Mary Berry has shared the best way to achieve perfectly roasted potatoes is to buy the best type of potato at the supermarket (Image: Getty)
Roast potatoes are everyone’s favourite side dish at Christmas dinner, but just sticking them in the oven will not result in perfectly crispy potatoes that are fluffy on the inside.
Britain’s beloved baker has shared in her cookbook ‘Family Sunday Lunches’ that the best roast begins at the supermarket as you need to be careful about the type of potato you choose.
Mary said: “The choice of which type of potato you use is important as the floury sort makes the fluffier roast potatoes.”
King Edward or Maris Piper potatoes are often considered the best choice for roasting due to their high starch content, which allows them to develop an ultra-crispy crust while .
You will also need to ensure the tray you are cooking on is hot and sizzling with goose fat before adding your potatoes so that they begin to crisp up instantly.
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It is important to add goose fat or a fat of your choice to a pan before cooking to sear the potatoes (Image: Getty)
Searing the potatoes is important as stops grease from being soaked up during roasting so they do not turn out soggy and flavourless while in the oven.
Goose fat tends to be the traditional ingredient for making crispy roast potatoes as it has a high smoking point, which means they can heat up at a very high temperature without burning.
Mary said: “Goose or duck fat is best but you could use 100ml of sunflower oil if preferred.”
How to make Mary Berry perfect roast potatoes
You will need:
- 1.5kg of King Edward or Maris Piper potatoes
- 100g of goose fat or duck fat
- Salt
Method
To begin, preheat your oven to 200C (Fan 180C or Gas Mark 6). Peel the potatoes and cut them into pieces so they are roughly the same size.
Place the potatoes into a pan with salted water and bring the water to a boil with the lid on. Once the water is boiling, remove the lid and let the potatoes boil for five minutes.
You only need three simple ingredients to make crispy roast potatoes (Image: Getty)
Once the time is up drain the potatoes in a colander and then return the potatoes to the empty pan.
Place the lid on the pan and roughly shake the pan. This is done to rough up the edges of the potatoes so they have more ridges and will crisp up even better while cooking.
Season the potatoes with salt and set aside for now.
Next, pour goose fat (or fat of your choice) into a large roasting tin and stick in the oven to heat up for around three minutes.
Carefully remove the tin from the oven once it is hot and add your potatoes to the tin. Spoon the fat onto the potatoes and move them about so they are all evenly coated.
Your roast potatoes will be crispy on the outside but fouffy on the inside if you follow this recipe (Image: Getty)
Try to space the potatoes out as much as possible so they are not touching each other.
Then place the potatoes in the oven and cook for 45 to 50 minutes until they are golden and crispy. Make sure to check on them every 15 minutes to turn them so each side is perfectly roasted.
Once the time is up, take the potatoes out of the oven and drain them on kitchen paper.
Your mouthwatering potatoes and now ready to be served for a spectacular Christmas dinner.