The Best Oven Roasted Potatoes

I’m not kidding when I say these are the best oven roasted potatoes ever! They are crunchy, unctuous, soft, and aromatic all at the same time.

Oven Roasted Potatoes

Oven Roasted Potatoes have always been a favorite at our house. They are easy to make, comforting, and versatile. They go well with fish, meat, and chicken to make our weeknight meal planning a little easier.

The best part is that you can serve it as a family meal once it’s done. So if you have a Cast Iron Skillet, it becomes a one pot side dish that you can take from the oven to the table.

Designing the Dish

To make this dish, we thought about the best version of Roasted Potatoes, what makes them the best? For us, it was the differences in texture: good roast potatoes should be crunchy on the outside, glassy and smooth on the inside.

As you eat them, they should release the aromatic flavors into your olfactory nerves. So when you add herbs, the flavor should fill your entire mouth.

To add more depth of flavor, we roast different kinds of potatoes and onions. Having yellow and sweet potatoes roasting together gives you some sweet bites, others more salty. When you add onions to the mix, the oils from the onion blend with the potatoes in the oven- deepening their flavor.

Once everything is roasted, adding fresh herbs brings a freshness to an already very earthy dish. And they flavors go very well together.

What Kind of Potatoes to use for Oven Roasting

Any starchy potato will work honestly. However, Yukon Gold potatoes, with their balance of starch and waxiness work best.

Starchy potatoes bake with an even color and [give a great crust], waxy potatoes hold their shape well and give a creamy center.

@stevenandchris

Sweet potatoes are starchy, so they will have a wonderful crust and tend to almost steam internally as they roast- turning a very soft, glassy, center.

How to Roast Potatoes

For these potatoes, I love the big, meaty, steakhouse potato look to them-simply cut into quarters and let them do their thing in the oven. It’s a very rustic look that looks amazing on the plate and feels satisfying biting into.

• Preheat the oven to 450
  • a very hot oven will caramelize the potatoes on the outside while quickly cooking the inside
• Cut Potatoes in quarters
  • peel them at your discretion, but the skin adds an extra level of texture. It’s also where the majority of minerals are.
• Toss potatoes (and onions, optional) in a pan, add salt and olive oil liberally
  • this helps to flavor and lightly fry the outside of the potato- helping a crisp exterior form. It also preserves the color. Potatoes without oil tend to look dull and unappealing.
• Roast for 30 minutes
  • The high heat will cook the potatoes quickly, and develop a nice crust. If you leave the potatoes 15 minutes longer, they will still be ok.
• Remove from the oven and add chopped herbs
  • thyme, rosemary, sage, you name it, it goes on potatoes. Taste and season if it needs it

How to avoid sticking to the pan

Potatoes have a tendency of sticking to the pan if you’re not taking precautions.

If you are using a cast iron skillet:

Add oil! Simple. If it’s a correctly seasoned Cast Iron skillet, even better. Another tip is to put the potatoes skin side down. That will save you a headache.

Cast Iron skillets also retain heat very very well, which will give you an even heat transference across the whole dish. This makes sure that the potatoes are cooked evenly.

If you are using a sheet pan:

Add oil! (you get the idea) Non-stick spray works well too.

Best option, use a silpat:

Silpats, are designed to fit standard sheet pan sizes. They are silicone sheets that can withstand up to 500 degrees in the oven and nothing sticks to them! After roasting, they are a cinch to clean too.

How long to roast potatoes for

You can roast potatoes for 30 minutes. However, potatoes and onions are very forgiving and thrive under abuse. If you cook them longer, to 45 or 50 minutes you won’t ruin the dish. Instead, the flavors will deepen and will have a slight, smoky char on the edges.

For onions especially, this is encouraged as the sugars from the onion will caramelize and have this umami quality to them. You dont even have to peel them, cut them in half and have the skins act as little cups holding everything in.

Can you freeze oven roasted potatoes

Yes! In the fridge, potatoes keep for 4-5 days. But in the freezer, they’ll stay perfect for about a year. The cell structure of roasted potatoes freezes well when stored in a ziplock bag.

To bring them back to life, heat the oven to 400 degrees and put them in a skillet or sheet pan for 30-40 minutes- checking them periodically until they are warm in the center. Because the oven has a hot, dry environment, moisture will evaporate and the potatoes won’t become soggy.

If you were using the microwave, the steam has nowhere to go, so it makes the exterior of the potatoes soggy- ruining the texture.

What goes with Oven Roasted potatoes

Everything goes with Oven roasted potatoes. For vegan dishes, they act as a hearty component that works well with Kale, or broccolini, or fresh tomatoes.

For meat and fish dishes, they work well with cod, octopus, lamb or even a gorgeous Sous Vide Ribeye.

Possibilities are endless!

Varieties and Alternatives

Like these potatoes, you can roast any root vegetables like Butternut Squash, Turnips, beets, carrots or parsnips. Roasting them brings out their natural sugars and flavors so experimenting will give you new favorites combinations to try.

Use this roasting technique to make this amazing Beetroot and Orange Summer Soup

Flavor pairings:

Roast potatoes, or other root vegetables go very well with Garlic, onions, etc.

For herbs: Rosemary, Thyme, Sage, Parsley, or Marjoram are wonderful to give the dish some vibrancy.

I hope this guide to one of our favorite side dishes helps you enjoy more veggies throughout the week! The key to remember is that simplicity is delicious, and the best dishes don’t need to be the most complicated ones. It’s a matter of using what you have and making the best with it.

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