Crisp Roasted Potatoes

By DreiFromBK

Why this recipe works:

Parcooking was the key to our ideal crisp roasted potato recipe. Gently simmering sliced rounds drew starch and sugar to the surface. In the oven, the starch and sugar hardened into a crisp shell. Tossing the parcooked rounds with olive oil and salt created a rough surface, speeding evaporation and making the crusts even crispier. Yukon Golds had enough moisture to give us the creamy interior we wanted in our roasted potatoes recipe. (less)

Ingredients

• 4 to 6 6
• Ingredients
• 2 1/2 2 1/2 1/2-inch-thick pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, rinsed and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
• Table salt
• 5 5 5 tablespoons olive oil
• Ground black pepper

Preparation

Step 1

1. Adjust oven rack to lowest position, place rimmed baking sheet on rack, and heat oven to 450 degrees. Place potatoes and 1 tablespoon salt in Dutch oven; add cold water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to boil over high heat; reduce heat and gently simmer until exteriors of potatoes have softened but centers offer resistance when pierced with paring knife, about 5 minutes. Drain potatoes well and transfer to large bowl. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt; using rubber spatula, toss to combine. Drizzle with another 2 tablespoons oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt; continue to toss until exteriors of potato slices are coated with starchy paste, 1 to 2 minutes.

2. Working quickly, remove baking sheet from oven and drizzle remaining tablespoon oil over surface. Carefully transfer potatoes to baking sheet and spread into even layer (skin-side up if end piece). Bake until bottoms of potatoes are golden brown and crisp, 15 to 25 minutes, rotating baking sheet after 10 minutes.

3. Remove baking sheet from oven and, using metal spatula and tongs, loosen potatoes from pan, carefully flipping each slice. Continue to roast until second side is golden and crisp, 10 to 20 minutes longer, rotating pan as needed to ensure potatoes brown evenly. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

Step-by-Step

Just Scratching the Surface

We discovered that parcooked potato slices browned faster in the oven than raw slices. When we subsequently “roughed up” the parcooked slices by tossing them vigorously with salt and oil, they browned faster still. The explanation? It’s all a matter of surface area. Browning or crisping can’t begin until the surface moisture evaporates. The parcooked, roughed-up slices—riddled with tiny dips and mounds—have more exposed surface area than the smooth raw slices and thus more escape routes for moisture. If you have trouble getting your head around two potato slices of identical width having vastly different surface areas, think of it this way: Five square miles of Colorado’s mountain region will have far more exposed surface area than 5 square miles of the Kansas plains. (Just try walking them both.)

ROUGHED-UP SURFACE = FAST EVAPORATION

SMOOTH SURFACE = SLOW EVAPORATION

Step-by-Step

Crisp, Evenly Browned Spuds

1. DISKS, NOT CHUNKS

Half-inch rounds require only one flip, making it far easier to ensure each side gets equal time facedown on the pan.

2. PARCOOK

Simmering the potatoes brings the starch to the surface, jumpstarting the crisping process.

3. PREHEAT SHEET

Preheating a rimmed baking sheet also gives cooking a head start, for crisper results.

4. TOSS VIGOROUSLY

Roughing up the parboiled potatoes with salt and oil damages the surface cells, which speeds up evaporation.

Crisp Roasted Potatoes

Crisp Roasted Potatoes

Roasted potatoes don’t need to be chewy and tough. Our technique is simple, and it promises perfectly crisp potatoes each and every time.