How To Make English Roast Potatoes
Two weeks ago, Joanna came back from visiting her family in England and shared a bunch of great photos with us: London! Ocean swims! POTATOES!!! The last one stopped me in my tracks; I immediately sent Jo an all-caps text, demanding the recipe for her cousin Livvy’s gorgeous roast potatoes. Thankfully, I wasn’t the only one (I knew I could count on you, readers!). So, the other day, I hopped on the phone with Livvy herself, and got all the tips and tricks.
“I call them Dilly Roast Potatoes, because this is how our grandfather — Dilly — used to make them when we were children,” she told me. “He’d spend hours peeling potatoes, while everyone was out on the boat in the sea. We’d come back absolutely ravenous and dive into a pile of the dreamiest roast potatoes.” Here’s how to make them yourself…
Step 1. Start with the right potato
“It pretty much all comes down to this,” says Livvy. “I use Maris Piper potatoes, which are a very British variety, but wherever you live, just look for the type of potatoes used for fries.” FYI, my fellow Americans, the best swaps for Maris Piper are russet potatoes or Yukon Gold. Livvy adds: “I’ll often grab the generic bag at the supermarket that’s just labeled ‘roasting potatoes.’ You want the kind that turn fluffy on the inside when cooked — that’s how you get your good roasties.”
Step 2. Peel, chop, and parboil.
Set a large pot of water to boil on the stove. While it’s heating, peel and chop your potatoes into not-too-small pieces. “You want them quite chunky,” says Livvy. “For a medium potato, you’ll maybe just cut it in half. For larger ones, quarter them. Once the water boils, drop in the potatoes and let them parboil for 7-10 minutes.” Test them gently with a fork after 7 minutes or so; They should be soft on the outside, with hard, uncooked centers. Once they’re done, drain them and leave them to sit in the colander.
Step 3. Pre-heat your oil.
“Now this is the trick. You want the oil heated in the roasting pan before you add the potatoes. I fill an aluminum roasting pan with a good 1-1.5 centimeters of sunflower oil, turn the oven to about 165°C (330°F), and let the oil heat up in there for 5-10 minutes, until it’s good and hot. You may need to let it heat longer if you’re using a thicker roasting pan, like a ceramic one. The key thing is that you want the potatoes to fizzle when you drop them in the oil.” Any oil with a high smoke point will do, and Livvy typically uses sunflower oil because it’s readily available. “My mum would use goose fat at Christmas, because it’s kind of a classic, celebratory thing. But it’s quite thick, and has a very strong flavor — and I never have it on hand anyway. Just don’t use olive oil, because it has a lower smoke point!”
Step 4. Roast low and long — and turn often
Once the oil is hot, carefully pour the potatoes into the pan and let them “fizzle” in the oil. “That way they go back in the oven nice and coated. Leave them to roast for about an hour, turning them in the pan regularly (about every 15 minutes). Doing it this way — on a low-ish heat, for a long time, with frequent turning — is how you get that golden, gorgeous roasted exterior. It’s almost like when you’re frying something, and rotating it so each side cooks evenly.”
Step 5. Salt well, and serve.
Check the potatoes after an hour. They should be deeply golden and soft in the center when poked with a fork. “I put them in a bowl, then salt them,” Livvy says. “I like a crumbly type of sea salt (versus a chunkier one, like Himalayan), because it sticks to the hot potatoes really nicely.”
Thank you so much, Livvy (and Dilly)! I cannot WAIT to try this method! Do you have a family potato recipe (or other type of recipes) you’re willing to share? We love potatoes!!!
P.S. Want something to go with your pile of roasties? How about Lulu’s beloved carrot soup, or salmon (for beginners)?
Comments
90 commentsOMG my life has been a lie – I’ve lived in the UK for 25 years (New Yorker by birth) and I have never heard of the long + slow method. BRB peeling potatoes now!!
Same here! Texan who’s lived in the UK for 21 years and I didn’t know this either! Definitely trying it this way next time.
made these tonight with a pork tenderloin and some sautéed cabbage and my family SNARFED them! going in the winners folder.
Smitten Kitchen’s french fry recipe is the best! Make it exactly as written. (I never thought I’d deep fry anything, but this recipe changed my mind) https://smittenkitchen.com/2017/03/easiest-french-fries/
Ina Garten/Barefoot Contessa French Potato Salad is PERFECT for summer! It uses white wine, olive oil, herbs, Dijon, and vinegar instead of mayo. This recipe is a classic in my family. Give it a go! https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/french-potato-salad-recipe-1914223.amp
I would like to request a British family tree post. There’s random hot aunts that aren’t Lulu; there’s Toby’s cousin twin; and the one who wants to ride on a school bus. Now we have Livvy and Dilly. How are they all connected?!?! :)
Hahaahahah I will write one!
