchen towel. Leaving the skins on helps them hold their shape and soak up the butter. If any potatoes are much larger than the others, cut them in half so they cook evenly.

Lightly grease the bottom of a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker with a small swipe of butter taken from the measured amount, just enough to keep the potatoes from sticking. This keeps the ingredients simple while still protecting the bottom from any hot spots.

Add the dry baby potatoes to the slow cooker in an even layer. Scatter the cubed butter evenly over the top of the potatoes so it can melt down around them as they cook. Sprinkle the chopped fresh parsley all over the potatoes and butter, making sure it’s fairly evenly distributed so every scoop gets some bright herby flavor.

Using a large spoon or your hands, gently toss the potatoes, butter cubes, and parsley together right in the slow cooker until the potatoes are lightly coated and the parsley is dispersed. Don’t worry if the butter is still in chunks; it will melt and baste everything as it cooks.

Cover the slow cooker with its lid, making sure it’s on snugly. To mimic my grandfather’s old trick for super tender potatoes, lay a large sheet of foil over the top of the slow cooker crock before placing the lid on, then press the lid down firmly. This extra layer helps trap steam and keeps all that buttery moisture inside so the potatoes come out incredibly tender and dripping with savory flavor.

Cook the potatoes on LOW for 4 to 5 hours, or on HIGH for 2 to 3 hours, until the potatoes are very tender when pierced with a fork. Try not to lift the lid during cooking; every time the lid comes off, steam escapes and the potatoes can dry out or take longer to soften.

Once the potatoes are tender, remove the lid (and foil, if using) carefully to avoid the hot steam. Gently toss the potatoes in the melted butter and parsley at the bottom of the slow cooker until they are all glistening and evenly coated. Taste one and, if you like, adjust by adding a tiny pinch of extra chopped parsley from your prep board for a fresher, brighter look right before serving.

Serve the butter parsley potatoes hot, directly from the slow cooker set to WARM so they stay nice and tender. Spoon them out so each serving gets plenty of the melted butter and visible parsley from the bottom of the crock. Any leftovers can be cooled, stored in an airtight container in the fridge, and reheated gently in the microwave or back in the slow cooker with the lid on until warmed through.

If you want to keep the recipe strictly to three ingredients, stick with just the potatoes, butter, and parsley as written, but there are a few small tweaks you can make while staying close to the spirit of the dish. Swap in salted butter if that’s what you have, and simply skip adding any extra seasoning; the salt in the butter will lightly season the potatoes as they cook. For an even more intense buttery coating, use up to 10 tablespoons of butter instead of 8—this is especially nice if you plan to hold the potatoes on WARM for a while. You can also play with the cut of the potatoes: leave tiny baby potatoes whole for a pretty presentation, or halve slightly larger ones so they soak up more butter. If you need to prep ahead, you can rinse and dry the potatoes and chop the parsley the night before; store the parsley wrapped in a paper towel in a small bag in the fridge, and in the morning, just toss everything into the slow cooker, cover tightly, and go. For a slightly crisper outside, you can spread leftover potatoes on a baking sheet and roast them at 425°F for 10 to 15 minutes the next day—they’ll still carry that buttery parsley flavor but with a bit of golden texture.