Heather says:
In our home we use two different methods to roast potatoes. The first is very easy and yields good results with little effort.
- 4- 5 Yukon Gold or Idaho potatoes, scrubbed and cut into a 1″ dice
- 2 TBSP olive oil
- garlic powder, or Creole seasoning, or Ranch Mix, or Lawry’s, or or or -you get the idea, right? Season the potatoes as lightly or as heavily as you’d like with whatever seasoning floats your boat.
- salt to taste
- cooking spray
Preheat the oven to 425F. Toss the diced potatoes in the olive oil and sprinkle with seasoning, skip the salt if there is salt in a spice mix. Spray the baking sheet with cooking spray and bake for 45 minutes or until the potatoes are a deep golden brown.
These make a great, no fuss side item. The potatoes are dense and flavorful.
Sometimes though, we want a fluffier version with a crispy outside and that requires two extra steps.
Method 2: The Great Parboil
Dice the potatoes into a 1″ dice and place in a pot. Cover with cold water and add a teaspoon or two of salt. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook for 8 minutes.
Drain the potatoes in a colander and wait until they stop steaming.
Shake the colander vigorously, sort of tossing the the potatoes about. This roughens the outside of the potatoes improving their texture and ability to hold seasoning in all the little nooks and crannies. Remember, the potatoes are shaken, not stirred.
Dump the potatoes onto a greased baking sheet (if I go to the trouble of parboiling the potatoes, I use olive oil with a pastry brush to grease the sheet).
Sprinkle with the desired seasoning and a little extra olive oil, if desired.
Bake for 45 minutes at 425F. Sometimes I turn the potatoes or give the baking sheet a good jiggle to move them around a bit halfway through, but the potatoes are just as lovely if I ignore them completely.
Optional Additions:
After the potatoes come out of the oven, they are ready to serve, but sometimes I take it an extra step.
For a breakfast skillet, sauté some diced onions and bell pepper* in olive oil, while the potatoes are cooking. If desired, add some diced ham or crumbled bacon. I’ve even enjoyed this with broccoli and cauliflower added to the mix. Just make sure the vegetables are fork tender .
Just before serving, stir the potatoes with the sautéed vegetables, sprinkle with cheese -if desired- and top with a fried egg or two.
Enjoy.
*When bell peppers aren’t $2 each for the green ones, anyway. What is up with that? Is there a bell pepper blight or something I’m unaware of?
[...] at her recipe, for the real HOW TO MAKE HEATHER TOTS ALSO KNOWN AS Roasted Potatoes. See the yummy goodness she [...]
[...] of the farms I frequent. Heather came to my rescue as usual and suggested a breakfast skillet with roasted potatoes. That sounded like a nice change of pace, so I printed out her recipe and followed Method 2: The [...]