Ingredients:
- 12 medium-sized floury (each weighing about 175g/6oz) such as Maris Piper, Cara, King Edward or Desirée
- salt
- cooking oil or lard
- plain flour, seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper
- knob of butter, optional
Preheat the oven to
190C/375F/Gas 5.
Peel the potatoes and halve lengthways. The peeled side of the potatoes
can now be scraped with a knife to give a smooth, domed shape to all the
halves, if you wish. Place them in a saucepan and cover with cold, salted
water. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 7-8 minutes.
Drain in a colander and leave to stand for 2-3 minutes before shaking the
colander gently. This will break down the edges of the potatoes. These
slightly rough edges will become crisp and crunchy during the roasting.
Heat a frying pan with 5mm/¼in of oil or melted lard. Once it's hot, the
potatoes can be lightly rolled in flour, shaking off the excess. Fry the
potatoes in the oil, turning occasionally until completely golden brown.
You may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your frying
pan.
Now transfer the potatoes to a roasting tin. Pour a 2-3mm/¼in deep layer
of cooking oil into the roasting tin and add the potatoes so that they lay
in a single layer. Sprinkle them with salt and roast in the oven for 40
minutes. For an ultra-crispy finish, increase the cooking time to up to 1½
hours, turning the potatoes in the pan half-way through.
Remove the potatoes from the tin and serve. A knob of butter can be melted
over the potatoes to enrich the crispy roast taste if you wish.