Holidays
Crispy Roasted Potatoes
Prep
10 minutes
Cook
1 hour
Yield
5
Potatoes are the bomb and there are so many different ways you can use them which is what I love. For this recipe, I made crispy roasted potatoes which are so crunchy on the outside, and fluffy on the inside. It has taken me years to try and figure this out, and I finally found the trick to nailing that perfect potato consistency.
My secret weapon for nailing that consistency? Boiling and baking soda. More on that below but DO NOT skip these steps. I promise you that you’ll thank me later. Whip these bad boys up for a holiday dinner, or if you’re in the UK, your typical Sunday roast.
❤️ Why You’ll Love Crispy Roasted Potatoes
- Gourmet: They make you feel gourmet AF, they’re so fancy but not
- Addictive: Highly addictive so you will become an expert at making them very quickly
- Crisp (but Soft): These crispy oven potatoes are both crispy & soft – double the trouble!
🍲 Ingredients
Potatoes: I like to use russet or baby potatoes for this roasted potatoes recipe as I feel I get the best flavor and consistency of the crispy but soft consistency I love.
Baking Soda: Do not skip the step of boiling your potatoes with baking soda. Baking soda will help your potatoes get crispy in the oven. This is the trick!
Thyme: I used fresh thyme for these crispy potatoes but you can also use dried thyme or swap out the thyme for a different herb like rosemary.
👩🍳 How to Make Crispy Roasted Potatoes
1. Bring a large pot to a boil to boil your potatoes first.
2. In your pot, you’ll want to add salt and baking soda and then parboil them for 10 minutes. This is the step I mentioned before that you don’t want to miss because it helps give you the perfect consistency.
3. While your potatoes are cooking, preheat your oven and line 1-2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
4. When your potatoes are done, remove them from the water and add them into a large bowl where you’ll then throw in your spices such as: salt & pepper, onion powder, oil, garlic, and/or butter.
5. Once you stir together everything in your bowl, put the potatoes on your baking sheet and make sure there’s some breathing room next to each potato and they’re facing cut-side down before you roast potatoes in the oven for 50 minutes. You’ll want to remove them at the 30-minute mark to flip them and distribute the thyme evenly on them before cooking for the last 20 minutes until golden brown to perfection.
🗒 Tips and Tricks
- Crispy Potatoes: The secret to crispy potatoes is baking soda! It sounds weird but it works. The baking soda makes the water alkaline which helps break down the surface of the potatoes and helps get that crispiness you want once you add them to the oven
- Oil: Use whatever oil you prefer for roasting potatoes such as olive oil, avocado oil, or vegetable oil
- Soaking Potatoes: Soaking potatoes first removes excess potato starch from the outside which will help with crisping up the potatoes when they bake or roast
🗒 Best served with
👝 How to Store Leftovers
These roasted potatoes are best served fresh but you can store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. When reheating, to keep them crispy, I’d fry them up in a pan on low heat.
🤔 Common Questions
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.
It makes the water alkaline which helps break down the surface of the potato and helps make your potatoes crispy!
How to Make Crispy Roasted Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 L water – depending on the size of your pot
- 6 medium-sized russet potatoes peeled and quartered
- 2 tbsp. sea salt
- 1 tbsp. baking soda
- 3 tbsp. olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves pressed, grated or finely chopped – this is important.
- 1 tbsp. vegan butter
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 cracked pepper
- 3 tbsp. fresh thyme smashed to release the scent
Instructions
- Bring a large pot to a boil and add the salt and baking soda. Add the potatoes and parboil them for 10 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 425F and line 1-2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Remove from water, strain and transfer to a large bowl. To the bowl, add the salt, pepper, onion powder, oil, garlic and butter. Stir gently.
- Transfer potatoes to a baking sheet. You need to make sure each potato has room to breathe and is cut-side down. You may need to use two baking sheets depending on how many potatoes you cook.
- Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, flip each potato and evenly distribute with fresh thyme.
- Cook for another 20 minutes or until perfectly crispy and golden.
- Serve with fresh lemon (optional) but highly recommended if enjoyed with a fresh salad or greens.
- But honestly, you can…Enjoy. With. Anything.
can you parboil potatoes and keep in refrigerator for roasting later?
Hey Joy! I have never done this but I dont’ see why non! In fact this might be a great hack! Can you please report back after trying?
These were so good and easy to make! Everyone commented on how crispy the outside was yet fluffy on the inside. These will be made again!
Thank you so much for the love!!!
In the “Tips and Tricks”, it states:
“Soaking Potatoes: Soaking potatoes first removes excess potato starch from the outside which will help with crisping up the potatoes when they bake or roast”
When do you soak them, before boiling or just before roasting? Do you add anything to the water that you soak them in? How long do you soak them for?
before boiling! 10 minutes is great.
These are the best potatoes I’ve ever made and I’m definitely using this recipe again. Variations: I used small golden potatoes and left the skin on. No fresh thyme so I skipped it. Thank you for this recipe!
You are so welcome, thank you so much, Teressa!
Bravo! These are amazing! I left the skins on my russets and they turned out fabulous!
Loe to hear it!!!!!!
if you oil your parchment paper and preheat the tray in the oven it crisps up faster
oh what a great tip! thank you sue!!
The photos nor video show the use of the parchment on the baking sheet but the instructions include it. How is the parchment used or not used?
If i’m using baby potatoes, should I still peel them before boiling?
It’s up to you! If you like the skins you can leave them but I would likely peel to achive the perfectly crispy outside texture. the more I think about it though it might be a brilliant idea to leave them as is. Please keep me posted.
Hi Maria,
Made this recipe last night. They came out great consistency-wise, super crunchy on outside and fluffy on inside. However, for some reason they left a slightly odd aftertaste in my mouth after eating them. Almost a bit chemically. Do you know what might be the reason for that? Did I use too much baking soda perhaps?
Oh weird, that shouldn’t have happened! Maybe, did you follow the recipe exactly?
I love this recipe! It’s my go to on days when I want to eat something delicious that won’t require that much effort.
I love to hear this! Thank you so much!
do you use evoo and butter?
whatever is listed in the recipe!