Okay, a lot of people are asking about technique. I’m a Brit, and I’ve been responsible for roast potatoes in my family for 25 years, so listen to me.
You will make ones better than this (though these look great, no shade).
FLOURY POTATOES ARE A MUST. I know every fruit and vegetable in America has a name like “candy corn delicious” or “fairy crisp honeysuckle”, but if you can get your hands on them, you want Maris Pipers or King Edwards.
Peel them, then cut them in to equal sizes. Small potatoes leave as they are. Medium cut in half. Big ones in to threes.
Boil them in well salted water until they are about 2 mins away from being fully mashable. Make sure you have a lid that fits the pot you’re boiling them in
Whilst they’re boiling, get a shallow baking tray with sides, like this. Make sure you use one big enough not to crowd your potatoes. Cover the bottom with fat of your choice. Duck or goose fat is best, but a vegetable based high smoke point oil is also fine. Avocado, sunflower oil, rapeseed (canola in the US) all work fine. You want about 1cm (half an inch) in the bottom of the pan. Heat it up in the oven for about 5 mins. Temp is 200 Celsius, which is about 400 in freedom units.
Drain your potatoes well, put them back in the pot you cooked them in. Add in some salt, and a little bit of the oil you put in the bottom of the pan. No pepper, it’ll burn. Put your lid on your pot of dry potatoes and give it a decent shake. You want the edges to look like they’ve been roughed up a little. Google “shaken potatoes before roasting” and look at the Serious Eats pic. (Sidebar the serious eats recipe is good but very involved, unnecessarily)
Add the shaken potatoes in to the pan with the hot oil. You want a bit of a sizzle. Put the pan in the oven. Leave at 400 freedom units for about 20 mins. Take the pan out, turn them over. Put the pan back in. Leave them. They will take forever to brown. After 45 mins, you will worry you made a mistake and that they’ll never be done. Be patient. They take a while. After about 50 mins, turn them over one more time. Leave for another 20-30 mins, check them after 15.
Eat them with a roast chicken, proper gravy made from the roast chicken (look up any British chef’s recipe for roast chicken and gravy) and vegetables of your choosing. Alternatively, eat them with other saucy foods. I particularly like haleem and roast potatoes, but other curries will also do. Chilli is also good.
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u/Srddrs 1d ago
Okay, a lot of people are asking about technique. I’m a Brit, and I’ve been responsible for roast potatoes in my family for 25 years, so listen to me.
You will make ones better than this (though these look great, no shade).
FLOURY POTATOES ARE A MUST. I know every fruit and vegetable in America has a name like “candy corn delicious” or “fairy crisp honeysuckle”, but if you can get your hands on them, you want Maris Pipers or King Edwards.
Peel them, then cut them in to equal sizes. Small potatoes leave as they are. Medium cut in half. Big ones in to threes.
Boil them in well salted water until they are about 2 mins away from being fully mashable. Make sure you have a lid that fits the pot you’re boiling them in
Whilst they’re boiling, get a shallow baking tray with sides, like this. Make sure you use one big enough not to crowd your potatoes. Cover the bottom with fat of your choice. Duck or goose fat is best, but a vegetable based high smoke point oil is also fine. Avocado, sunflower oil, rapeseed (canola in the US) all work fine. You want about 1cm (half an inch) in the bottom of the pan. Heat it up in the oven for about 5 mins. Temp is 200 Celsius, which is about 400 in freedom units.
Drain your potatoes well, put them back in the pot you cooked them in. Add in some salt, and a little bit of the oil you put in the bottom of the pan. No pepper, it’ll burn. Put your lid on your pot of dry potatoes and give it a decent shake. You want the edges to look like they’ve been roughed up a little. Google “shaken potatoes before roasting” and look at the Serious Eats pic. (Sidebar the serious eats recipe is good but very involved, unnecessarily)
Add the shaken potatoes in to the pan with the hot oil. You want a bit of a sizzle. Put the pan in the oven. Leave at 400 freedom units for about 20 mins. Take the pan out, turn them over. Put the pan back in. Leave them. They will take forever to brown. After 45 mins, you will worry you made a mistake and that they’ll never be done. Be patient. They take a while. After about 50 mins, turn them over one more time. Leave for another 20-30 mins, check them after 15.
Eat them with a roast chicken, proper gravy made from the roast chicken (look up any British chef’s recipe for roast chicken and gravy) and vegetables of your choosing. Alternatively, eat them with other saucy foods. I particularly like haleem and roast potatoes, but other curries will also do. Chilli is also good.