I made these tonight! I added one extra step though…after parboiling and oiling, I tucked them on the pan underneath the chicken I was roasting to collect those delectable drippings. Once the chicken was out, I left the potatoes in for another 10-15 minutes to crisp up. My kids wouldn’t touch them…but I scarfed them all down with the gravy I made just for myself. Best dinner I’ve had in SO long. Thanks for the inspiration!
aaaauuggghhhhhh that sounds sooo good roast chicken is the single best food I used to put some slices of bread and sliced leeks under a roasting chicken….. oh man. nobody ever ate it but me, and I ATE IT.
I’ll have to try it. They look and sound wonderful. At my house we like mashed potatoes, baked potatoes, roasted potato wedges, all the potatoes. For our favorite wedges, here’s the recipe: Cut 8-10 yellow potatoes into eight wedges. Par-boil for 7 minutes. Drain water and toss potatoes with 4 Tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp dried parsley, a couple shakes of red pepper flakes, some salt and pepper. When you mix it all together the soft potatoes get shaggy, and some break, but it’s okay. The oil and this shagginess make crispier potatoes. Arrange wedges skin side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake 45-55 minutes at 425 F.
Can confirm this is the correct way to make the best roasties! My husband is British and his roast potatoes are notoriously unmatched amongst our friends and family. It’s ALL about the parboil and slooooooow roast! Love it :)
Yum! Not only do they sound delicious, they look beautiful. Am I the only person who has had trouble finding Yukon Golds lately? They used to be everywhere, but for the last couple of years, I no longer find them in my local farm stand or grocery store. On the hunt!
Speaking as another elderly Brit let me add a vital step – when you have drained the potatoes toss them in the colander to scour them all over. This is especially good if you have a metal colander. This makes the spuds more porous.
Was coming to say exactly this! Or put them back in the dry pan with the lid on and bash them about a bit. You get many more crunchy bits that way.
Yes, this! (Irish here lol) I’m getting hungry looking at this delicious looking potatoes!
Here’s a family potato recipe that I love. Mix in a big bowl: – ~4 baked russet potatoes, cooled and diced with skins on – a few big spoonfuls of mayo – ~ 6 hard boiled eggs – a bit of diced red onion – lots of salt + pepper
Potatoes are my love language and this is the perfect recipe for a frigid evening in late April.
Me too, Hil!
Reminds me of my favorite would you rather question for all ages – would you rather have free French fries for a month, or free potatoes for life? Everyone picks the French fries!!
Another go to potato dish famous in Australia is the journalist Annabel Crabb’s Glass Potato’s well worth looking it up.
At first I thought you wrote “hopped on a plane” and then I realized it was “hopped on the phone.” Great instructions! Thank you!
Hahaha, if only!
I’m excited to try this method! A couple notes from a chef perspective: salt the boiling water heavily (like pasta water!) to season them from the inside out, yukon golds and russets are like the most opposite potatoes possible, and olive oil can handle heat up to 450+ degrees so think it would be fine here. I hope we all eat a lot of potatoes this weekend xo
SDY, I agree that Yukons and Russets are totally different. What would you use for this recipe?
I would use Yukons for this recipe, although a russet def has a fluffier interior. Maybe I’ll experiment with both and report back!
I am SO happy for this follow up, and am putting this on the menu for tomorrow. Not enough time for roasting tonight, sadly.
Here’s a recipe for cauliflower cheese. Totally traditional but worthy of it. You can eat it as part of a roast but even on its own it’s delish – add some fried bacon or roast cherry tomatoes- or just leave as its! Cheap & cheerful! https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/cauliflower_cheese_92618
Yum! Thanks Heidi!!
Can’t wait to try this- I love potatoes in all forms :)
This post reminded me of a recent dinner I enjoyed with a couple of work colleagues. One asked, “If you could eat only three kinds of potatoes for the rest of your life, what would they be?” THIS WAS HARD because potato may be my favorite food. Potato chips in particular are my downfall and it’s why I won’t purchase a large bag. I’ll put a few in a small bowl while watching a show and think to myself that this is all I will eat. It’s not. I’ll go back until the bag is gone. It’s the one food in where I lack willpower. However, I was game to play so here’s my answer, and you had to be specific: 1. Cheddar and sour cream Ruffles 2. Hashbrowns, preferably well done and crispy 3. French fries, but since i had to get specific, my favorite are thin fries that are crispy on the outside. Honestly, nearly McDonald’s-like. Cooked in a good fat, like duck, is a plus! I could give you my 4th, 5th, and 6th but I won’t since the game was top three.
