Garlic and sage roast potatoes cooked in duck fat boast a rich, savoury flavour with a crispy exterior and melt-in-your mouth interior bringing a touch of richness and indulgence to a classic roast dinner.
Pack your trunks and head over to King’s Cross station platform 9 3/4’s to catch the Hogwarts Express as we embark on our next exciting culinary adventure. Join us as we explore the wizarding world of Harry Potter and experience our very own Hogwarts Feast!
Our Hogwarts feast would not be complete without a towering plate of gloriously golden and crispy roast potatoes. Crunchy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside, these classic English style roast potatoes are the perfect side dish for a roast beef dinner. Bathed in rich duck fat and seasoned with fresh garlic and sage, this recipe takes the humble potato and turns it into the star attraction!
Ingredients
Russet potatoes: A good russet is the only potato you should be using for these roast potatoes. Potatoes fall into two categories: starchy and waxy. Starchy potatoes have a low moisture and sugar content and a high starch content. When boiled, the starch molecules swell to create light and fluffy potatoes that brown evenly on the outside. Waxy potatoes, such as red skin, yellow flesh, and fingerling potatoes, are higher in moisture and sugar meaning that they stay firm after cooking and don’t brown as evenly.
Duck fat: I adore potatoes roasted in duck fat which has a rich flavour and isn’t overly ducky. Duck fat is solid when cold and has a high smoke point, making it a great choice for high heat roasting. However, you can certainly use another fat it you prefer such as vegetable oil or even beef drippings.
How to Make Garlic and Sage Roast Potatoes
Parboil the potatoes
Preheat the oven to 400 deg F. Peel the potatoes and cut into 6 or 8 large pieces. Fill a large pot with water and add the potatoes. Season the water generously with kosher salt. Place over high heat and bring to a boil. Allow the potatoes to boil for 2 to 3 minutes until the edges begin to cook.
Drain the potatoes and return to the pot. Cover with a lid and shake the pot several times to rough up the edges. Remove the lid and let sit for a few minutes for the potatoes to dry out.
Preheat the fat
It is very important to ensure that the fat is hot when you add the potatoes, they should sizzle when they hit the fat!
Spoon the duck fat onto a heavy rimmed baking sheet and place in the oven to heat up. When the fat is hot, it’s ready to go. Meanwhile, use a chef’s knife to slightly crush the whole unpeeled garlic cloves and separate the sage leaves.
Roast the potatoes
When the duck fat is hot, carefully take the baking sheet out of the oven. Be careful to avoid spilling or sloshing the hot fat. Scatter the sage leaves and garlic cloves in the pan. Carefully tip the potatoes out onto the baking sheet and spread out so the pieces aren’t touching. Generously sprinkle the potatoes with kosher salt and return to the oven.
Leave the potatoes to roast until the bottoms are a deep golden brown, this will take around 20 to 25 minutes. From this point on you will want to take them out every 10 to 15 minutes and flip each potato piece onto an uncooked side. It isn’t really possible to overcook them so keep roasting and flipping until they are as golden and crispy as you would like, at least 1 hour and possibly a bit more.
Serve the Garlic and Sage Roast Potatoes
When the potatoes are a deep golden brown on several sides and soft inside when pierced with a knife, they are done. These potatoes are best served as soon as they are done. You can make them ahead and reheat later, but they will lose some of the crispiness and some of the lightness inside. Serve alongside the entrée of your choice and enjoy!
