Ultimate Roast Potatoes - The Best Crispy Roasties Recipe

These are hands down the best roast potatoes you'll ever make! Boiled in flavoured water, ruffled until fluffy, coated in cornflour, and roasted in sizzling hot fat until impossibly crispy. Completely customisable to match your Christmas dinner flavours.

Recipe Details:

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 50-60 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
• Serves: 6-8 (allow 1-1.5 potatoes per person)
• Difficulty: Easy
• Special Equipment: Large saucepan, colander, roasting tray

These are the ultimate roast potatoes. The secret weapon for your Christmas dinner or Sunday roast. The game-changing technique here is boiling the potatoes in flavoured water before roasting, which infuses them with incredible flavour from the inside out. By adding aromatics like onion, garlic, fresh herbs, or even spices to the boiling water, you create potatoes that taste amazing throughout, not just on the crispy exterior. The water you drain off becomes liquid gold for your gravy, packed with potato starch and all those delicious flavours. After boiling, you ruffle them up in the colander to create loads of fluffy, rough edges - this is what makes them extra crispy. Then comes the magic coating of cornflour mixed with your choice of seasonings, which creates an incredibly crunchy shell when roasted in smoking hot fat. Whether you use beef dripping, duck fat, or vegetable oil, the key is getting it properly hot before adding your potatoes. The result? Potatoes with shatteringly crisp, golden exteriors and fluffy, flavourful insides. This recipe is part of my Savvy Suppers Christmas Dinner series, so you can create the complete festive feast!

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• The crispiest roasties ever: The cornflour coating and ruffled edges create maximum crispiness
• Flavour from within: Boiling in seasoned water infuses the potatoes with flavour throughout
• Completely customisable: Season the water and coating however you like - traditional herbs, curry spices, Cajun, or anything else
• Bonus gravy base: The flavoured potato water is perfect for making rich, delicious gravy
• Foolproof method: Follow these steps and you'll get perfect roast potatoes every single time

Ingredients

For the Potatoes:

• 6-12 large floury potatoes (allow 1-1.5 per person) - Maris Piper, King Edward, or Rooster work best in the Uk. Or Agria here in NZ
• Cold water (enough to cover the potatoes)

For Flavouring the Boiling Water (Traditional or customize as desired):

• 1 onion, halved (no need to peel)
• 1 whole bulb of garlic, halved horizontally
• 4-5 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2-3 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 1 tablespoon salt

Alternative Flavouring Options:

• Stock-based: 1 chicken or vegetable stock cube
• Indian-spiced: 1 tablespoon curry powder, 1 teaspoon turmeric, 4 curry leaves, 4 cloves garlic
• Cajun-spiced: 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
• Your choice: Season however you want your Christmas dinner to taste!

For Roasting:

• 100-150ml fat for roasting (beef dripping, duck fat, goose fat, or vegetable oil)
• 3-4 tablespoons corn flour
• Seasoning for coating (choose one):
  • 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper (classic)
  • 1 packet instant noodle seasoning (incredible umami flavour!)
  • 2 teaspoons of your chosen spice blend

Instructions

1. Peel and prepare the potatoes: Peel the potatoes and cut them into even-sized chunks, roughly halves or quarters depending on size. You want them all similar so they cook evenly. Place them in a large saucepan.

2. Add cold water and flavourings: Cover the potatoes completely with cold water. Add your chosen flavourings. For traditional, add the halved onion, halved garlic bulb, fresh thyme sprigs, rosemary sprigs, and salt. If using alternative seasonings, add those instead. Starting with cold water helps the potatoes cook evenly throughout.

3. Bring to the boil: Place the pan over high heat and bring to a rolling boil. This should take about 10-15 minutes depending on your hob.

4. Boil for 10 minutes: Once boiling, reduce the heat slightly to maintain a steady boil and cook for exactly 10 minutes. Set a timer. The potatoes should be just tender on the outside but still firm in the centre when you insert a knife.

5. Save the water for gravy: Place a colander over a large bowl or jug. Drain the potatoes through the colander, catching all that flavoured water below. This liquid is packed with potato starch and all your aromatics, it's perfect for making the most delicious gravy. Set it aside and don't throw it away!

6. Ruffle the potatoes: Remove any large herbs or the onion and garlic from the colander (or leave them if you want them roasted too!). Now give the colander a really good shake and rattle to rough up the edges of the potatoes. You want them to look really fluffy and battered around the edges. These rough bits become super crispy when roasted.

7. Cool slightly: Leave the ruffled potatoes in the colander to steam dry for 5-10 minutes while you prepare the roasting tray. This cooling and drying step is important.

8. Heat the fat: While the potatoes are cooling, place a large roasting tray in the oven and preheat to 200°C (180°C fan/400°F). Add your chosen fat to the tray, beef dripping and lamb dripping are my favourites (I always save these when cooking fatty meats for exactly this purpose), but duck fat, goose fat, or vegetable oil all work brilliantly. The fat should be about 2mm deep. Let it heat in the oven for 10-15 minutes until it's smoking hot.

9. Coat the potatoes: While the fat is heating, place the cornflour and your chosen seasoning in a large bowl or clean plastic bag. Add the cooled, ruffled potatoes and toss or shake until every potato is completely coated in the cornflour mixture. The cornflour creates an incredibly crispy coating when it hits the hot fat.

