Roasted Potatoes

Potatoes cut into chunks, tossed with olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic, and roasted until browned and crisp. No country is claimed and none applies, this is the standard Western roast potato. The one piece of technique worth understanding is parboiling, which the source explains well in its text and then leaves out of its method. Boiling the cut potatoes briefly before they go into the oven does two things: it cooks the inside through so the oven only has to work on the outside, and it roughens the surface so that fat can get into the cracks. That roughened surface is what turns into crust. Skip it and the skin stays smooth and tough, and the fat sits on the outside instead of crisping it. Giving the drained potatoes a good shake in the pan before they are dressed roughs them up further, and is the single cheapest improvement you can make. Drying matters too. A wet potato steams before it browns. Any variety works, though they behave differently: floury potatoes such as russets and Maris Piper give a fluffier interior and a crisper crust, while waxy red and new potatoes hold their shape and crisp less. This recipe uses small red or white potatoes. Africa has deep roasted-tuber traditions, yam, cassava and sweet potato from street braziers, but this is not one of them.