Ooooh! Ok, I’ll play! My top 3 preparations of potato: 1. classic Ruffles potato chips, with maybe some olives and a martini (!) 2. boiled fingerling or baby reds swimming in butter and fresh dill, ideally along side grilled salmon 3. East coast battered french fries, with the classic 50/50 ketchup/mayo fry sauce
I recommend Aisling Bea’s interview on the Dish podcast, where she talks about she and her sister inventing ‘guess the potato’ charades!
Can I just say how happy I am that Kelsey’s a senior editor now? Her posts bring me so much joy. I don’t even really like potatoes and I love this
Oh my goodness, KS, thank you so much! Made my day!
Ditto! I just made her flapjack recipe last night and my family gobbled them up.
Same! I really adore her food writing.
Same. I LOVE your writing, Kelsey!
Same! I’m always so happy to read her warm, grounded, and smart pieces :)
Agreed!! Kelsey is the type of person who I’m ALWAYS interested in her opinion.
Wow, y’all! Thank you so much! I’m dee-lighted to be here!
What else do you serve with the potatoes 🥔
YUM. I LOVE Irish and English roast potatoes and am in the midst of a (very delicious) years-long project of figuring out my favourite version – definitely going to try this one. What I’ve boiled (ha!) it down to so far, when it comes to differences between Irish and English roast potatoes and North American ones, is to get that crisp, golden crust and deliciously fluffy interior requires bigger pieces of potato (I think we tend to go more bite size, or mini bite size in NA) that are parboiled for less time than you might think, and that the oil is preheated in the pan until it’s roasting hot, before the parboiled potatoes are added. Dilly’s recipe confirms this! As far as I can tell, shaking the potatoes in the pot after you’ve boiled and drained them (but before you put them in the roasting pan) seems to be more regional / personal preference / family tradition, but I love how extra crispy it makes the outside of each potato!
Yes! Brit here and I always give my potatoes a good shake in the colander before they go in the pan to bash up the edges and give extra crunch. I also par-boil mine in water that has half a stock cube in it for extra tastiness and seasoning – a trick my mother-in-law taught me and that has taken any boiled potato to the next level!
Oh, Rebecca! What a genius idea. I have a jar of Better than Bouillon in the fridge and I will use that!
My Romanian twist on these: make a small batch of “mujdei”, if you LOVE garlic. It’s a sauce: blend a few cloves of garlic with olive oil, salt, pepper and a little vinegar and water, and pour over the hot potatoes. It’s rather incredible!
Ooooooh. This sounds divine.
I for sure thought this was initiated by Emily Blunt’s interview where she talks about English roasted potatoes! It’s the zeitgeist! https://www.instagram.com/reels/DXooRf9D-Fk/
She’s absolutely right! I found this post so funny because these potatoes are just ubiquitous in England and a staple of every Sunday lunch! The only thing I would add is that we add garlic {whole cloves} and rosemary while they’re roasting to add flavour. It’s the Jamie Oliver method and I highly recommend it!
Stanley Tucci is married to Emily’s sister and devotes a who chapter in “Taste” to her roast potatoes! It’s a great listen.
Patricia Wells’ Pommes Boulanger. No dairy yet tastes like divine gratin. Super easy. It’s our go-to when we don’t do roast potatoes. https://stowell.wordpress.com/2013/12/03/pommes-boulangere-smart-lady-that-bakers-wife/
oooh, thanks for sharing. My immediate family members are allergic to dairy, and I miss gratin. What do you use instead of butter? Oil?
I love how we love potatoes. So much passion! So much wonder! Oh potato, it is so nice of you that we can eat you!
I always put some baking soda in at the boiling phase.
Came here to suggest this along with the “roughing up” tip mentioned below, a tip I learned years ago from Nigella Lawson.
Can you explain why ? Sooo curious.
Once they are parboiled, put them in the saucepan, put the lid on and shake it to rough up the outsides. They will then get lovely crispy bits that soak up the oil and go all crunchy. Sincerely, an English woman.
I was going to suggest this as well! Not British, but I saw this in a Kenji Lopez-Alt recipe.
Well said-the shaking/roughing up of the spuds is an essential step! Sincerely, a Welsh woman.
Absolutely!!
Can confirm this is 100% necessary and the correct procedure. Make sure they are WELL drained first. Another English woman.
Yep, this is how my mum always makes them!
peel the potatoes – aha moment! My mom raised us meat and potatoes and how am I just now realizing that the reason I adored her roasted potatoes was because they were peeled?! Duh. I’ve made lovely skin-on potatoes but this is how I’ll recapture that glory of my childhood. I’d smush ’em with my fork and put on pats of butter. And I wonder if this will help my kids get into it as well – the skin may be the kid barrier.
