Roast potatoes that are perfectly crispy are the best part of a Sunday dinner, but it can be disappointing if they come out the oven soggy or greasy. Potatoes contain a lot of moisture and, if not prepared properly, they can steam instead of roast — resulting in soft, floppy roasties with no crunch.
However, I have discovered a really simple way to get golden roast potatoes with a caramelised crust — and all you need is some cornstarch. It might sound unusual, but cornstarch is highly absorbent and pulls any moisture from the surface of potatoes which helps them become crispier when they are cooking in the oven.
Cornstarch will also gelatinise when exposed to oil and heat, which means it will begin to thicken after absorbing the water which also improves browning so you get a golden skin.
This is a really simple cooking method often use to cook fried chicken, but after trying it out I have found you a better crackly crust that you cannot achieve with any other ingredient.
How to make crispier roast potatoes
You will need (serves two):
- Four medium potatoes
- One tablespoon of cornflour
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
All you need to do is wash and peel the potatoes, then cut them into equal sized pieces so they cook evenly. Then, I placed then in a pot, covered with salted water and let them boil for 20 minutes or until fork tender.
It is important to boil the potatoes before roasting them as it softens the outside which leads to them becoming crispier when roasting in the oven.
Once the potatoes were ready, I drained them in a colander, gently shook the colander to rough up their edges, then let them sit for 10 minutes.
Shaking the potatoes creates more edges, and therefore those areas will become crispier once you begin cooking. Letting them rest also helps dry them out so no steam is produced.
While the potatoes were resting, I poured some oil into a baking tray and placed the empty tray in the oven. I then preheated the oven to 200C, allowing the oil to become very hot.
This ensures that the potatoes begin to sear immediately upon contact with the tray, preventing them from absorbing excess oil and becoming greasy.
When the tray was heating up, I placed the potatoes in a bowl, added the cornflour, and them tossed them until they were evenly coated.
I then carefully removed the tray, added the potatoes, and then let them roast in the oven for 25 to 35 minutes. Make sure to check on them around the 20-minute mark to flip them over.
The potaotes then came out the oven crispy, golden and with the perfect brunch. I then seasoned then with pepper but you can also add some fresh herbs or butter if you wish.