Jamie Oliver's 'best roast potato' recipe tried and tested (2024)

FAQs

How to make the best roast potatoes James Martin? ›

Melt the lard in a deep flameproof roasting tray on a high heat and fry the potatoes on each side until they begin to brown. Sprinkle with salt and roast for 30 minutes, or until starting to colour. Turn the potatoes and return to the oven for a further 20-30 minutes, or until golden-brown and crisp.

Soaking potatoes in water helps remove excess starch. Excess starch can inhibit the potatoes from cooking evenly as well as creating a gummy or sticky texture on the outside of your potatoes.

Carefully add the potatoes to the hot tray along with the garlic and rosemary. Toss to coat in the fat and spread out in a single layer so they cook evenly. Roast for 40-45 minutes, turning every 15 minutes, until crisp and golden brown. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to serve.

Do I have to boil potatoes before roasting? Not necessary but this can help get the perfect consistency and crispiness. Make sure you boil them but leave them a bit al dente and they will crisp up perfectly in the oven.

In most potato recipes, I recommend starting potatoes in cold water and bringing them up to a boil. This helps ensure that the exteriors don't turn to mush before the insides have a chance to cook through.

You want to use an oil with a mild flavour for your roasties. We prefer olive oil, but you can opt for vegetable, canola or grapeseed oils instead.

Parboiling the potatoes is a good start, but if they're not getting crispy during roasting your temperature isn't high enough or there's too much moisture.

Goose fat is one of the first choices for roast potatoes because first of all – it tastes nice! It has a really rich flavour compared to your more common vegetable oils. It's a bit like how cooking your roast potatoes in dripping from your turkey can add more flavour to your spuds too – they're both animal fats.

TIP: parchment paper is better to prevent sticking, but aluminum foil yields crispier results. If you use foil, you'll want to lightly grease it to prevent the potatoes from sticking. Note that even if you do that, they may still stick.

You should store peeled and cut potatoes in water for 24 hours to ensure the quality of your final product. "If you drain the potatoes and notice they are turning brown, that they've started getting soft, or if they are slimy you should discard them," says Brigman.

How long should you parboil potatoes for? ›

A general rule of thumb is to parboil potatoes until they are fork-tender but not falling apart, this can range anywhere from 15 minutes for small potatoes to 25-30 minutes for large whole potatoes.

See how I've beaten them up?' Jamie continued: 'I'm gonna cook these in an oven at about 180/190, which is about 350 Fahrenheit, over the period of about 50 minutes. ' After around 40 minutes of cooking time, the chef took the potatoes out of the oven and used a potato masher to gently press each of the roasties down.

For Gordon's roast potato recipe you'll need: 1.2kg floury potatoes, such as Maris Piper or King Edward. 100g goose or duck fat (or olive oil) 2 tbsp semolina.

Sprinkle your parboiled potatoes with flour. This gives potatoes extra crunch. A tablespoon is all you need! Throw in some whole, unpeeled garlic cloves or a handful of herbs (thyme, sage or rosemary all work well) with the potatoes when adding them to the hot roasting tin.

Also, be mindful of the oil. Potatoes can react like sponges; too much oil can make your potatoes appear to be soggy. Try placing oil in a spray bottle or using an aerosol to apply the oil to the potatoes. Lastly, ensure that the potatoes are dry before you add the oil.