# Roasting potatoes question



## Douzer77 (Feb 4, 2011)

Evening all,

Have friends coming over for roast dinner on Sunday so hoping to get prep done early in day.

When roasting potatoes I normally par boil for 10 mins, let sit in steam for 5/10 min, do the banging round in the pot to roughen the edges then into oven in oil/meat juices for 45/60 mins.

My question is if I parboiled early in the morning and then let them for a couple of hours would they still turn out okay if I put them in for the last hour?

Or any other suggestions gratefully appreciated.


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## Andy M. (Feb 4, 2011)

Assuming you cut the potatoes into pieces, 45-60 minutes in the oven with the roast is all that's needed.  The parboiling and steaming is really unnecessary.


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## taxlady (Feb 4, 2011)

Andy M. said:


> Assuming you cut the potatoes into pieces, 45-60 minutes in the oven with the roast is all that's needed.  The parboiling and steaming is really unnecessary.



Agreed.


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## TATTRAT (Feb 5, 2011)

Andy M. said:


> Assuming you cut the potatoes into pieces, 45-60 minutes in the oven with the roast is all that's needed.  The parboiling and steaming is really unnecessary.





taxlady said:


> Agreed.



+1

You can certainly cut the spuds in advance, store in water until needed, then just drain when needed. hen, it's just a matter of oil and seasoning, laying in a single layer and getting the, all roasty toasty. Just potatoes, no need to re-invent the wheel.


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## Douzer77 (Feb 5, 2011)

OMG have been roasting potatoes for the last 20 years and have always always always parboiled   Each normal potatoe is cut in 4 and the smaller ones 1/2 or 1/3 so they are all roughly the same size.  Will certainly be happy to give the no boiling a try.


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## Rocklobster (Feb 5, 2011)

I have been microwaving them for a few minutes first. I put them in a glass bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Nuke on high  for 4 or 5 minutes and then drain the condensation. Meanwhile, I put the pan with olive oil in the preheated oven by itself to heat up the oil. Then after a couple of minutes I take the pan out and pour the potatos on and return it to the oven. The microwaving creates a different texture than placing them directly in the oven raw. They get a very nice chewy outside skin on them and stay moist and fluffy inside. I do it like that always now.


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## jennyema (Feb 5, 2011)

You are cooking them so much that I am surprised they aren't "mashed" by thectime they're done.

Like the folks above have said, potatoes are easy-peasy.  I would recommend using uniform pieces of the same kind of potato.  Different types cook at different rates.  And make sure they are well seasoned.


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## garlicjosh (Feb 5, 2011)

As said, the boiling is very unnecessary and you're really over cooking the poor spuds.
I know a lot of people who do the microwave method.
I always cut my down to uniform size, tossing them in some oil with whatever herbs im feeling that day (if any) and then into the oven.
Also as said, I agree fully with cutting them ahead of time and just stashing them in some water to keep them from changing color.
Stash in the fridge until ready to use, pull them out of the water and roast.


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## taxlady (Feb 5, 2011)

Rocklobster said:


> I have been microwaving them for a few minutes first. I put them in a glass bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Nuke on high  for 4 or 5 minutes and then drain the condensation. Meanwhile, I put the pan with olive oil in the preheated oven by itself to heat up the oil. Then after a couple of minutes I take the pan out and pour the potatos on and return it to the oven. The microwaving creates a different texture than placing them directly in the oven raw. They get a very nice chewy outside skin on them and stay moist and fluffy inside. I do it like that always now.



I'll have to give that a try.


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## taxlady (Feb 5, 2011)

TATTRAT said:


> +1
> 
> You can certainly cut the spuds in advance, store in water until needed, then just drain when needed. hen, it's just a matter of oil and seasoning, laying in a single layer and getting the, all roasty toasty. Just potatoes, no need to re-invent the wheel.



I wonder if the water is necessary. Wouldn't putting the oil on them ahead of time keep them from changing colour? I'll have to do an experiment.


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## Andy M. (Feb 5, 2011)

When you can bake a whole potato in an hour, it should be easy to believe you can roast cut up potatoes in an hour or less.

