Parmesan Garlic Roasted Potatoes Recipe - The Recipe Critic (2024)

FAQs

Why do you soak potatoes before roasting? ›

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. Cold water is used because hot water would react with the starch activating it, making it harder to separate from the potatoes.

How do you not burn garlic when roasting potatoes? By leaving garlic cloves in their skin they don't burn but instead roast and become super soft and buttery.

However, dry heat is only one contributing factor. So if your potatoes aren't crisping in the oven, the problem likely lies in how you place them on the baking sheet. If roasted potatoes lack their crunchy sheen, overcrowding is usually the culprit.

Give them a cold water bath: Once your potatoes are chopped, toss them into a large bowl. Then cover the potatoes completely with cold water and let them soak for at least 30 minutes (or up to overnight). This will help to rinse off the excess starch and help the potatoes crisp up beautifully in the oven.

A: The main reasons to cut the potatoes and pre-soak in water are: To allow the excess starches and sugars to be removed from the outer surface of the fry strips AND to keep the potatoes from browning prematurely from exposure to air. Covering in water helps the potato from turning a dark color.

I wouldn't bother doing potatoes from the raw state, without soaking. It will take about a half an hour and the texture won't be nearly as rewarding. They just don't get very crispy without that cold soak.

Boil chunks of potato until they're just tender, toss them none-too-gently with fat (ideally beef drippings) to rough up their surface, then roast them until they're crisp and crackling. The boiling and roughing-up steps are the real keys.

'Drain the boiled potatoes really well and leave them for a good long while afterwards to sit and cool. If you want to get ahead, why not boil them in advance, then toss in a little oil and store in the fridge until you're ready to roast them.

Don't worry. Garlic that turns green is completely safe. The colour is probably the result of a reaction between sulphur compounds and amino acids (building blocks of protein) that are naturally present in garlic.

Neutral, low-cost oil such as vegetable oil, canola oil, safflower oil, peanut oil, corn oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, etc., work well for roasting. These oils have a high smoke point, allowing the potatoes to get hotter without imparting off flavors.

Why put flour on roast potatoes? ›

Roast for 1hr until golden and crisp, and don't forget to turn them occasionally to ensure they cook evenly. Here's a few tricks to try to make them even more delicious. Sprinkle your parboiled potatoes with flour. This gives potatoes extra crunch.

While all sorts of potatoes are delicious when roasted in the oven, Yukon Gold potatoes are arguably the best potatoes for roasting for many reasons. Yukon Gold potatoes have the perfect amount of starch, which means they soften well in the oven, while their partially waxy texture helps them maintain their shape.

You've been cooking roast potatoes all wrong… you should salt them AFTER they've been in the oven for a 'glass-like crunch', chef reveals.

It is best to season the potatoes before or during cooking, rather than after they have finished cooking. When you season the potatoes before or during cooking, the salt and other spices can penetrate the potatoes and enhance their flavor throughout. This can help to create a more even flavor throughout the potatoes.

For French fries or chips: Soak sliced potatoes in cold water for at least 30 minutes, and up to 2-3 hours, before frying. This can help to remove excess starch and result in crispier fries. For mashed potatoes: Soak whole or diced potatoes in cold water for 30 minutes to 2 hours before boiling.

If you're pressed for time, the slightly sticky, cut potatoes should be soaked for a minimum of 15 minutes. However, a longer soak time may allow more starch to be removed. So, if you can prep the fries ahead of time, a few hours of soaking can help make them even crispier.

Soak the potatoes in water for at least 4 hours, up to overnight. This step is crucial to really get all of the excess starch off. Fill a large pot with water, rinse off the potatoes one last time and add them to the cold water. Salt the water, place the pot on the stove and turn on the heat.

Why use salt water for soaking potatoes? There's moisture naturally found in potatoes, and moisture is drawn to higher concentrations of salt. (This is a process called osmosis.) So, if you put the potatoes in a salt water bath, that will help draw out some of their moisture, resulting in crispier fries.

For French fries or chips: Soak sliced potatoes in cold water for at least 30 minutes, and up to 2-3 hours, before frying. This can help to remove excess starch and result in crispier fries. For mashed potatoes: Soak whole or diced potatoes in cold water for 30 minutes to 2 hours before boiling.