The crowning glory of any Sunday roast (besides the meat) has to be a pile of roast potatoes. They are the carby king of the plate, and getting them right (by which we mean a pillowy soft middle and glistening crunchy exterior) is the height of culinary success in our book.
Follow our tips to achieve golden spud glory. Oh, and that begins when you’re shopping. In our experience, King Edwards make the very best roasties, followed (in order) by Maris Piper or Maris Peer varieties.
Also dripping and duck or goose fat yield the most magnificent results. If you don’t eat meat, switch to vegetable oil, though they won’t be quite as crispy.
Ingredients (makes 4 generous portions)
- 1kg floury potatoes (ideally King Edwards)
- Duck fat or beef dripping (or vegetable oil)
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- 1 tbsp fine polenta or semolina
- 1.5 tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp each roughly chopped fresh rosemary and thyme
- 1 bulb garlic, separated into cloves (keep the skins on and lightly crush with the back of a knife)
Method
1. Pre-heat your oven to 200C and bring a large pan of salted water to the boil.
2. Peel your potatoes, and cut them into evenly sized pieces. You want them to be about 1.5-2ins wide all round.
3. Add the potatoes to the water and boil for 10 minutes.
4. Drain the potatoes and allow to sit in the steam of the pan for a few minutes.
5. Mix together the flour, polenta or semolina, salt and pepper and herbs. Add this to the potatoes and toss them around to coat, then move the potatoes on a cooling rack for around 10 minutes.
6. Meanwhile decant several spoonfuls of your chosen fat into a very large roasting tin (large enough so the potatoes have a bit of space around them), and pop it in the oven.
7. Carefully add the potatoes to the roasting tin, turning to coat in the hot fat. Add the garlic cloves.
8. Roast for 20 minutes. Turn the potatoes over and put the oven up to 210C. Roast for another 20 minutes, then turn and check again. Continue until the potatoes are golden and crispy.
