Crispy Roast Potatoes

Why We Love This Recipe

• The best way to make potatoes: If you're an American (like us), you might not be familiar with the British way of making potatoes for a Sunday roast. We think their way is just better!
• Worth the effort: It may take a try or two, but once you know what visual cues to look out for, these potatoes are pretty easy to make.
• Perfect holiday side: If you're cooking for Christmas or Thanksgiving, these potatoes can be a star side dish, or even a main.

Ingredients and Notes

• Yukon gold potatoes: These will give you the best balance between flavor and color. See Serious Eat's great post for more information about choosing the right potato variety.
• Baking soda: This alkalizes your water, leading to the potatoes breaking down a bit more when you boil them.
• Thyme and Rosemary: You could also try parsley in this recipe.
• Garlic: If you're not a fan, you can skip it or reduce the amount in this recipe.

Step-by-step Instructions

PREP: Preheat oven to 400˚F / 200˚C.  Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil and add baking soda and kosher salt. (It's important to use enough salt here – this is how you add flavor to the potatoes.)

STEP 1: Peel potatoes, quarter them, then add to the boiling water and cook until potatoes are almost falling apart, between 10-20 minutes, checking their texture often.

STEP 2: While potatoes are boiling, heat oil in a skillet then add in the sliced garlic, rosemary, and thyme over medium low heat. They will fry while the potatoes cook. Keep an eye on them to make sure the garlic doesn't burn. It should eventually turn light golden brown, but there's a fine line between burnt and crispy.

STEP 3: Drain the potatoes in a colander and let them rest for about a minute. Place a bowl with a slightly larger diameter on top of the colander, then shake or swirl to create a layer of mushy starch on the outside of the potatoes. This step can get a bit messy, so we recommend doing it over a kitchen sink.

STEP 4: Transfer the potatoes to a large rimmed baking sheet. Remove the garlic, rosemary, and thyme from the oil and set aside (you'll be using them later), then pour the hot oil over the potatoes and use tongs to coat them well. There may be some oil that pools on the baking sheet, but it's ok - you can always sop up excess oil with a paper towel later in the process.

STEP 5: Place in the oven and cook for 20-30 minutes, until the side of the potato facing the sheet pan is browned thoroughly, then turn them and cook for another 20 minutes. Turn them again to any unbrowned side and cook for another 10-20 minutes, until all sides are beautifully golden brown and crispy. 

Chop the fried garlic, rosemary, and thyme. Toss the garlic herb mixture with the potatoes as well as a good pinch of flaky salt to season. Enjoy!

Expert Tips and FAQs

• Trust your eyes: Potatoes can vary wildly from batch to batch, based on a variety of factors including when they were harvested and how they were stored. Here are the key things to look out for:
  • When boiling the potatoes, you want to see their outsides start to look a little roughed up, and they should be past fork tender and very soft when you take them out.
  • When roughing up the potatoes in the colander, you want to have a layer of fluffy starchy mash on the outside.
  • When cooking the potatoes, you want one side to brown completely before turning it over. Contact with the sheet pan is key for caramelization. If some pieces (usually smaller pieces) start browning before others, go ahead and flip those so they don't burn.
• Don't skip the baking soda: This raises the pH of the water and helps to break down the potatoes a bit, helping the outside get crisp while retaining a creamy interior.
• Make sure to use enough salt when boiling the potatoes: This is the main way you're adding seasoning to the actual potatoes. If you don't add enough to the water, the insides will not have any flavor.

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