Garlic Lemon Thyme Roast Potatoes

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The humble roast potato. So simple, yet little tricky to get absolutely perfect. These garlic lemon & thyme roast potatoes are an absolute winner. Full of flavour, crispy and crunchy on the outside and creamy and soft on the inside. I also take you through the top secrets to roasting perfect potatoes every time.

What potatoes roast best?

The best types of potato to roast are those that are floury (rather than those with a waxier texture). The floury surface is what will help the potato go super crispy on the outside when roasted.

If you’re in the UK the varieties to look for are Maris Piper, King Edward or Desiree. If you’re in the US then go for Yukon Gold and in Australia look for Desiree, Dutch Cream or Coliban.

How long should you roast them?

This varies based on so many factors including the variety, the size you’ve cut them too and how starchy the potatoes are. As a rule of thumb allow 45 minutes but check them regularly and be prepared to leave them a little longer if they are still looking a little pale.

Garlic Lemon Thyme Roast Potatoes Recipe

Can you freeze them?

You can freeze roast potatoes and you have two options to choose from:

Firstly, you can pre-plan and freeze partly cooked rost potatoes which will give the best results. Once you’ve parboiled, steamed and shaken the potatoes transfer them to a baking tray or plate lined with parchment/baking paper, dust them with a little flour and leave to cool. Once cold transfer them to the freezer for a few hours until solid, then pop them into freezer bags, squeeze out the air and then place back in the freezer. When you come to cook them, lay them out on a plate or tray to defrost and then season and cook as per the instructions below.

If you’ve made too many potatoes and you have a bunch leftover you won’t eat within a few days then let them cool and then pop them into a freezer bag. Squeeze out the air and freeze for up to 4 months. Reheat them in the oven at 200C/400F until steaming hot all the way through. They may be a bit soggier in texture, but reheating in the oven will help to crispen them up a bit.

Ingredients

To make these garlic lemon & thyme roast potatoes you’ll need:

  • Floury potatoes (see above for guidance on the best varieties.) Allow around 200g / 7oz per person.
  • Garlic – you don’t need to peel or chop it. Just break apart the bulb into unpeeled individual cloves.
  • Lemon – zested and then sliced.
  • Thyme – leaves stripped from the stems, although don’t worry too much as the stems will go crispy in the oven and add some extra flavour and crunch.
  • Lard or fat – you can use olive oil for a more heart-healthy option but you’ll get crispier results with fat.

How do you get perfect roast potatoes?

There are a few tricks I use to get the best roast potatoes, every time:

Potato Roasting Tips
To make the best roasts – crispy on the outside and hot fluffy insides – you’ll never look back!

  1. Prep

    Pay attention when you prep the potatoes – you want to them to be cut into uniform sizes otherwise you’ll end up with some over and some undercooked.

  2. Parboil

    When you parboil the potatoes place them in COLD water and then bring to the boil. This will help them heat evenly.

  3. Drain and shake

    When you’ve drained the parboiled potatoes, add them back to the pan, pop on the lid and give them a good shake. You don’t want them to fall apart but you do want them to be fluffed and rough on the edges. This will help the outsides get crisp.

  4. Heat the fat

    Make sure you heat whatever fat you are going to be roasting them in before adding them to the oven. And I mean heat – they need to sizzle and spit when you drop them in!

If you’re looking for other great side dish recipes then check out these cranberry roasted sprouts or this braised red cabbage. Both go perfectly with a good roast chicken or at your festive dinner table.

Products that work great for this recipe:

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Garlic Lemon Thyme Roast Potatoes

Garlic Lemon & Thyme Roast Potatoes


  • Author: caroline
  • Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
  • Yield: 2 1x

Description

The BEST roast potatoes – super crisp on the outside with steaming soft insides. Flavoured with garlic, lemon and tyme for extra taste. Perfect for a weekend roast or festive dinner table! 

The default recipe serves two.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 400g / 14oz floury potatoes (maris piper, desiree, king edward, yukon gold or dutch cream are all good options depending on where in the world you are)
  • 1 tbsp fat or lard (you can also use olive oil if you prefer, although fat will give a crispier result)
  • 1/2 lemon – zested and then cut into a few thick slices
  • 1/4 bulb of garlic – broken into individual cloves (no need to peel)
  • few sprigs of thyme, leaves stripped from stems

Instructions

  1. Pre heat the oven to 200C/400F. Peel the potatoes and cut into uniform large chunks
  2. Place the potatoes in a large pan of heavily salted cold water and bring to the boil. Once boiling time for 10 minutes.
  3. While the potatoes are par-boiling place the fat on a baking tray and get it straight in the oven so it’s nice and hot.
  4. Tip the potatoes into a colander or large sieve and leave to steam for 2-3 minutes. Return to the pan, place a lid on and shake it vigorously for 10-20 seconds. You want the outsides of the potatoes to be roughed up but you don’t want them to start to fall apart. 
  5. Remove the hot baking tray from the oven and carefully transfer the potatoes onto it. Give the tray a shake to coat the potatoes in the fat (or turn them using some kitchen tongs). Add the lemon zest, lemon slices, garlic and thyme and season well. Place the tray back into the oven.
  6. Roast the potatoes for around 45 minutes, turning them halfway through.

Notes

Work quickly when you take the baking tray out of the oven as you want it to be super hot when you place the potatoes onto it as this will help them crisp up. You can also put the tray over a medium heat while to add the potatoes and seasoning to keep the fat super hot. 

If you know in advance that you want to freeze some of the potatoes then carry out the recipe up until the end of step 4 and then allow the potatoes to cool. Spread on a baking tray covered with parchment/baking paper and place in the freezer until solid. Transfer to freezer bags and return to the freezer. When you come to cook them then defrost and continue the recipe from step 5.

To freeze fully cooked roast potatoes, cool and then portion into freezer bags. Reheat in the oven to help crispen them up again as they may defrost a little softer.

  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 60 minutes
  • Category: Side
  • Method: Roast
  • Cuisine: British

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1
  • Calories: 250
  • Fat: 10g
  • Carbohydrates: 37g
  • Protein: 4.5g

Keywords: potatoes, roasts, side, lemon, garlic, thyme, british, christmas

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