I often cook roast dinner for my family, and yep – this is the way :) I would perhaps say you don’t need that much oil – just enough that when you tip the roasting tray at an angle, enough gathers at the edge for you to spoon over the potatoes. Over time I’ve figured out that just about everybody is scared of cooking roast dinner – but when it comes down to it, it’s actually one of the easiest meals to make (if I can do it, anybody can lol)
I’d love to know what else is in that delightful spread featured in the photo above with the potatoes! Thank you for sharing this recipe—I can’t wait to make it.
Lamb and cheesy cauliflower!
Yum, thank you!!
I have been scrolling down to ask this very question!
I have to admit my eyes popped when I saw the picture of the potatoes from Joanna’s trip post. Thanks for following up Kelsey and thank you Livvy for sharing the recipe. ❤
How essential is peeling?? Feeling quite optional to me, with a good scrub.
For proper roast potatoes like these, not optional at all! Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the extra minutes are worth it.
Totally agree Sarah! Skin-on roast potatoes are delicious in their own right, but if you want that incredibly crispy golden crust, they must be peeled :)
Ok I’m convinced! :) thanks Sarah and .S
I agree it’s not optional for this result, even if you’re using a relatively thin skinned variety. But – as a lover of roasted potato skin – I will say that my husband makes a variation leaving the skin on for me by slicing the potato into rounds. Again, it’s a different result but throwing it out for others who want their potato skins :) This will no doubt shock and offend, but: My mother turns this into a quick meal by using canned potatoes. [Pausing here, since I’ve learned most people don’t know canned potatoes exist and need a moment to process.] They are already peeled and parboiled, so you can just shake them up and dump them in. Admittedly, I’m not sure whether the result is objectively delicious or just nostalgic for me.
Just a curveball here to the peel vs no peel discussion — I make a less crisply gorgeous version of these potatoes by nuking (sorry!) unpeeled, chunk cut potatoes tightly covered until they are basically cooked through then broil under high heat with too much EVO which doesn’t get to its smoking point (or in a really hot pan with a very generous pool of EVO). I def rough up the potatoes in the bowl before I spread them out in the sheetpan for baking or in the pan for frying, and that creates the mushed up bits of potato that stick to the outside and become crisp. I have a growing, constantly starving kid, and I’d say I can get these on the table in under 20 mins with this method. But I’m excited to try the low and slow version!!
My sister lived in England for awhile and she said roasted potatoes are an expected part of any dinner. If you don’t serve roasted potatoes people presume you messed them up and had to serve something else instead! I
That’s certainly true of doing a “roast” but Brits aren’t out here eating roast potatoes 7 times a week lol
Don’t leave us hanging, what is the casserole in the photo? Give us the whole menu!
It’s cheesy cauliflower! Joanna says this is another English classic recipe!
It’s called Cauliflower Cheese for easier searching!
THANK YOU!!!
This is very similar to Smitten Kitchen’s method for making oven fries (obviously potatoes are cut into different shapes) and I can attest that the are fabulously crispy yet tender on the inside. The always take longer than her recipe recommends though.
Potato,pahtahto, I love them any which way. (The Livvy/Dillypotatoes look scrumptious!) Here’s how I often cook them: Peel (or not) the desired number of russets/yukons, then chop them into bite sized pieces. Steam in a colander over a pot on the stove. When just tender, remove the colander and let the potatoes sit in it while you empty the water from the pot. Add the potatoes to the still warm pot and stir madly until their exteriors start to become fuzzy as they break down. Add a generous amount of olive oil, salt and flavorings – smoked pimenton, rosemary, dill, mustard, whatever – and stir again until all is well coated. Dump and spread out in a cast iron skillet or another oven proof pan and roast until browned. Bon Appetit!
I didn’t think I needed a recipe to roast a potato but this is a unique technique that makes a lot of sense. I dig it.
Agreed, this is some four-dimensional potato chess and I am here for it.
hahaha, “four-dimensional potato chess.” Lauren, I think we need this on a tee shirt, along with a pic of those potatoes.
Not me immediately running to my kitchen to start peeling potatoes…
Yum! I saw someone say to shake the potatoes in the pot after you drain the water to make more crust surface, too. I’ll have to try these- I usually just roast unpeeled small potatoes.
I came to say this. For great roasties you need to shake them in the pan once they have dried and then pop them in oil. SHAKE *and* FIZZLE.
I do this. It’s softens and roughs up the edges a bit for more crispy bits. People can’t get enough!
I am English and would say that most people I know would definitely shake them to rough up the edges, to make them crispier.