Side Dishes | RecipeTin Eats

How I cook frozen peas – Garlic Buttered Peas

Nagi — Wed, 18 Oct 2023 05:00:00 +0000

Make frozen peas fabulous with this recipe for garlic buttered peas! A quick side dish that goes with everything, the peas are sauté-steamed in garlic butter, rather than boiling separately. Easier, tastier, never mushy and so tasty you’ll become known for them.

I tend to shy away from sharing basic recipes like today’s Buttered Peas. Too easily distracted by more exciting-sounding dishes. Pierogis! Crispy chicken burgers! Chocolate cream pie!

Yet, the irony in all this, of course, is that I make these peas a gazillion times more often than I do Basque Cheesecake. A staple side dish, quick to make but totally restaurant-worthy. Though, posh restaurants might pod their own rather than buying frozen. I guess they don’t buy into the whole snap-frozen thing like I do?

Ingredients

I am a bit of a frozen vegetable snob. You’ll never find store-bought frozen broccoli or onion in my freezer. But you will always find peas. Because they are good!

Frozen peas – Cook from FROZEN, not thawed! Well, it’s fine if they are thawed but there is no need to.
Baby vs regular – The recipe works for either. Baby peas (called petite peas in some countries) are slightly sweeter with a slightly softer skin. I am partial to these but won’t hesitate to use regular peas.
Fresh – You could also put me to shame by making this recipe with freshly podded peas.
Butter – For lovely buttery flavour. Substitute with other oil of choice – extra virgin olive oil is my next pick, coconut oil for a tropical / Indian vibe.
Garlic – It just makes everything that much more delicious. Fresh please! Give the jarred stuff a miss – it’s sour and wet so you can’t sauté it properly and the flavour barely resembles the real deal.
Salt and pepper – Seasoning. Peas need it!

How I cook frozen peas

To cook from frozen, just add the tiniest splash of water which helps steam-sauté them faster. The water evaporates by the time the peas are cooked.

Sauté garlic – Melt the butter then sauté the garlic until very light golden in medium heat, around 30 seconds.
Tip the frozen peas in with salt and pepper. Add 1 tablespoon of water which creates a steamy environment to cook the peas a little faster. The water evaporates in a few minutes, leaving behind just tasty butter!

Cook for 5 minutes, stirring every now and then, or until the peas are heated through. Frozen peas are cooked before freezing so they don’t need to be cooked!
Serve – Done and ready to serve! Pour into a bowl or put straight onto dinner plates.
Delicious to eat as is – I challenge you to stop at one spoonful – but suggestions for dressing up are below!

Dress them up

For every day, buttered peas are terrific just as they are. The garlic and butter go a long way to make peas a whole lot more interesting!

But, if you’d like to step it up a notch or just feel like doing something different, here are some suggestions:

Mint them – Toss through finely chopped fresh mint. Mint and peas is a classic! Add however much you want, to your taste.
Lemon – Stir through lemon zest for beautiful lemon flavour, or juice for tang.
Shower of parmesan – As with many things, a mound of freshly grated parmesan will turn this into a show-stopping side!
Clarified / browned butter instead of ordinary butter – for even more intense buttery flavour.
Spice it – Add some curry powder, cumin, coriander, or other spice of choice into the butter, for a touch of extra flavour.
Crunch it – Finish with a big handful of store-bought crispy Asian Fried Shallots or pangrattato (from this recipe), for great texture!

But that’s enough from me. What about you? I know you’ve got a stack of other creative (easy!) ways to dress up a bowl of peas. Share, share! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

How I cook frozen peas – Garlic Buttered Peas

Recipe video above. Make frozen peas fabulous with my recipe for buttered peas! A quick side that goes with everything. Don't boil the peas – cook from frozen in garlic butter. Easier, tastier, bright green, never mushy and never watery!

Course Side

Cuisine Western

Keyword buttered peas, chickpea recipe, pea side dish recipe

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 5

Total Time 10

Servings

Calories 129cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

50g / 3 tbsp unsalted butter (or other oil/fat)
2 garlic cloves , finely minced
500g / 1 lb frozen peas (Note 1)
1/2 tsp cooking / kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp water

Instructions

Sauté garlic – Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds until light golden.
Cook – Add frozen peas, salt, pepper and water. Turn heat up to medium high and cook for 5 minutes, stirring every now and then, until the water is evaporated, the peas are hot and coated in the tasty garlic butter.
Serve – Tumble into a bowl and serve!

Notes

1. Peas – Baby peas (also called petite peas) are slightly sweeter and slightly more tender skin than regular peas. But by no means do I have a negative thoughts about regular peas!

2. Dress up peas – Finely chopped mint stirred through at the end, a shower of parmesan (oh yes!), lemon zest and/or juice, a pinch of cumin or coriander powder stirred into the butter (or other spices of choice). Fresh herbs of choice, chopped and stirred through at the end. So many options!

3. Leftovers will keep for 4 days in the fridge, or freezer for 3 months.

Nutrition per serving assuming 6 servings.

Nutrition

More sides

Pea Puree (side / sauce!)

