to ask for help from MN in overcoming my secret shame?

[HedgehogsDontBite]

I can't cook roast potatoes. There, I've finally admitted it.

I've reached the grand old age of 45 and am utterly incapable when it comes to these little buggers. They either come out rock hard and inedible or they resemble one of the dog's chew toys. I've tried loads of different 'recipes' but it's always the same. Failure. I'd buy frozen ones if they sold them where I live, but they don't.

Now I'm hosting Christmas dinner and I can hide no longer. WIBU to do chips instead and tell our non-British guests that this is traditional?

[codandchipstwice]

yum - they look great

[middlethird]

Even the style of oven can make all the difference. Fan/heat from the bottom/heat from the back/electric/gas etc!

So many different styles! Here is mine, just for the hell of it

Rapseed oil or goosefat (or the added fat from a beef joint) in a highish sided roasting tin. Aoout 1.5 - 2cm deep.
Maris Pipers peeled and cut into the same sort of size, small or large basically!!
Whack the oven up to about gas mark 6 or 200 ish. Stick oil in oven to get hot.
Put the potatoes in cold water, bring to boil - simmer for 5-6 minutes until the sides begin to fluff. For me it's very important not to over boil. The cooking starts proper in the oven, the parboiling is - for me - just to get the outstides all crunchy.
Drain spuds and shake a bit, take oil out of the oven - put the spuds into the hot oil - making sure they are in one layer. Try and leave a little room inbetween each spud.
Spoon the hot oil over the spuds, coating each properly.
Put the tray in the TOP of the oven, (mine is traditional, back lit gas) check after 30 mins and turn them over, move them about.
Back in the oven for as long as you need to! I like about 1hr 15 ish for a bloody crunch on the outside, fluffy on the inside roast spud.

Good luck OP - you'll NAIL it I'm sure

[HedgehogsDontBite]

By jove I think I've cracked it. DS actually cried because he had to wait for his to cool. Thank you so much everyone for you help. I feel like I've climbed to the top of a mountain. Now I just need to have a lie down to recover.

[GarlicGiftsAndGlitter]

Congrats :)

[DameDiazepamTheDramaQueen]

What your cook in makes a difference too, I use a heavy based stone roaster, if I use a roasting tin they taste completely different! Well done op

[middlethird]

Whooooo!

[spamanderson]

I have a confession..... Until a couple of weeks ago, I had never made a Yorkshire pudding :o I'm 29 this week :/

[NewNamePlease]

Well dine OP they look lovely if a bit small

[mummytowillow]

Simples ... Get yourself to M&S they do big boxes of fresh ones at Xmas. I'd put a bit of extra oil in and they will be fine!

[ThreeQuartersEmpty]

Yeah!

They looked good.

Roasties every night until Christmas then?

[SignoraStronza]

Boil for a bit.
Drain.
Leave on a switched off hob to 'dry out' for a few minutes (appreciate this happens better on a slowly cooling electric hob).
Chuck in a bit of flour.
Lid back on pan and really shake it all about.
Put on a roasting tray containing hot oil.
Sprinkle on salt.
Shake/toss about once or twice during cooking.
Voila!

[MovingOnUpMovingOnOut]

Love a good live birth thead.

Even if it is roast potatoes being born

[BertieBotts]

God they look LUSH!! I'm in Germany, can I come over for tea?

[SagaNorensSnowflakeTrousers]

Moving

[Marcelinewhyareyousomean]

Salt your water.

Well done.

[Pastamancer]

We always use dripping here, the dish goes back in the oven after cooking and will be reused the following week. We do this repeatedly until the fat needs replacing but the first roast of a new set of fat is never as good. The more dripping is used, the better it tastes.

[SaucyJack]

You don't need to heat oil first. I never bother, and my spuds are legendary,

[Janethegirl]

I find either goose fat or the hard white vegetable fat best for roasties and yorkshires, but it needs to be hot before you put the parboiled potatoes in.

[MeganBacon]

Are you in Germany? It's the potatoes. I do great roasties in UK but always fail with a German spud.

[evelynj]

First lot look good hedgehogs! I'm very excited to try your honed recipe, but expecting feedback of at least 5 more attempts with pictures-thanks ;)

[StillSquirrelling]

Everyone always raves about my roast potatoes. I make sure there's a good amount of oil in the roasting pan (either sunflower or 50:50 olive oil/goosefat) and then stick it in a hot oven to heat (225C in my oven, which is a fan oven). The meat goes into the top oven so that it doesn't get completely incinerated.

Whilst the fat is heating I parboil chopped Maris Piper potatoes (full whack on the hob and boil them for 4-5 minutes). I then drain them and bash them about a bit in the pan so that they are a bit fluffy on the outsides.

If I'm being particularly non-lazy decadent then for roast chicken, lamb or pork I'll add a squeeze of garlic puree to the oil and give it a stir around before adding the potatoes. I then give the whole tray a good shake to cover the potatoes in oil as much as possible. Any that aren't oily I'll turn them by spoon until they are. For chicken I then add a sprinkling of finely chopped fresh thyme (or dried), for lamb I add chopped fresh rosemary and for pork I add dried sage. I don't flavour potatoes for roast beef.

Potatoes then go into the oven. Every 10-15 mins I'll get them out to give them a shake/turn them over with a spoon and I just repeat this until they are crispy and golden. It usually takes about 45mins but can take up to an hour if the potatoes are cut large or there are more than usual in the tray.

Adding goosefat to your oil (or just using it on its own) gives the roasties that lovely slightly chewy crispy quality. You can't beat it!

[Jux]

Lard is your friend (and a lot cheaper than goose fat). I use 50/50 oil/lard.

Get the pan and fat really really hot in the oven while parboiling. You want the spuds a bit fluffy so the surface area is increased and so more oil clings to it - that's how they get crispy. Baste every 15-20 mins.

[namelessposter]

Third vote for the Delia technique!

[HedgehogsDontBite]

I didn't sleep too well last night. Roast potatoes were repeating on me big time. I think it was because they absorbed so much oil. Perhaps too much oil or too small potatoes. Will have to experiment and see. :(

[SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius]

I generally use the Delia method - and you do have to get the fat smoking hot - that way the potatoes crisp up as they hit the fat, and absorb less of it.

But I recently tried something that worked a treat - I had forgotten to put the fat in the oven to heat, so I bunged it in the wok and got it smoking hot on the hob, then threw the potatoes in there (after fluffing them up, as others have said), gave them a quick sizzle, and then threw them into the roasting tray and into the oven - and they were beautiful - crispy and not too fatty.

n