Parsley Potatoes - The Best Potatoes Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why do you need to soak potatoes before baking? ›

Soaking potatoes in water helps remove excess starch. Excess starch can inhibit the potatoes from cooking evenly as well as creating a gummy or sticky texture on the outside of your potatoes. Cold water is used because hot water would react with the starch activating it, making it harder to separate from the potatoes.

Do You Cut Potatoes Before Boiling? You don't have to cut potatoes to boil them, but smaller pieces of potato will boil faster than larger pieces. It will also be easier to work with smaller pieces if they will later become mashed potatoes or another dish.

New potatoes are potatoes that are harvested when they're still very young, before their sugar content has converted to starch. They're small with thin skins, and their flesh is smooth and creamy when cooked. New potatoes taste best when they're roasted or boiled, rather than fried.

The olive oil helps the seasonings adhere to the surface of the potato. To save time, restaurants often apply the oil with a spray bottle. Thanks to their naturally high starch content, which creates a plush texture under heat, Russet potatoes make a good fit for baking.

This category of potato is best for boiling, steaming, sauteing, oven roasting, stewing, mashing, and braising. Examples include chef's all-purpose, Yukon Gold, and yellow-fleshed potatoes. New potatoes are low-starch, high-moisture potatoes.

Prior to cooking, the potatoes should be scrubbed clean of any dirt, rinsed, and dried. I use vegetable oil to rub the potatoes, which helps the skin crisp up nicely. You can use olive oil if you prefer.

To help prevent foodborne illness caused by harmful residue, it's vital that you clean potatoes, even if you plan on peeling them. When leaving the skin on—like for a baked potato—it's important to properly clean potatoes even if you don't plan on eating the skin.

"Placing [peeled and cut] potatoes in water helps prevent oxidation, which turns their exposed flesh brown," says Ronna Welsh, the author of The Nimble Cook and the owner and chef instructor at Purple Kale Kitchenworks in Brooklyn, N.Y. While oxidation won't make the potatoes unsafe to eat, it does change their flavor.

Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.

Place the pot over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a bare simmer. Do not cover. (Covering changes the environment in the pot and can make the potatoes turn mushy.)

Once boiling, reduce heat, adjusting as needed to maintain a simmer. Cook potatoes until they offer no resistance when pierced: 10–12 minutes for baby potatoes, 15–20 minutes for small potatoes, or 30–40 minutes for large cubed potatoes. Drain potatoes in a colander and let cool 10 minutes.

Why do you boil water before adding potatoes? ›

For most potato dishes it's important to add the potatoes to cold water and allow the water to come to a boil with the potatoes in the water. The potato starch can react as soon as it comes in contact with hot water, which will promote uneven cooking and mealy potatoes.

The reason is to prevent the potatoes exposure to air, which causes dehydration, oxidation, and discoloration.

Round White AKA Chef Potatoes

B is the most common in foodservice. B and C are usually served whole; these are more expensive per pound than A's, but the serving cost per plate is less.

Waxy potatoes such as Jersey Royals and Charlottes tend not to grow so big, come to harvest earlier, have thin skins that easily rub off, and are harder and denser. So they're referred to as new potatoes or baby potatoes and are best just simply boiled. They're also the best for a potato salad.

The reason is to prevent the potatoes exposure to air, which causes dehydration, oxidation, and discoloration.

You can steam potatoes to speed up cook time.

Place potatoes into a pot with a steamer insert and enough water to reach the bottom of the potatoes. Place a lid on top and turn the heat to medium-high. The steam gets hotter than boiling in water, allowing the potatoes to cook faster.

Gordon Ramsay's roast potato recipe

For Gordon's roast potato recipe you'll need: 1.2kg floury potatoes, such as Maris Piper or King Edward. 100g goose or duck fat (or olive oil)

Gordon Ramsay begins by boiling the potatoes in salted water. Next, he drains the potatoes. After that, he stirs in butter, sour cream, herbs, and seasoning. This is Gordon Ramsay's version of smashed potatoes, which differs from the one in this recipe.