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What you serve as the main dish for Christmas dinner is up for debate, but there\u2019s one thing you\u2019ll find on almost every table: roast potatoes.<\/p>\n
Crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, they\u2019re a certified festive crowd-pleaser. And yet nothing is more disappointing than soggy spuds that lack flavour \u2013 so what\u2019s the best way to prepare them?<\/p>\n
Here, chefs give their top tips for the ultimate roasties\u2026<\/p>\n
Prep in advance<\/p>\n
Christmas day can be hectic, as you desperately try to pull off the perfect meal among the chaos of unwrapping presents and pouring morning bubbly. That\u2019s why Mary Berry recommends a bit of preparation, saying you can cook your spuds \u201cahead \u2013 slightly under \u2013 then on the day you can re-roast them\u201d.<\/p>\n
Her roasties recipe is a classic one: \u201cI like them cut up reasonably small. I bring them to the boil in salted water on the stove, just for about eight or 10 minutes, then drain the water off and shake them in the pan so they fluff up on the sides. Then you can either toss them in a bit of semolina if you\u2019ve got it or a little bit of flour. I use not a lot of oil \u2013 it can be sunflower or something like that \u2013 toss them in that, and then roast them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cook And Share by Mary Berry (BBC Books, priced \u00a327)<\/p>\n
Dame Mary Berry (PA Photo\/BBC\/Rumpus Media\/Cody Burridge)<\/p>\n
Add baking powder for extra crunch<\/p>\n
Nadiya Hussain has a top tip for getting her potatoes \u201creally crispy and crunchy\u201d, she says. \u201cWhen you have parboiled for seven to 10 minutes \u2013 until they\u2019re cooked on the outside \u2013 drain them and give them a smash around in the pan.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt that point, season them really, really well \u2013 and then get some baking powder. Sprinkle on some baking powder, and you will hear your potatoes sizzle. Swish it around, and that reaction when you\u2019ve got that sizzling baking powder \u2013 that hits the hot oil and you get that instant crunch.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hussain recommends around one-and-a-half to two teaspoons of baking powder per kilo-and-a-half of spuds.<\/p>\n
Nadiya\u2019s Everyday Baking by Nadiya Hussain (Michael Joseph, \u00a325)<\/p>\n
Combine with other root veg<\/p>\n
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall is all about boosting the flavour of potatoes with other vegetables. \u201cI like roasting lots of veg at Christmas, not just the potatoes,\u201d he says. \u201cSo I often do a tray of roots \u2013 which might be parsnips, potatoes and carrots \u2013 but I will also sometimes roast sprouts and shallots and even celeriac together. Because then you get different textures, different levels of sweetness.\u201d<\/p>\n
To really get those potatoes golden, Fearnley-Whittingstall recommends making sure the oil is \u201creally hot before the spuds go in\u201d.<\/p>\n
River Cottage Good Comfort by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall (Bloomsbury, \u00a327)<\/p>\n
Roast them up Italian style<\/p>\n
\u201cI do my roast potatoes very different from everybody else,\u201d admits Gino D\u2019Acampo. \u201cEverybody will parboil the potatoes, shake them up, then put the oil in the tray very hot. I don\u2019t do anything like that.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do a recipe \u2013 Italian roast potatoes. I get new potatoes \u2013 the small ones \u2013 I leave the skin on, I put them on a tray, then I slice some red peppers, yellow peppers, green peppers, then I put cloves of garlic and lots of rosemary on top, olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix everything together, it goes into the oven at 180 degrees for one-hour-and-20-minutes, shake them every 20 minutes \u2013 the job is done.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gino\u2019s Italy: Like Mamma Used to Make By Gino D\u2019Acampo (Bloomsbury, \u00a325)<\/p>\n
Add a stock cube<\/p>\n
Joe Swash starts his potatoes the usual way \u2013 parboiling them, shaking the spuds about and putting them in preheated oil \u2013 but then he has a secret weapon for taking them to the next level.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes I\u2019ll get a chicken stock cube and put it in the oil just before I put the potatoes in,\u201d he says. \u201cThe potatoes suck up the stock \u2013 it gives it extra flavour.\u201d<\/p>\n
Joe\u2019s Kitchen: Homemade Meals For A Happy Family by Joe Swash (Pavilion Books, \u00a322)<\/p>\n
Inject them with even more flavour<\/p>\n
Nisha Katona\u2019s first tip for the best roast potatoes in the world is to use olive oil, calling it the \u201cbest thing ever\u201d.<\/p>\n
Then it\u2019s about loading the dish with as much flavour as possible. \u201cLoads of olive oil, garlic pur\u00e9e, salt and brown sugar, and toss your potatoes,\u201d she advises. \u201cToss them, then roast them and you are instantly getting all of that flavour in the salt, the sweet and the garlic \u2013 all of that massive flavour onto these potatoes. It\u2019s my favourite thing ever.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meat Free Mowgli: Simple, Nutritious & Ultra-Tasty Plant-Based Indian Meals by Nisha Katona (Nourish Books, \u00a325)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sign up to IndyEat’s free newsletter for weekly recipes, foodie features and cookbook releasesGet our Now Hear This email for free What you serve as the main dish for Christmas dinner is up for debate, but there\u2019s one thing you\u2019ll find on almost every table: roast potatoes. Crispy on the outside and fluffy on the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1523,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1522","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n