Recipes

The perfect recipe for roast potatoes                              

Serves 4-6

At the risk of sounding conceited, I really do think I make the best roast potatoes ever. To be fair, they are not really roast potatoes in the classic sense, with a crisp outside and a silky soft centre; mine are crisp right through, more like huge crunchy chips which explode as you take your first bite – but that's how I like them.

    675g (1½ lb) potatoes, peeled and quartered
    2 tbsp flour
    3 tbsp goose fat
    Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6

In a saucepan over medium heat, boil the potatoes in lightly salted water for about five minutes or until just parboiled, that is to say just slightly soft. Drain them and leave to cool slightly.

Sift the flour into a paper bag and add a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Put the potatoes into the bag a few at a time and give it a good shake so the potatoes are well coated in the seasoned flour.

Put them in a roasting dish large enough to spread them out in a single layer, dot over 2 tbsp of the fat, then give the pan a good shake.

Roast on the top shelf of the preheated oven for a minimum of two hours, turning the potatoes now and again so that they cook evenly. Baste them with the remaining fat if they look in danger of drying up.