Description
Crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside, these crispy roast potatoes are the perfect holiday side dish. Potatoes are boiled then roasted until browned on all sides and topped with a crispy herbs, garlic, and salt.
Ingredients
- 4 lbs. Yukon gold potatoes
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 4-5 Thyme sprigs
- 3 Rosemary sprigs
- 5-6 cloves of garlic, sliced
- Flaky salt for serving
Instructions
- 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.)
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 after they come out of the oven.
- 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!
Notes
This post has been adapted from recipes posted by Heston Blumenthal and Serious Eats.
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.
Yukon gold potatoes: These will give you the best balance between flavor and color. You can also use yellow potatoes in this recipe. We do not recommend using russet or red potatoes.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Side dishes
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: British
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4 pieces
- Calories: 397
- Sugar: 2.5 g
- Sodium: 536.8 mg
- Fat: 19 g
- Carbohydrates: 53.7 g
- Fiber: 6.4 g
- Protein: 6.4 g
