For roast potatoes, it’s best to use old, starchy potatoes. They’ve got more starch: crispy on the outside, soft in the middle. New potatoes work too, but they tend to stay denser.

This is the simple version: you cut, you season, and straight into the oven.

Quick info

  • Servings: 2 generous servings

  • Total time: about 1 hour

  • Prep: 10 min

  • Cook: 50 min

  • Tools:

    • baking tray
    • knife
    • spatula or turner

  • Notes:

    • Don’t overlap the potatoes: they need to sit in a single layer.
    • Better to turn them with a spatula, not a fork, which breaks them up.

Ingredients

  • 600g (21.2 oz) starchy potatoes
  • 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (2 for seasoning, 2 halfway through cooking)
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 2 unpeeled garlic cloves
  • 1 sprig rosemary
  • salt
  • pink peppercorns

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (392°F) conventional (180°C/356°F fan).
  2. Wash and dry the 600g (21.2 oz) of potatoes. If the skin looks good, you can leave it on.
  3. Cut them into fairly even wedges:
    • medium potatoes → into 4
    • large potatoes → into 6
  4. Put the potatoes in the tray and add:
    • 2 tablespoons of oil
    • 2 garlic cloves
    • the rosemary
    • salt
    • lightly crushed pink peppercorns
  5. Mix well with your hands so every potato gets coated in oil.
  6. Pour 3 tablespoons of water into the tray.
  7. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 45 minutes.
  8. Now turn the potatoes with a spatula, baste them with the cooking juices, and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil.
  9. Move the tray to the top of the oven, raise the temperature to 220°C (428°F), and cook for another 10 minutes.
  10. Optional — final grill/broil If you want extra crispiness, raise the temperature to 250°C (482°F), turn on the broiler (grill), and leave for 5–6 minutes, until deep golden brown.