Barbara Kafka, a legend in the food world, created the single best roasted potato recipe we have ever eaten. She calls them “melting potatoes,” from her book Vegetable Love. In this dish, the potatoes act like rice in risotto, absorbing the butter, oil, and chicken stock. Faith’s experience is that they drive people wild.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter unsalted, cut into 6 pieces, plus 1 tablespoon reserved in refrigerator
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 6 potatoes large (3 pounds) baking potatoes
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- black pepper freshly ground, to taste
- 2 cups chicken stock or canned broth
Servings:
Instructions
- Place rack in top third of oven. Heat oven to 500 degrees.
- Put the 3 tablespoons of butter into an 18-by-12-by-2-inch roasting pan. Set the pan over medium heat just until the butter has melted. Remove. Add the olive oil.
- Peel the potatoes. Cut in half lengthwise, then cut each half in half again crosswise. Cut each quarter into 3 wedges. Roll the potato wedges in the roasting pan until evenly coated with butter and oil. Arrange in the pan so that they touch as little as possible. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Roast for 15 minutes. Turn wedges with a pancake turner. Roast another 10 minutes. Turn again. Roast 10 minutes more. Remove pan from oven. Turn wedges again, making sure to turn the white sides of each wedge face-up. Add the stock or broth. Return to oven for a final 15 minutes. The potatoes can be made up to this point and held for 4 to 6 hours.
- When ready to serve, dot the wedges with small pieces of the reserved tablespoon of butter. If the potatoes have been at room temperature, roast 15 minutes. If they are still warm, 5 minutes will do nicely. Remove potatoes to a platter right away or they will stick to the pan.