10. Add to hot fat (carefully!): Carefully remove the roasting tray from the oven (the fat will be extremely hot). Working quickly but carefully, add the coated potatoes to the hot fat. You should hear a satisfying sizzle. Space them out in a single layer, turning each one to coat in the hot fat.

11. Roast: Place the tray back in the oven and roast for 25-30 minutes undisturbed. Resist the urge to check them - let them develop that crispy bottom.

12. Turn and continue roasting: After 25-30 minutes, remove the tray and turn each potato over using tongs or a fish slice. Return to the oven and roast for another 25-30 minutes until every side is golden, crispy, and absolutely gorgeous.

13. Drain and serve: Remove from the oven and transfer the potatoes to a serving dish lined with kitchen paper to drain any excess fat. Serve immediately while they're at their crispiest and most delicious!

Chef's Tips

For the ultimate crispy roasties: The combination of ruffled edges, cornflour coating, and properly hot fat is what creates that incredible crunch. Don't skip any of these steps.

Choose the right potato: Floury potatoes work best. Waxy potatoes won't get as fluffy and crispy.

Don't overcook when boiling: You want the potatoes tender on the outside but still firm inside. Overboiled potatoes will fall apart when you ruffle them.

Fat must be smoking hot: This is crucial. If the fat isn't hot enough, the potatoes will absorb it and become greasy instead of crispy. It should be smoking when you add the potatoes.

Save that dripping: When you cook fatty meats like beef, lamb, duck, or goose, always save the rendered fat in a jar in the fridge. It's liquid gold for roast potatoes!

Space them out: Don't overcrowd the tray. The potatoes need space for the hot air to circulate and crisp them up. Use two trays if necessary.

The instant noodle hack: Using the seasoning packet from instant noodles (like Indomie) in the cornflour coating is a genius flavour bomb. Try it!

Substitutions & Variations

Traditional herb version: Use onion, garlic, thyme, and rosemary in the water, then coat with just salt and pepper.

Indian-spiced roasties: Boil with curry powder, turmeric, garlic, and curry leaves. Coat with more curry powder mixed with the cornflour. These are incredible with roast chicken or lamb.

Cajun roasties: Add Cajun seasoning to the boiling water and use more in the cornflour coating. Perfect with roast pork.

Garlic and herb: Boil with lots of garlic and mixed herbs, then coat the cornflour with garlic granules and dried herbs.

Stock-enriched: Add a chicken or beef stock cube to the boiling water for extra savoury depth.

Vegan version: Use vegetable oil instead of animal fat. Still incredibly crispy and delicious.

Rosemary and sea salt: Classic combination , add rosemary to the water and coat with just sea salt flakes and the cornflour.

Parmesan roasties: Add grated parmesan to the corn flour coating for cheesy, crispy potatoes.

Storage & Reheating

Make-ahead option: You can complete steps 1-7 (boiling, draining, and ruffling) up to 4 hours ahead. Leave the potatoes in the colander at room temperature and coat with cornflour just before roasting. 

Storage: Roast potatoes are best eaten fresh, but leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Reheating: Reheat in a 200°C oven for 10-15 minutes until hot and crispy again. Don't microwave as they'll go soggy.

Not suitable for freezing: Roast potatoes don't freeze well as they lose their crispy texture.

Christmas Day timing: For Christmas dinner, do the boiling and ruffling in the morning, then coat and roast them about an hour before you want to serve.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I use sweet potatoes instead? A: Yes, but the technique is slightly different as sweet potatoes are naturally softer. Reduce the boiling time to 5-7 minutes and watch them carefully during roasting as they brown faster.

Q: What if I don't have beef dripping? A: Use duck fat, goose fat, or plain vegetable oil. Olive oil works too but has a lower smoke point. The key is getting whatever fat you use properly hot.

Q: Why do I need to ruffle the potatoes? A: The rough, fluffy edges created by ruffling become incredibly crispy when roasted. Smooth potatoes won't get as crunchy.

Q: Can I skip the cornflour? A: You can, but the cornflour creates an extra-crispy coating that's absolutely worth it. It's the secret to restaurant-quality roasties.

Q: My potatoes aren't crispy. What went wrong? A: The most common reasons are: fat wasn't hot enough, potatoes were overcrowded on the tray, they weren't ruffled enough, or the cornflour coating was skipped or the wrong kind of potato. 

Q: How do I use the potato water for gravy? A: The starchy, flavoured water is perfect for gravy! Use it as the liquid base when making gravy with your roasting juices, stock, and flour or cornflour.

You Might Also Like

Roast Chicken with Gravy - The perfect main course to serve with these incredible roast potatoes. Part of the Savvy Suppers Christmas Dinner series.

Peas with Caramelised Onions and Lemon Garlic Breadcrumbs - Another side dish from my Savvy Suppers Christmas Dinner menu that pairs perfectly with these roasties.

Courgette, Feta and Chilli Salad - A fresh, vibrant salad to balance the richness of these crispy potatoes. Also part of the Christmas Dinner series.

Enjoy!

Del x

These are the ultimate roast potatoes, crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, and packed with flavour throughout. Customise them however you like and don't forget to save that potato water for the most delicious gravy! Part of my Savvy Suppers Christmas Dinner series.