Henry Porter

Can anyone recommend a variety of potato to roast?

We have kept our habit of having a family Sunday roast every week. We can buy fantastic meat from our local butcher, and the vegetables we think are much tastier here.

Wonderful as this is, it is let down by the potatoes which we just can't get right. We're in the crispy on the outside fluffy on the inside camp. I think we used mauris piper in the UK. Here, we just end up with potatoes that are soggy and well, just wrong.

Any advice appreciated.

Jazzy n Lol

I have finally solved this conundrum! After nearly 2 years I am regularly getting my roasties right. Like you, we like 'em crispy outside and fluffy inside. The trick is use the whites you can buy in sacks, usually the cheapest (!) and par boil them ONLY for 5 minutes, so they are still like bullets when you put them in your hot oil. Then cook as normal.

I put my oiled pan in when I put the spuds on to boil, at gas mark 8, and it should spit violently when you drop them in.

They take a good 40 minutes to get brown and crispy, but the insides are still fluffy.

Good luck

Henry Porter

thanks very much. i'll try that.

Grand Fromage

Instead of oil, try duck fat, you'll never look back

Jazzy n Lol

Sounds delicious, ummmm, where can I get duck fat? Unless you mean you need a duck to roast and you catch the drippings? Or can you buy bottles of duck fat?

Didn't they used to keep goose fat stored in jars as a cure-all? Maybe duck fat in bottles is the new cook-all!

Should work well, as half the populations snuffs it from deadly cholesterol levels!



As I was previewing my post - I noticed that Duck Fat makes a great spoonerism!

Henry Porter

i do like the duck fat as well, I would always save the fat if i cooked a duck for this reason.

I still think you need to get the right variety of potato though, and duck fat is a once in while treat.

septimus

Buy a tin of duck legs (MANCHONS de CANARD) and you will have all the fat you need

Ka Ora!

Another method is to Pre Soak the spuds for about 3 hrs, the reason brit spuds work better for roasties and crisps is the water content. il pleut beaucoup en angleterre.

Duck fat is a Saturated Fat so i would not recommend using it it a lot, as your LDL cholesterol level will take a hammering. But it is nice some butchers sell jars of it. Par boiling them helps a lot increase of water content.

And for the perfect Yorkshire Puddings get a Small Cup Fill to the top with Plain Flour put in Mixing Bowl then fil same cup with milk put in mixing bowl then fill same cup with eggs to the top put in mixing bowl Whisk until very well mixed. let sit for approx half an hour.

Pre Heat oven to 220 Degrees get fat in tray very hot then pour in mix place in oven for 20 Min and heh presto perfect Yorkshire puddings.

No raising agents needed.

Henry Porter

There is a logic to this but the French spuds seem too soggy to us.

We have no problem with our yorkshire puddings. I think my wife follows a very similar process to yours.

septimus

Yes let it sit for a while,we always let it sit in the fridge.

themoose

Vivaldi pots. Boil for 15 mins then cook in a hot oven for approx 45 mins. If you can spray with bolsanic vinegar too, makes them deli.

Hope it helps.