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Marts

Roast Potatoes help

Does anyone know the best way to do roast potatoes for a vegetarian?
cab

Re: Roast Potatoes help

It comes down to what fat you want to use really; I'd go for a mix of olive oil and sunflower oil.
Marts

I was wondering about olive oil - do you think it will roast at a high enough temperature?
cab

Marts wrote:
I was wondering about olive oil - do you think it will roast at a high enough temperature?


I've used it before, but I think that a mix of olive and sunflower works better, the olive oil itself can be too strong a flavour for the spuds.
Marts

Will give that a go then. Cheers
BelindaC

I often use sunflower oil and it works very well.
cinders

i 2nd sunflower oil, OH roasties always turn out really nice
tahir

cab wrote:
I think that a mix of olive and sunflower works better, the olive oil itself can be too strong a flavour for the spuds.


Yup
Treacodactyl

We just use plain sunflower oil here and we use loads of olive oil for virtually everything else.

Of course, the correct variety of spuds need to be parboiled first, drained and left to dry for a few moments, shaken and then put in the oil.
mochyn

Treacodactyl wrote:
We just use plain sunflower oil here and we use loads of olive oil for virtually everything else.

Of course, the correct variety of spuds need to be parboiled first, drained and left to dry for a few moments, shaken and then put in the oil.


Oh no... (Head now in hands...)
tahir

mochyn wrote:
Treacodactyl wrote:
We just use plain sunflower oil here and we use loads of olive oil for virtually everything else.

Of course, the correct variety of spuds need to be parboiled first, drained and left to dry for a few moments, shaken and then put in the oil.


Oh no... (Head now in hands...)


And so near to Christmas...
mochyn

tahir wrote:
mochyn wrote:
Treacodactyl wrote:
We just use plain sunflower oil here and we use loads of olive oil for virtually everything else.

Of course, the correct variety of spuds need to be parboiled first, drained and left to dry for a few moments, shaken and then put in the oil.


Oh no... (Head now in hands...)


And so near to Christmas...


Some people are so thoughtless...
Treacodactyl

If I was that thoughtless I'd have mentioned that no other coatings such as flour should even be considered. I could have also suggested parsnips shouldn't be parboiled but added to the pan with the spuds. Artichokes along with the 'nips but not carrots.

What about adding herbs... evil5
marigold

Treacodactyl wrote:
We just use plain sunflower oil here and we use loads of olive oil for virtually everything else.

Of course, the correct variety of spuds need to be parboiled first, drained and left to dry for a few moments, shaken and then put in the oil.


Hot oil, of course Wink
Marts

And where do you stand on throwing sweet potato into the roasting tin?
Treacodactyl

Marts wrote:
And where do you stand on throwing sweet potato into the roasting tin?


Home grown, farmshop or, heaven forbid, supermarket bought?
Treacodactyl

marigold wrote:
Treacodactyl wrote:
We just use plain sunflower oil here and we use loads of olive oil for virtually everything else.

Of course, the correct variety of spuds need to be parboiled first, drained and left to dry for a few moments, shaken and then put in the oil.


Hot oil, of course Wink


That's a bit harsh, I only suggested parboiling. Shocked Wink
Marts

Heaven forbid... Embarassed


And what about a sprinkling of sea salt - as soona s they hit the hot oil or at the end just before serving?
mousjoos

Marts wrote:
And where do you stand on throwing sweet potato into the roasting tin?


at a safe distance depending on how hot the oil is
otatop

Par-boiled until "fluffy" on the outside, then rolled in hot olive oil with rosemary and garlic and roasted near the top of the oven until golden and crumbly. Works well for me. You do need to choose a good "floury" potato.
Nick

The real issue, which everyone is dodging is why on earth you're cooking for a vegetarian. Let them starve.
Marts

The real question is why, being a flag waving carnivore, my last three relationships have been with vegetarians.

My ex (1 ex ago) and I went round to my mother's house for xmas dinner once. I was secretly delighted with my mother's manifestation of vegetarian understanding. She roasted the potatoes in goose fat and made vegetarian gravy which she added the beef juices to "for flavour", all the while smiling and saying "it doesn't reallly count as eating meat does it dear."
Marts

and i've just remembered that she put the sage and onion stuffing balls in with the beef joint and whispered to me "let's just keep this our little secret eh dear"
Gervase

There is another side, though. I had a call from my daughter this morning - who has been defiantly vegetarian for the past 10 years - to ask how to cook pheasant. Boyfriend is not vegetarian, and she has actually agreed to cook meat for him. There's hope yet...
Slim

otatop wrote:
Par-boiled until "fluffy" on the outside, then rolled in hot olive oil with rosemary and garlic and roasted near the top of the oven until golden and crumbly. Works well for me. You do need to choose a good "floury" potato.


that sounds pretty good to me. About how I do it, though I like to add in sweet potatoes, parsnips, rutabagas, turnips, beets & maybe even celeriac.
Mr O

Slim wrote:
otatop wrote:
Par-boiled until "fluffy" on the outside, then rolled in hot olive oil with rosemary and garlic and roasted near the top of the oven until golden and crumbly. Works well for me. You do need to choose a good "floury" potato.


that sounds pretty good to me. About how I do it, though I like to add in sweet potatoes, parsnips, rutabagas, turnips, beets & maybe even celeriac.


