Remember the dark days of the pandemic, when foods like whipped coffee, pancake cereal, and sourdough bread went viral? Unlike those recipes, there’s one I discovered back then that I still make today. While it’s not a particularly “trendy” dish, it was made viral by two famous women: Emily Blunt and Ina Garten.
In 2018, Ina hosted Emily at her home for an episode of Barefoot Contessa. Emily shared her family's hack for making the crispiest roast potatoes, which they served as part of a traditional British Sunday roast.
Ina loved them so much that she included the recipe in her cookbook, Modern Comfort Foodreleased in 2020. While promoting the book, Ina shared a photo of these incredible potatoes on Instagram, and they practically broke the internet.
And for good reason! These potatoes are everything that's best under the sun: crispy, crunchy, golden, perfectly seasoned and light and fluffy on the inside, almost perfection.
Simple Recipes / Molly Adams
What makes Emily's roast potatoes so good?
Can you throw diced potatoes on a baking sheet and roast them until tender? Sure, but they won't taste anything like Emily's roasted potatoes! The beauty of this recipe is in the technique.
First, the potatoes are parboiled in salted water to ensure they are soft on the inside. Then, to encourage a super crispy exterior, once the potatoes are drained, return them to the pot and shake them vigorously. This roughens the exterior and encourages the starches to clump together, resulting in lots of tasty, crispy bits once roasted.
The final step is to let the potatoes dry on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes (or up to six hours in the refrigerator). As with any fish or protein, you'll get the best results if you start with a dry surface. The same rule applies to potatoes: letting them cool and release any remaining moisture ensures they'll be nice and crispy.
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A note on cooking oil
Once the cooked potatoes have cooled and dried, they are put in the oven. But not before the oil is heated to the ideal temperature.
Emily's recipe calls for canola oil, but I prefer avocado because I think it tastes better. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Then add a generous amount (1/2 cup) of oil to a sturdy baking sheet and heat it in the oven for five to seven minutes before adding the potatoes.
By heating the oil, the potatoes will start to crisp as soon as they hit the pan. Do this slowly to avoid burning from oil splashes. Once the potatoes reach the oven, the temperature is lowered to 350°F until the potatoes turn golden brown.
A few tips
- At first glance, this will seem way too salty. Trust Ina, she knows how to season potatoes.
- Use a sturdy baking sheet. You know those flimsy baking sheets that sometimes suddenly warp or twist in the oven? This recipe is not for them! You want a rimmed baking sheet that won't warp when the oil heats up.
- Yukon Gold has the creamiest interior, but if you want the crunchiest exterior, use Russets.
