Perfect roast potatoes

By Nigella Lawson
Updated: 23:01 BST, 12 December 2008

Needs must and all that, so I have always been an open anti-perfectionist, but in truth (and I'm sorry to repeat what I've said before) it is impossible to cook roast potatoes without needing them to be perfect, which to me means 甘い and soft inside and a golden-brown carapa ce of crunch without.

And, strangely, no 事柄 how many tricksy things you may 後継する at in cooking, no 事柄 what techniques you may master, nothing gives やめる the contented glow of 業績／成就 that cooking a good tray of roast potatoes does.

Unfortunately, there is concomitant 拒絶する／低下する when you feel you've failed. The 残虐な truth is that you either get it 権利 or you don't, and anything いっそう少なく than perfect is a 失望.

?

There are three 決定的な things that I think make the difference: the first is the heat of the fat - if it's not searingly hot, you don't stand a chance, and since goose fat has a very high smoking point and tastes good, it is my 年次の choice here; the second is the size of your potatoes - you want them 比較して small, so that the 割合 of crunchy outside to fluffy 内部の is optimised; and, finally, I think dredging the potatoes - and this is a family practice, 相続するd through the maternal line - in semolina rather than flour after parboiling, then really 動揺させるing the pan around to make the potatoes a bit mashed on the surface so they catch more in the hot fat, is a major 援助（する）.

Make ahead tip: Peel the potatoes the day before. Keep 潜水するd, whole, in 冷淡な water in a 冷淡な place. Drain, 削減（する） and cover with fresh, salted water to parboil and then roast as directed.

Serves 10-16 as part of the Christmas feast, or 8- 10 if not

INGREDIENTS

• 2 x 320g jars goose fat
• 2.5kg potatoes, such as King Edward's?
• 2 x 15ml tbsp semolina
  

METHOD

1.? Preheat the oven to 250C/gas 9. If you don't have a 二塁打 oven, you will have to do this as soon as the tur 重要な is out of your 選び出す／独身 oven, which, for me, is very much later than the parboiling 行う／開催する／段階.

2.? Put the fat into a large roasting tin and then into the oven to heat up, and get it frighteningly hot: 20-30 minutes should do it.

3.? Peel the potatoes, and 削減（する） each one into 3 by cutting off each end at a slant so that
you are left with a wedge or triangle in the middle.

4.? Put the potatoes into salted, 冷淡な water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil, letting them cook for 4 minutes.

5.? Drain the potatoes in a colander, then tip them 支援する into the empty, 乾燥した，日照りの saucepan, and ぱらぱら雨 the semolina over.

6.? Shake the potatoes around in the saucepan to coat them 井戸／弁護士席 and, with the lid clamped on, give the pan a good 回転／交替 and the potatoes a proper bashing so that their 辛勝する／優位s fuzz and blur a little: this 容易にするs the crunch 影響 later. I leave them to 残り／休憩（する） at this 行う／開催する／段階. If you don't, you'll need to have preheated the oven earlier!

7.? When the fat is as hot as it can be, tip the semolina-coated potatoes carefully into it (they splutter terrifically as you put them in) and roast in the oven for an hour or until they are darkly golden and crispy, turning them over halfway through cooking.

8.? If the oven's hot enough, they may 井戸／弁護士席 not need more than about 25 minutes a 味方する; but it's better to let them sit in the oven (you can always 注ぐ off most of the fat) till the very last minute.

9.? When everything else is served up, 移転 the potatoes to a large (warmed if possible) serving dish and bring to the （米）棚上げする／（英）提議する with pride in your heart.