Pea, Cabbage, Parmesan and Mint Salad

Spring Salad!

Peas

Life of Dozer

Snippet from today’s recipe video!

The post How I cook frozen peas – Garlic Buttered Peas appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Maple Roasted Pumpkin with Chili and Feta

Nagi — Tue, 03 Oct 2023 16:00:00 +0000

How to make roasted pumpkin so much more fabulous with very little effort? A dash of maple syrup for extra caramelisation. Kick of fresh chilli. Plus a sprinkle of feta and shower of walnuts! Serve as a side, a meal, pile on toast or crostini. It’s delicious any which way!

Maple roasted pumpkin with feta and chilli

Something magical happens to pumpkin when you roast it. It intensifies the sweetness and caramelises beautifully.

I’d happily eat it plain. But here, we step it up a notch with a few simple additions that work so well with pumpkin. A dash of maple syrup for extra caramelisation. Plus a hit of fresh chilli, soft nutty crunchy of walnuts and creamy pops of salty feta…..you know this is going to be good!

That’s dinner, right there. Or a mighty delicious side.

Ingredient you need

Here’s what you need to make this.

The roasting stuff

Pumpkin – Any eating pumpkin. I typically use Kent or Jap which are common varieties here in Australia. Do not use pumpkin intended for Halloween carving, it’s not very pleasant to eat.
Alternatives – Butternut pumpkin (called butternut squash in the States) or sweet potato!
Maple syrup – or honey.
Dried chilli flakes – also called red pepper flakes. I use the regular type you get from ordinary grocery stores but you could absolutely use Asian or other types of chilli flakes. Just be mindful of spiciness!
Red onion – substitute regular onion, eschalots (US: shallots) or the white part of green onions (I often have bunches in the fridge with the green parts unceremoniously hacked off for garnish purposes so am always looking for uses of the white part).
Walnuts – Or other nuts of choice. Almonds and pecans come to mind first. Pinenuts, pepitas and other small nuts/seeds would also work but I’d toss them in partway through cooking so they don’t burn into tiny little black (bitter) pellets.

Finishes

Chilli – This is optional because it’s more for visual than spiciness, because we get enough spiciness from the dried chilli flakes. Large chillis, like the cayenne pepper pictured, aren’t very spicy. Good life rule to remember: the larger the chilli, the less spicy it is!
Danish feta – This is the feta type that is a bit more creamy than Greek feta. Greek feta also works, though I do like the way Danish feta sort of smears as it semi-melts on contact with the hot pumpkin.
If you are making to really impress, go premium by using goats cheese!
Parsley – For pretty green finish.

How to make Maple Roasted Pumpkin with Chilli and Feta

This is a recipe that’s more about the finishes. The pumpkin is roasted with onion and walnuts, all tossed with maple syrup. Then once cooked, sprinkle with feta, red chilli and parsley. Then get stuck in!

Cut the pumpkin in 2.5cm / 1″ cubes. To do this I cut into 2.5cm / 1″ slices first. Using a rocking motion as you slice down helps make this easy.
Cut the skin off.
Then cut into cubes.
Pile onto a large paper lined tray with the onion slices and walnuts. Toss with olive oil, maple syrup, salt and chilli flakes then spread it out. The more space between the pumpkin, the better. If the pumpkin is too cluttered, it will stew and go mushy instead of caramelising.

Roast for 30 minutes, tossing once at the 20 minute mark, until the pumpkin is light golden and cooked through. You won’t get intense golden colour on the surface, not like plain roast pumpkin cubes (such as in this recipe), because the maple syrup will burn on the edges of the cubes before the surface goes completely golden.
Also, the onion will get quite dark brown. If you notice at the tossing point that it’s getting a little too brown, just push/pile them all together or bury under pumpkin. This will protect them!
Finishing – Give the pumpkin a gently toss to coat it in all the tasty tray juices. Then transfer to a serving platter – single layer is nice for even sprinkling coverage and neat presentation. Sprinkle with fresh chilli, feta and parsley, then serve!

Or – jumble and pile

I know I said a single layer presentation looks nice and neat. But actually, for maximum flavour-melding-more-rustic presentation (aka Nagi style), do most of the sprinkling on the tray, reserving some for garnish. Then transfer into a serving bowl. Flavour jumbling will occur during transfer and piling.

Finish with reserved feta etc to pretty it up.

Whichever way you go, single layer neatness or jumbled piled up rustic-ness, it still rates the same on the deliciousness scale. Which is, in case you hadn’t guessed, very, very high.

Tell me if you serve this as a side or inhale it as a meal! – Nagi x

PS In case you didn’t know I have a whole category of pumpkin side dishes as part of the vegetable and salad side dishes corner of this website! Mostly relatively low effort, like this one, with a scattering of show-offs for special occasions.

PPS This is not the first time I’ve combined pumpkin. See also here and here.

Watch how to make it

Maple Roasted Pumpkin with Chili and Feta

Recipe video above. A seriously delicious, low-effort way to serve roast pumpkin: with a dash of maple syrup for extra caramelisation, a kick of chilli, warm crunch of walnuts and salty pops of creamy feta.

