Prepare roast potatoes in advance Jamie Oliver

Crunchy, fluffy, spot-on spuds

Time

Cooks In1 hour 35 minutes

DifficultyNot too tricky

Nutrition per serving Plus

• Calories 258 13%

• Fat 7.4g 11%

• Saturates 1g 5%

• Sugars 1.6g 2%

• Salt 0.6g 10%

• Protein 5.6g 11%

• Carbs 44.8g 17%

• Fibre 3.4g -

Ingredients

• 1.5 kg Maris Piper potatoes
• 1 bulb of garlic
• red wine vinegar
• FLAVOUR COMBO 1
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 bunch of fresh rosemary
• FLAVOUR COMBO 2
• 50 g unsalted butter
• 1 bunch of fresh sage
• 1 clementine
• FLAVOUR COMBO 3
• 2 tablespoons goose fat
• 1 bunch of fresh thyme
• 2 fresh bay leaves

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Recipe From

Jamie's Family Christmas

By Jamie Oliver

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190ºC/375ºF/gas 5.
2. Peel the potatoes, cutting any larger ones so they’re all an even-size – twice the size of a squash ball is about right.
3. Wash the potatoes in cold water to get rid of any extra starch then tip into a large pot, cover with cold salted water and parboil for 7 minutes, then drain in a colander and leave to steam dry for 3 minutes.
4. Give the colander a bit of a shake to help chuff up the potatoes – this will help to make them super-crisp later on.
5. At this point, you need to decide which flavour combo to go with. Tip the potatoes into a large tray in one layer, and add the fat – olive oil, butter or goose fat – then season really well with sea salt and black pepper.
6. Toss the potatoes in the fat (you could get the potatoes up to this stage the day before, simply cover them with clingfilm or tin foil and pop in the fridge or in a cool place until needed), then roast for 30 minutes, or until lightly golden and three quarters cooked.
7. Now’s the time for my trick. Gently squash each potato with a potato masher to increase the surface area – the more of your potato that’s in contact with the pan, the crispier it will be.
8. Add 1 good lug of oil to a small bowl and pick and/or tear in the herbs. If opting for flavour combo 2, peel in a good few strips of clementine zest with a speed-peeler – you won’t eat these but they’ll add amazing flavour. Break up the garlic bulb, adding the unpeeled cloves to the bowl, along with a splash of red wine vinegar, then scrunch and mix it up a bit.
9. Add your chosen flavour combo to the potatoes and give the pan a good shake, then pop back in the hot oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until gnarly, crispy, bubbly and delicious.
10. Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain off some of the excess fat, then tuck in!

FAQs

How do you get crispy roast potatoes?

When you’ve par-boiled your potatoes, give them a shake up so the outside is nice and fluffy - this is what gives that gorgeous crispy texture. Then, make sure your oil is smoking hot before carefully adding your chuffed-up potatoes, making sure they’re fully coated in the hot oil. Put in the oven for 20 minutes or until they’re a perfect golden-brown.

Should I boil potatoes before roasting?

If you’re after perfect crispy potatoes, this is the way to get there. Give them about 7 minutes to parboil, then let them steam dry for a few more minutes before putting in the oven to roast.

Which type of potatoes are best for roasting?

Maris Piper potatoes are our favourite for roasting to get that fluffy centre and crispy outer layer, but King Edwards also work well.

What is the best oil to use for roasting potatoes?

You want to use an oil with a mild flavour for your roasties. We prefer olive oil, but you can opt for vegetable, canola or grapeseed oils instead.

Without a shadow of a doubt, roast spuds have to be our favourite thing about a Sunday lunch (alongside a homemade apple crumble to follow of course).

There are lots of recipes available to follow online and in cook books for the ultimate roast potatoes but there was one method that particularly caught our eye.

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's 'Best Roast Potato' recipe is a bit different to many we had stumbled across before, so we decided to try it out.

READ MORE: We tried Jamie Oliver's 'easy' Yorkshire pudding recipe and this was the end result

Jamie said on his website: “Simple as roast potatoes are, there’s a handful of tiny, but important, details – picked up throughout my cooking career – that when combined give you this ultimate recipe, which I believe creates the perfect roast potato. What a luxury."

Needless to say they were immense.

Crisp and crunchy on the outside and soft and fluffy in the middle, they tasted absolutely divine.

They did require some prep work as he suggests peeling and buttering them up a day in advance, but it was worth it.

Plus it does save you some stress in the long run especially if you are cooking for a crowd the following day.

The secret to making them super crispy is to "gently half-squash each potato", Jamie said.

He also uses olive oil and garlic, plus fresh garlic and sage to intensify the flavours.

Watch how we got on in the video above and make them yourselves using his easy recipe below.

If you're obsessed with The Great British Bake Off and all things baking, you're in luck as we are too!

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Jamie Oliver's Best Roast Potato recipe (serves 5)

Ingredients

• 1.25 kg medium Maris Piper potatoes
• 2 tablespoons goose fat or unsalted butter
• Drizzle olive oil
• 1/2 bulb of garlic
• 1/4 bunch fresh sage

Method

Get ahead

1. Peel the potatoes, keeping them whole, and ideally all about the same size (8cm). Parboil them in a pan of boiling salted water for 15 minutes – this will ensure that the insides become really fluffy.
2. Drain in a colander and leave to steam dry for 2 minutes – this will help the fat to stick to the potatoes. Give the colander a few light shakes to chuff up the edges of the potatoes, giving you maximum surface area for a crispy exterior as they roast.
3. Place the goose fat or butter and 1 tablespoon of oil in your largest roasting tray. Tip in the potatoes, add a good pinch of sea salt and black pepper, then toss to coat, and spread out in one fairly snug, even layer but with small gaps between them.
4. Cover and pop in the fridge overnight.

On the day

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4.
2. Squash the garlic bulbs, then lightly crush each unpeeled clove and add to the tray – this gives you sweet, caramelised garlic and adds a gentle perfume to the potatoes.
3. Roast for 1 hour, or until the potatoes are crisp and golden all over.
4. Remove the tray from the oven. We’re nearly there, but we’ve got one last application of love and care, which is the game-changer. Gently half-squash each potato with a fish slice or masher so they kind of push into each other and fill the tray.
5. Pick the sage leaves and – importantly – toss with a little oil (this will transmit the flavour and make them deliciously crisp). Sprinkle the sage over the potatoes and roast for a further 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden and amazing.

• 217 calories per serving
• 7.6g fat per serving
• Gluten free
• Vegan if using dairy free butter
• Easy
• Meal prep

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Can you prep potatoes ahead of time for roasting?

Can you cook roast potatoes the day before and reheat?

Can I parboil potatoes ahead of time for roasting?