Toss cut up potatoes with a variety of seasonings and roast.  In a pinch, a packet of Lipton's onion soup and dip mix does a good job of flavoring roasted potatoes.


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## garlicjosh (Feb 5, 2011)

so I was reading an old issue of cooks illustrated tonight and it had information about making perfect roasted potatoes and actually they do recommend parboil... I'll explain more tomorrow..I'm far to tired to pull the information back out


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## cmarchibald (Feb 6, 2011)

My oven tends to cook a bit fast, so I have to use lower temps for cooking meat to avoid drying them out (and even then the cooking time is on the short side of the range).  As such, if I cook potatoes with meat they won't be done by the time the meat is done....UNLESS I parboil first.  So I always do.

I think it may depend on the oven, as well as what dish you're using (metal, glass, etc) whether or not boiling first is necessary.  Where I am living and with the oven I have, it absolutely is.


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## Bolas De Fraile (Feb 6, 2011)

The Micheal Caine method, "not a lot of people know this", parboil the spuds, cool, roughen, dip the spuds in cold Evoo, take out, place on the metal tray you use to roast then leave in the coldest part of your fridge, repeat the dipping after about 8hrs so you get a good Evoo coating on the spud, leave in the fridge for another 16 hrs, then roast cold from the fridge in a very hot oven to start.


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## cmarchibald (Feb 6, 2011)

Bolas De Fraile said:


> The Micheal Caine method, "not a lot of people know this", parboil the spuds, cool, roughen, dip the spuds in cold Evoo, take out, place on the metal tray you use to roast then leave in the coldest part of your fridge, repeat the dipping after about 8hrs so you get a good Evoo coating on the spud, leave in the fridge for another 16 hrs, then roast cold from the fridge in a very hot oven to start.


Pardon my ignorance but....Evoo?


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## Zhizara (Feb 6, 2011)

cmarchibald said:


> Pardon my ignorance but....Evoo?



Extra virgin olive oil.  It's even been added to the dictionary and was coined by Food Network star Rachel Ray.

BTW, it is pronounced E V O O.  I'll bet you thought e-voo!


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## cmarchibald (Feb 6, 2011)

Zhizara said:


> Extra virgin olive oil.  It's even been added to the dictionary and was coined by Food Network star Rachel Ray.
> 
> BTW, it is pronounced E V O O.  I'll bet you thought e-voo!


Indeed I did!


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## Zhizara (Feb 6, 2011)

cmarchibald said:


> Indeed I did!



Personally, I hope e-voo catches on.


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## garlicjosh (Feb 6, 2011)

Zhizara said:


> Personally, I hope e-voo catches on.



Sounds better then the current version..anytime I hear someone actually say the current out loud I have to walk away.


Ok, basically parcooking will remove some of the surface starch which will aid in a crispy exterior on the spud..the trick is to not cook them to far so they become soft and you are unable to toss them in oil/herbs. This also cuts down the roasting time...I know most of the time I roast potatoes it takes roughly 45 minutes to an hour and usually they don't cook evenly.

"The big breakthrough came courtesy of our science editor, who observed that the parcooking step was doing more than just jump starting the surface starch. It was also speeding up the evaporation process by creating a rough surface. A rougher surface, he explained, offers more escape routes for moisture than the flat surface of a raw potao and the damaged exterior cells surrender their moisture more readily than intact cells."

It also talks about that the parcooking time is really low..you bring the water to a boil and then drop it to a simmer and only cook for roughly 5 minutes. Enough to start to cook them, to roughen up the surface and wash the right amount of starch away before tossing in your oil and then adding to a preheated baking pan.

So with this new information
my verdict is this...(granted it is now sunday so the information is no longer of use for the current post)
If I was going to prep these for later use, I would cut them, stash them in the salted cooking water. pull them out, and then finish.
btw, with this method..and the recipe your roast time is only 10-20 minutes.


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## Rocklobster (Feb 6, 2011)

Another thing I find useful is having a good spatula to scrape the potatos from the bottom of the pan/sheet, so you get all of the skin and leave nothing stuck to the bottom.

For the last few years I have been using a stainless steel paint scraper. I have a couple I bought exclusively for scraping food off of pans and cookie sheets, or when I cook some stuff in my cast iron pans. They are very thin and sharp and really do the job well. You need to splurge and get a good one because the cheaper ones will rust.


