What’s the secret to spud-tacular roasties?

[SleighYoullBeThere]

We're hosting for the first time in our new home and we’ve got family coming over – I really want to impress with amazing roasties!

What’s the trick to getting them super crispy?
Do you have a favourite fat - goose, duck, dripping, vegetable oil?
Does the type of potato make a difference?
Should I cook ahead and freeze them, or does that ruin them?
Air fryer or oven?

Help!

Ooh you can't beat a good roastie. You will get 100 different answers I guess. We do Delia Smiths duck fat ones.

I'm vegetarian so I use olive oil.

I par boil the potatoes then whack them around in the pan.

I heat the oil, in the baking tray, on the hob then put in the potatoes and cover them in hot oil.

Then put them in the hot oven. I also throw in garlic as I like the taste. I use red potatoes.

Cut them so that there’s plenty of edges to get good and crispy. Par boil. Preheat your oil in the roasting pan - dripping or goose fat best but veg oil not far behind. Can go in at same heat as other things in over but turn right up while your meat is resting.

I shake mine in the sieve to ruffle the edges and roast them in olive oil, salt and pepper.

10 minutes under the grill at the end is a bit of a rescue hack if you have an oven which allows you to turn the grill on at the the same time.

My dad uses the fat from the meat he's cooking an they always seem to come out amazing. Plenty of salt too

Goose fat. Part boil them, rough them up in the roasting tray ie toss them around and roast. The roughed up edges will crisp up whilst the centre remains soft.

Watch some of the Christmas cooking shows you'll get lots of suggestions for perfect roasties.

Par boil them in salted water until they’re as soft as you dare, drain well then gently (so they don’t break up, but you may lose a few) sprinkle semolina into the pan and coat them in it. Roast in the fat of your choice then sit back and enjoy the praise.

Nigella’s, with goose fat and polenta.

Jamie Oliver recipe.. Boil them for around 15 minutes, heat goose fat in a metal roasting tray on top of the hob, add the boiled potatoes, press down slightly with a potato masher to get good edges season with salt and rosemary, put in a hot oven for 50/60 minutes.

We parboil, drain and leave in the colander to dry off a bit (which is crucial IMO). Then tip back into the pot they were parboiled in, add some butter, olive oil, salt, pepper, a few garlic cloves that have been bashed (not fully crushed) and some rosemary sprigs, lid on the pot then shake to rough it all up and mix in.

then we roast in more olive oil. Works for us each time 🙂

I pat boil, drain, give a shake with the lid on to rough up, dust lightly with flour, stick the pan with potatoes in outside in the cold for 10 minutes ish while the oil heats up in oven, then put the cooled potatoes in the hot oil and turn a couple of times while cooking, fluffy in the middle and crunchy on the outside.

Olive oil (I'm veggie). Par boil until quite done, shake em up. You want plenty of surface area. Let cool and leave to steam a bit. Heat the oil up. I just do it in the hot oven. I do about 220 fan. Spuds in. Crushed garlic, lemon peel strips, rosemary, salt pepper can be added but just salt and pepper is fine for Christmas if you're having lots of other things. Kep an eye, baste and turn as needed. You'll get crunchy bits with this recipe . I like to do it with baby potatoes but again prob not for Christmas

I use a vegetable oil (sunflower, canola, whatever) as it's flavourless and has a high smoke point so can handle a higher temperature to maximise crispiness. I cut them small to increase surface area again for crispiness and I parboil them. Then add plenty of fat from the meat for flavour, and a little salt. I like them to have a crisp exterior and basically mush inside though.

I use olive oil if I'm cooking them at a lower temperature, then I add things like garlic or herbs, but they're less crispy like that.

I will add my two potatoes worth...

I use Maris Pipers and cut the big ones into quarters halves with the smaller ones just whole or half. I boil them until they are crumbly and drain in a colander. If you can be bothered, pour them out onto kitchen towel to soak up excess water. Whilst this is going on, in a large deep baking tray I pour a load of olive oil (or cooking oil these days) with a wedge of butter in the middle and get this to melt and heat up for a few minutes. When it's nice and hot, I pour the potatoes in and use a potato slice to move them around and get them all covered in the oil/melted butter mix. Loads of black pepper. Sometimes bits of rosemary if I'm in that mood. No salt as the butter is usually salted.

