Italian Roast Potatoes – Rosemary And Garlic

Crispy on the outside with a soft and fluffy centre these Italian roast potatoes are the ultimate side to any roast dinner or main course. Made with garlic cloves and fresh rosemary they're packed with flavour and pretty hard to resist.

Who doesn't love perfectly roasted potatoes? Not many we tell you and these ones are by far our favourite way to make them. We love to serve them with a stuffed roast pork loin that's been rubbed in fresh herbs, fennel seeds and wrapped in prosciutto…SO good. Roast lamb, chicken or beef always works well too.

Seasonings

We season these Italian roast potatoes well with salt and pepper. These have an extra good flavour kick from a generous helping of fresh rosemary and garlic.

We use 5-6 garlic cloves, skins still on and lightly crushed with the back of a knife. Squeeze them out of their skins when the potatoes are done, they're sweet, sticky, garlicky and utterly good!

We use around 4 large sprigs of fresh rosemary and remove the needles from the stalks and sprinkle them over the potatoes. Tip: get the rosemary and garlic ready in advance because you have to work quickly when the roasting tray is nice and hot.

Do we need to boil potatoes before roasting?

To make these Italian roast potatoes We never boil them first. We've never felt they've needed to be boiled because they come out so crispy and good plus it's an extra step that isn't necessary.

If you're making traditional British roast potatoes then we do boil them first because they are cut much larger and boiling them gives them a fluffy outside that goes extra crispy when roasting. Suited to pouring gravy over!

How to make Italian Roast Potatoes – step by step

First, preheat the oven to 220°C (428°F). Once the oven is at temperature pour the oil into the baking tray and place in the oven to get nice and hot (photo 1).

Peel the potatoes and cut them into rough medium sized chunks (photos 1 & 2). When you've finished chopping the peeled potatoes the tray and oil should be nice and hot.

Do the next step quickly but carefully *hot oil warning*. Bring the tray out of the oven and add the potatoes to the tray followed by the rosemary sprigs and garlic cloves. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and using a spatula or fish slice toss the potatoes to coat everything in oil and place back in the oven (photos 4 & 5).

Let them roast in the oven for around 25 minutes then toss so the majority of the crispy brown and golden sides are facing up. Roast again for another 20 minutes or until all the potatoes are crispy, golden brown and cooked through.

Kitchen tip

• Make sure your oven as pre-heated fully before tossing the potatoes in roasting tray
• Don't overcrowd the potatoes, choose a tray big enough to spread them out in an even layer
• Always remember to add the olive oil to the baking tray and heat it in the oven so the oil is extra hot before add your potatoes. This helps create crisp potatoes straight away.
• Don't use expensive extra virgin olive oil for roasting, a lesser expensive olive oil will do
• Add as much garlic as you want…the more the better we say
• If you're not serving the potatoes straight away then transfer them to a plate lined with baking parchment to drain slightly and keep warm in a low oven. Don't cover the potatoes or they'll lose their crispiness

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

• 1.9 lbs (870g) potatoes
• 5-6 garlic cloves (whole and skins still on and crush with the back of a knife)
• 4-5 sprigs on rosemary ((removed from the sprig))
• 5-6 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C (428°F). Once the oven is at temperature pour the oil into the baking tray and place in the oven to get nice and hot.

2. Peel the potatoes and cut them into rough medium sized chunks. When you've finished chopping the peeled potatoes the tray and oil should be nice and hot.

3. Do the next step quickly but carefully *hot oil warning*. Bring the tray out of the oven and add the potatoes to the tray followed by the rosemary and garlic cloves. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and using a spatula or fish slice toss the potatoes to coat everything in oil and place back in the oven.

4. Let them roast in the oven for around 25 minutes then toss so the majority of the crispy brown and golden sides are facing up. Roast again for another 20 minutes or until all the potatoes are crispy, golden brown and cooked through.

Kitchen notes

• Make sure your oven as pre-heated fully before tossing the potatoes in roasting tray
• Don't overcrowd the potatoes, choose a tray big enough to spread them out in an even layer
• Always remember to add the olive oil to the baking tray and heat it in the oven so the oil is extra hot before add your potatoes. This helps create crisp potatoes straight away.
• Don't use expensive extra virgin olive oil for roasting, a lesser expensive olive oil will do.
• Add as much garlic as you want...the more the better we say
• If you're not serving the potatoes straight away then transfer them to a plate lined with baking parchment to drain slightly and keep warm in a low oven.
• Don't cover the potatoes or they'll lose their crispiness