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## garlicjosh (Feb 6, 2011)

Rocklobster said:


> Another thing I find useful is having a good spatula to scrape the potatos from the bottom of the pan/sheet, so you get all of the skin and leave nothing stuck to the bottom.
> 
> For the last few years I have been using a stainless steel paint scraper. I have a couple I bought exclusively for scraping food off of pans and cookie sheets, or when I cook some stuff in my cast iron pans. They are very thin and sharp and really do the job well. You need to splurge and get a good one because the cheaper ones will rust.




they shouldn't be sticking to the pan.
I've never had that issue.


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## Rocklobster (Feb 6, 2011)

Lucky you. It's never been a serious issue with me either, but occasionally you get a couple of stubborn ones that won't let go. Bring in the scraper.


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## Bolas De Fraile (Feb 6, 2011)

cmarchibald said:


> Pardon my ignorance but....Evoo?


I asked that when I first arrived, not as politely though, I am suprised no one has mentioned Goose Fat or the heretics method.


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## Kayelle (Feb 6, 2011)

> For the last few years I have been using a stainless steel paint  scraper. I have a couple I bought exclusively for scraping food off of  pans and cookie sheets, or when I cook some stuff in my cast iron pans.  They are very thin and sharp and really do the job well. You need to  splurge and get a good one because the cheaper ones will rust.



What a great idea Rock!! I'm definitely going to get one.


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## Douzer77 (Feb 6, 2011)

Ok the verdict - potatoes were lovely, cooked in 45 mins, but certainly not as crispy as I would usually have with the par boiling and banging round first. In this side of the world (Ireland ), all our tv chefs (inlcuding the English channels with the likes of Jamie Oliver, Nigella etc) par boil first, and yes of course they all use goose fat as well. 

Jamie suggests par boiling for 10 mins but then adds that he reckons the best roasties come for over par boiling;  Gary Rhodes goes as far as frying the parboiled potatoes before putting them into the oil in the oven - this is a step too far for me. 

As it will only be my own darling family next weekend I'm going to experiment with the parboiling earlier on and then roasting them a couple of hours later just to see how it goes.

Now my only problem is what to do with the left over desserts  anybody for chocolate biscuit cake and black forest gateaux???????  I'll put the kettle on.


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## Bolas De Fraile (Feb 10, 2011)

77 I'm a scouser and as Liverpool is the second capital of Ireland the scouse roast pots are as follows Saturday night find a spud field and liberate a few, Sunday morning peel the peelers, parboil and cool, heat sunflower oil in a wok and deep fry the tats drain on kitchen towel, you will get big fat crispy chippy faux roast pots.
Ps I have been known to travel for a good cake scran.
PPS not German cakes though, they bombed our chippy


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## Douzer77 (Feb 13, 2011)

On a final note, boiled potatoes for usual 10 mins this morning, once they had cooled popped them into fridge. Heated oil in roasting dish round 5 then potatoes went in and were ready in 35 mins. Turned out perfect, was very pleased.

So either way I'm happy with my roasties


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## velochic (Feb 13, 2011)

Douzer77 said:


> Ok the verdict - potatoes were lovely, cooked in 45 mins, but certainly not as crispy as I would usually have with the par boiling and banging round first. In this side of the world (Ireland ), all our tv chefs (inlcuding the English channels with the likes of Jamie Oliver, Nigella etc) par boil first, and yes of course they all use goose fat as well.



Yeah, when I was living in Germany, a Brit taught me the proper way to make "tatties" and the parboiling was necessary.  There was just no way to quite get the same texture by just roasting.  As an American, I do like the straight roasting method,too, but the end result is entirely different.  Just depends on what the main dish is and what kind of potatoes I'm using whether I peel and parboil or just clean, slice and roast.

Glad everything turned out well for you.


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## chopper (Feb 13, 2011)

Rocklobster said:


> Lucky you. It's never been a serious issue with me either, but occasionally you get a couple of stubborn ones that won't let go. Bring in the scraper.


 
The ones that stick, my family always says those are mine.  I am not sure where that came from, but if they stick, I guess they are for Mom!


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