My dad was completely obsessed in his search for a perfectly-crispy hash brown. It was perhaps the most important metric by which he measured a breakfast place; the best diner breakfast in the world could be ruined by a side of wet, soggy, greasy hash browns. For him, such lazy inattention to detail was taken as personal affront. How would someone who dared to charge money for fried eggs possibly expect to get away with calling cubes of boiled potato and onions sprinkled with paprika, a suitable pairing for breakfast?
When he quit his four-pack-a-day habit and subsequently became utterly consumed with thoughts of elaborate breakfasts that would put even the “Full Irish” to shame, which he would begin cooking at dawn, he tried a few different techniques. There was a brief pause, I remember, on frozen hash browns that could be cooked in the toaster. He opted to fry the frozen slabs in oil, instead, which resulted in plenty of golden crunch, but a completely obliterated shredded potato inside that was reduced to dust. Ultimately, he settled on slicing the previous nights’ leftover baked potato, the ubiquitous starch found at nearly every family dinner, and frying the slices in oil before sprinkling them with salt and pepper. The results were good, but not perfect: the inside of the potato slice would pull apart, becoming soggy and overcooked, while the skin of the potato would pull away from the flesh and become bitter.
I think he would have been happy with this technique, a slight spin on the version of the crispy potato he nearly perfected in our kitchen in Tenants Harbor. As with a properly cooked french fry, the secret to these potatoes is in the par-boiling. A few minutes in some boiling water, followed by a finish in a hot oven yields a fried potato that is golden and crunchy on the outside, with a soft, fluffy interior. I like to use Yukon Gold-style potatoes; their yellow flesh is particularly creamy and ever-so-slightly sweet. Dipped in a little Sriracha-spiked ketchup, these potatoes work equally well as a side at dinnertime, as they do at breakfast.
Crispy Oven-Roasted Potatoes
Serves 3
Ingredients:
- 3 large Yukon Gold potatoes
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper
Method:
Place a large baking sheet in the oven, and preheat to 450 degrees.
Slice potatoes into half-inch thick slices.
In a medium saucepan over high heat, add potatoes, 1 teaspoon of salt, and enough water to cover potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until edges of potatoes begin to cook, but inside remains firm, about five more minutes.
Drain potatoes, and toss in a large bowl with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of salt.
Toss vigorously with a plastic spatula, and drizzle with another tablespoon of olive oil and some more salt. Continue tossing, 1-2 to minutes, until potato slices are covered in a starchy paste.
Carefully remove baking sheet from oven, and drizzle with remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Place potatoes in a single layer and return to oven.
Bake potatoes until bottoms turn golden brown, about 20-23 minutes. Flip potatoes with a metal spatula, and return to oven to brown other side, about 10 minutes more.
Remove from oven, and sprinkle finished potatoes with kosher salt and pepper, to taste.
These look like those really gourmet thick cut kettle chips you sometimes get at gastropubs. In other words, they look great. I wonder if you can do this equally well with russets? UTZ makes a great russet chip and I’ve always felt their ability to convert their starches to sugars makes them supreme when used in a chip application.
By the way, have you ever attempted ATK’s stupid-simple best french fry recipe where they start with cold oil and bring it up to 350?
Giving up cigs for hash browns. You’re father was a wise man.
View CommentBut wait! Even better…remember when your dad used to cook chicken wings on a rack, and put sliced potatoes on the pan underneath? All the chicken fat, and the extra butter he basted the wings with, would drip all over the potatoes, turning them into some crispy fried wonders. Dip the whole mess in wing sauce, some blue cheese…
View CommentThere’s really nothing more to be said!
I don’t remember that. But it sounds delicious. I think the upshot to this method is that you get a perfectly crispy outside while retaining that soft, fluffy french fry interior…and in a marginally healthier way, since they are cooked in the oven and not fried. And not covered in chicken fat.
View Commentthis looks great! I roast chopped up potatoes for potato salad – having never had luck with the boiling method, as they end up either too soft or too hard. I am gonna try this method for my potato salad potatoes too.
View CommentHmmm…have you ever made smashed potato salad, Trish? Then it doesn’t matter if your potatoes get too soft!
View CommentMmm I love potatoes like this. they look scrumptious!
View CommentThanks for stopping by, Russell!
View CommentYum – these look so savory. I want to eat them right now! Thanks for the recipe!
View CommentThanks, Sarah!
View CommentI cannot wait to try your method for French fries! So glad I came across your post.
View CommentBe sure to let me know how they turn out!
View Commentthese look awesome cant wait to make them
View CommentMy husband is always complaining about potatoes. LOL I have this written down so I can wow him at dinner! 🙂 Thank you so much! (Do you have any ideas for easy kid friendly food? I have two step children, 8 and 9, and two babies, 22 months and 10 months, and I always seem to be making two different meals at the same time between 4 kids and their daddy. HELP!) THANK YOU from a very busy Mommy!! 🙂
View CommentHi Ammy! Thanks so much for the comment. Stay tuned: now that we have a baby in the house, there’s bound to be more kid-friendly cooking coming your way.
View CommentEXCELLENT! 🙂 Congrats on the baby. They are a handful, but worth every hair you pull out! LOL Nah, my kids are great. Can’t wait for more recipies.
View Commentgreat recipe. the entire family enjoyed them. thanks for posting it.
View CommentHey this looks great! Cant wait to try it. I was noticing the ingredients called for 3 divided TBSP of oil but in the method section, it called for teaspoons?
View CommentGood catch! It should be tablespoons. I have corrected the recipe.
View CommentTrust me mate this is really yummy dish .I tried the same way how you told to do it,and its really amazing comes out!!!!
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