Roasted neeps, must try that!
Marts

Do you par boil the sweet potato or throw it in raw like the parsnips?
Slim

I would par boil them as well, but not for very long at all.
I try to just soften my root crops before roasting them, don't want them mushy mashy at all.
Helen_A

Noooo don't par boil the sweet pots unless they are a) extremely hard for sweet pots and b) very very large pieces....

I cut/roast them in the same shape/way that the parsnips are done - and actually usually do them in with the parsnips as they take roughly the same length of time if the same shape/size.

(please note, I am avoiding talking about the potato potato...)
ros

Slim wrote:
otatop wrote:
Par-boiled until "fluffy" on the outside, then rolled in hot olive oil with rosemary and garlic and roasted near the top of the oven until golden and crumbly. Works well for me. You do need to choose a good "floury" potato.


that sounds pretty good to me. About how I do it, though I like to add in sweet potatoes, parsnips, rutabagas, turnips, beets & maybe even celeriac.



are rutabagas the same as mangol worzels?
Slim

rutabagas are "swedes" mangel wurzels are a type of beet

edited to insert an 'n' Embarassed
ros

thanks, our "common" language does confuse me at times Smile
Slim

sometimes I intentionally stick to the terms I know will confuse you. More fun and interaction that way! Laughing
VM

My partner does particularly good roast potatoes - he usually uses olive oil, though I'm sure sunflower also sometimes.

His key tips are to cook the potatoes until they are almost done, rather than just parboil - and yes, add salt as it helps to make them crunchy.

And cook them very hot.
And yes, obviously, don't parboil parsnips before putting in tin with pots.

Happy eating on Thursday, everyone.

I love meat, but some of my favourite relatives are vegetarian, so I think they should be fed Smile However, I do maintain that meat-eaters cook better vegetarian food than many vegetarians do (where is the smiley for hurriedly ducking behind parapet?)...
Marts

Marts

Thanks for all the suggestions. To sum it up I'm going to try -

Par-boiling the potatoes, and sprinkling with salt once drained, adding un-boiled sweet potatoes and parsnips (which will be cut to roughly the same size as each other) heating sunflower oil with some mild extra virgin olive oil (say 4:1 ratio) and tossing the lot in this with some rosemary and crushed garlic before roasting at the top of the oven til crispy. Smile

Then following my mother's advice I am going to smother them in goose fat, dip briefly in diced calves liver, sacrifice a bull calf and serve them to my vegetarian love. Wink

Happy Christmas all.
Treacodactyl

Spanish, Italian or Greek olive oil and which is best? Twisted Evil Wink
cab

Treacodactyl wrote:
Spanish, Italian or Greek olive oil and which is best? Twisted Evil Wink


The very best I've had was from Portugal. The second best was Palestinian. The third best was Sardinian.
Marts

Anyone tried Welsh olive oil?

http://www.olives101.com/2007/04/30/first-welsh-olive-grove-planted-on-anglesey/
Silas

Marts wrote:
Anyone tried Welsh olive oil?

http://www.olives101.com/2007/04/30/first-welsh-olive-grove-planted-on-anglesey/


Nope, but I did try Welsh Whiskey once - not an experience I would like to repeat.
mochyn

Silas wrote:
.....................er, what can the Welsh make?


Excellent bonfires... Mad Mad Mad

I won't comment on the whisky because I'm not a whisky drinker but we have some lovely cheeses, chocolates, fruit & veg, meat...
Silas

Have I won the DS bingo? Wink
mochyn

Silas wrote:
Have I won the DS bingo? Wink


Bum: I'd forgotten about that. Laughing
Slim

mochyn wrote:
Silas wrote:
.....................er, what can the Welsh make?


Excellent bonfires... Mad Mad Mad

I won't comment on the whisky because I'm not a whisky drinker but we have some lovely cheeses, chocolates, fruit & veg, meat...


you grow some nice cacao over there???
dpack

at least it is the veggie ones this time Laughing
mochyn

Slim wrote:
mochyn wrote:
Silas wrote:
.....................er, what can the Welsh make?


Excellent bonfires... Mad Mad Mad

I won't comment on the whisky because I'm not a whisky drinker but we have some lovely cheeses, chocolates, fruit & veg, meat...


you grow some nice cacao over there???


No, but there's a company that imports FT stuff and does wonderful things with it!
VM

Thanks for the parapet ducking smiley, Marts. Hope potatoes etc all nice on Xmas Day.

Think olive groves are a long term project, so may be some years/decades before Wales producing much olive oil.
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