Cook on high for about 20 minutes (200-220) then once theyre crisping up on the outside, turn down to about 180 so they can slowly cook. I just keep checking until they look ready.

Par boil potatoes. Make sure your oil is absolutely boiling before you add the potatoes (so they sizzle when you add them to oil) and shake them throughout.

Maris Pipers. Parboil, then leave to steam dry. Shuffle them around to rough up the edges and then into a tray and dab in a few chunks of either goose fat (at Christmas) or lard (the rest of the year). Season them, and then chuck into a hot oven for about 50 minutes, turning once or twice during cooking. This gives crispy potatoes that aren't greasy. The worst fat to use is oil IMO, I can always tell if they've been cooked in oil as they tend to go more greasy and less crispy. An animal based solid fat is pretty essential IMO if you want the crispy crunch.

I par boil them then toss them in flour, salt, pepper and crushed rosemary from the garden. i shake them until fluffy and then roll in olive oil and bake on a high heat- they do really well in the airfryer and can be pre prepared

1. Preheat the oven to very hot (220C regular? or hotter)
2. Put in a lipped tray with olive oil (or goose or duck, but I've never tried that)
3. Peel the potatoes.
4. Put them in a pan of cold water.
5. Bring to the boil and boil for 5 minutes ONLY.
6. Drain well, shake to bash them a bit.
7. Add a tbsp of plain flour and a tbsp of semolina or polenta, and stir
8. After the tray has been in the oven for about 20 mins, put the potatoes in CAREFULLY using a big spoon.
9. After about 15 mins (might be less) check the bottoms are done and turn them over, again use a big spoon.
10. After the same time again they should be done.
11. Don't wait too long to serve or they will taste sweet like school dinner roasties.

I saw Jamie doing this on telly a few weeks ago and his potatoes were massive! Not sure he’d even cut them. Wrong ‘un. I’d far rather have several smaller roasties with lots of lovely crispy edges than the one huge potato per person he was serving!

Don't cut too small
Par boil ~10min drain and dry properly and rough them up by shaking in pan
Big roasting tray, plenty of oil and at least 10 mins preheating in hot oven
I use rapeseed or sunflower oil, high smoking point. Duck / goose fat good too. I wouldn't use olive oil
Turn potatoes over in hot oil and get back in oven (200c)
Cook for longer than you think, at least 50 mins, give a shake after 30
Plan for them to be the last thing on the table so they stay super crispy

Also Maris Pipers best spuds for roasties

You've had a lot of useful tips here so I won't add to those but just a few "don'ts".

1 don't cut them too small. You need them big enough to get nice crusty outside and soft insides. I think lots of people try to make them too small.

2 Don't fiddle with them. Whack them in the oven. Turn once or, at most, twice.

3 Don't think this is quick. Nothing more annoying than seeing someone who only roasts their potatoes for 20 minutes! glares at DSis, Ddad, and SIL

4 Don't underseason. Plenty of salt at the very least.

Any fat works.

Boil your potatoes for 8 mins, drain them, then rattle them around in the dry saucepan to crumble the edges. Put them in the roasting tin with some fat, the fat gets into the bruised edges of the potatoes and roasts crispy.

Boil the potatoes until they are just turning colour, looking part done. Tip them out and wait until steam is evaporated You need a really old pan for this next bit. Do not use nonstick. I don’t think it matters what oil or fat you use, Place the pan on the hob get the fat really hot and tip the dry potatoes into it. Keep them moving by shaking the pan or poke them about with a fork,. You are looking for slightly bashed about all over. Keep going until they are very light gold. Put them in a high oven at least 190.

Just be aware that they cook speedier than usual. They do remain crispy after standing. I wait until 20 minutes before they are ready and then pour melted butter on them. This optional but it does give them a beautiful golden colour