In American cuisine, is there any better side dish than a crispy, crunchy potato? But what if the potatoes are purple? And they’re oven roasted purple potatoes?
For many, the crispy potato, from french fries to hash browns, is a staple along side a meat and a vegetable. Since oil-laden fried potatoes aren’t really the best thing for anyone, I’ve long been a fan of oven roasted potatoes. Purple potatoes bring the color that (obviously) white potatoes lack and a fluffiness that waxy red potatoes can’t match.
The trick is getting them crispy on the outside and still moist & fluffy in the middle.
If you try to cook them entirely in the oven, they wind up void of flavor and completely dried out. They key, much like great Belgian Frites, is cooking them twice. I do the first round in the microwave because it’s quick and easy, then finish them in the oven. Save your seasoning until the very end so that it doesn’t get baked out either.
How To Make Oven Roasted Purple Potatoes
This is largely a cook-by-sight recipe. There are really no hard-fast rules or ratios here and you can eyeball just about everything. This makes it a stress free side dish.
The secret to these potatoes, as is common in a lot of my potato recipes, is to cook them first in the microwave before finishing in the oven. Potatoes this small with dry out in the oven before they get a crispy exterior. You could do this all in the skillet, but the odds are better you’ll be under-cooked instead in the middle.
If you have a large skillet, you could always finish these by smashing them, instead of using the oven. See my crispy smashed potato recipe to find out how.
Make crispy oven roasted purple potatoes that are fluffy in the middle by cooking first in the microwave.
- 1.5 Pounds Purple Potatoes (Usually 1 Bag)
- 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 Tablespoon Garlic
- 2 Teaspoons Fresh Rosemary, Divided
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Clean the potatoes, pierce a few times with a fork and place them on a paper towel in the microwave. Cook until they just start to become tender, but not cooked all the way., about 4 minutes
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Combine oil, garlic and 1 teaspoon of the rosemary in a bowl that will hold the potatoes.
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Allow the potatoes to cool, chop them into fork-sized pieces and toss them with the oil. The oil raises the surface temperature to promote a nice crispy texture. Add salt and pepper to taste as well.
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Roast them in the oven at 450 degrees for 15 minutes and then watch for them starting to brown. You may want to put them under the broiler to finish them off.
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Add the remaining rosemary just prior to plating
Once the potatoes have cooled, chop them into fork-sized pieces and toss them with the oil. The oil raises the surface temperature to promote a nice crispy texture. Go ahead and apply a nice coating of salt and pepper as well. Roast them in the oven at 450 degrees for 15 minutes and then watch for them starting to brown. You may want to put them under the broiler to finish them off. Just prior to plating, toss in the remaining rosemary and garlic.
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Potatoes in the microwave… I need to do that. I haven't done it because I am too afraid that they will explode and then I am going to be stuck with an unwanted clean-up. 🙂
Luckily I've never had that happen! The key is piercing them all over with the fork so that the steam can escape and they cook all the way to the center. The worst thing I've seen from overcooked microwave potatoes is having them turn as hard as a brick.
This recipe is not too good, and if I would have left them the time stated at the degree of 450, they would have burned!
Instead, I left them at 425 degrees for 10 min. And they were browned and starting to get too dry.
Personally, I think petite potatoes are easily over cooked in the oven. So I don’t like cioking them alone. So I cook them with meat to help them not dry out,etc.