Serves 3 as a main or 6 as a side. I made this with pumpkin but it is just as delicious made with squash or sweet potato!

Course Roasted, Vegetables

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Total Time 35

Servings – 6

Calories 165cal

Author Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Ingredients

2 lb / 1 kg pumpkin , peeled, cut into 2.5cm / 1" cubes (whole, unpeeled weight – Note 1)
1 red onion , peeled, halved, then cut into 1cm / 0.4" wedges
1/2 cup walnuts , roughly chopped (Note 2)
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp maple syrup or honey (sub brown sugar Note 3),
3/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
1 – 1 1/2 tsp dried chili flakes , adjust to taste (Note 4)

Garnishes (Optional)

3/4 cup Danish feta (or Greek feta, or upgrade to goats cheese)
1 large red chilli (cayenne pepper), deseeded, finely minced
1 tbsp parsley finely chopped

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F (180°C fan-forced).
Toss – Place the pumpkin, onion and walnuts on a large, paper lined tray. Drizzle with olive oil and maple syrup, then toss to coat (hands really is best). Sprinkle with chilli and salt, toss again, then spread out on a tray. Don't crowd them else they will stew instead of roast!
Roast for 30 minutes, or until the pumpkin is lightly browned and cooked through, tossing once at the 20 minute mark.
Finishes – Remove from the oven. Gently toss again, then transfer to a serving platter in a single layer. Crumble over feta, sprinkle with parsley and chilli. Or do the sprinkling on the tray then pile into a bowl. Serve immediately!

Notes

1. Pumpkin – Any type for eating is suitable (not Halloween carving). Or butternut or sweet potato!

2. Nuts- Feel free to use other nuts. Large ones similar size to walnuts will take the same time. If using pine nuts, sunflower seeds or pepitas (or other small nuts), add them halfway through the roasting time.

3. Brown sugar sub – Mix with olive oil then toss to coat.

4. Chilli flakes – 1 1/2 tsp has a decent warm, unmissable hum but not super spicy. 1 tsp is more subtle. Feel free to skip it!

5. Leftovers will keep for 3 days.

Nutrition assuming 6 servings.

Nutrition

Serving: 214g | Calories: 165cal

Recipe update: This is an old recipe from 2015 that was in desperate need of spruced up photos, a recipe video tutorial and most importantly, recipe improvements! The same recipe, just tweaked to fix.

More delicious things to make with pumpkin

Roasted Pumpkin with Yogurt Sauce and Pine Nuts

Roast Pumpkin, Spinach and Feta Salad

Pumpkin Soup

Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup

Honey-Cinnamon Pumpkin Lentil Salad

Cinnamon Roasted Pumpkin

Creamy Baked Pumpkin Risotto

Pumpkin recipes

Life of Dozer

Don’t miss Dozer in today’s recipe video!! Did he get to taste test….??

The post Maple Roasted Pumpkin with Chili and Feta appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Miso Butter Corn

Nagi — Wed, 27 Sep 2023 06:00:00 +0000

Miso Butter Corn is a recipe that proves simple can be amazing! The magic of a dab of miso. This sautéed corn is a side dish that goes with everything, from chicken rissoles to gyoza. Or make a meal out of it with a fried egg, avocado and tortillas for stuffing.

Miso butter corn

The world has David Chang to thank for the miracle that is sautéed corn with miso and butter. He wasn’t the first to make it but he was certainly the one who made it famous! In fact, it was so wildly popular at his New York restaurant that he took it off the menu because he became known as the corn restaurant that happened to serve noodles!

Miso, in case you are new to it, is a soy bean paste that is probably best known as the base for miso soup (here’s my mum’s recipe). A ton of savoury flavour packed into one innocent looking tub (jar/packet). However, because it’s such a powerful ingredient, it is used for so many other dishes, for both Japanese and Western dishes.

Today’s miso corn is a great example. A fusion Asian dish starring miso – err, yes, and corn!

Miso + butter = Miso butter = good stuff!

Ingredients in Miso Butter Sautéed Corn

Here’s what you need to make this. Not many ingredients!

Miso butter and other ingredients

Miso – There are all sorts of miso varieties, find one labelled “white miso” or “shiro miso” (“shiro” means “white” in Japanese). Red miso is also fine but use a little less – about 1 heaped tablespoon (miso flavour is a little more intense). (PS My mum has a great little summary on different types of miso in her Miso Soup recipe).
Bacon – Streaky is the best because we use the bacon fat to cook the corn. It’s what makes this dish so good!
Butter – Unsalted, this dish has enough salt from the bacon and miso. If you only have salted, dial back the miso slightly.
Garlic – Because I don’t cook corn without it if butter is also present.
Cooking sake – One of the 3 essential sauces in Japanese cooking, it’s a rice wine made for cooking that you can find in the Asian section of grocery stores these days. It’s used to deglaze the pan after cooking the corn (a cooking term which means to use a liquid to dissolve golden bits stuck on the base of the pan to mix into the sauce) and it adds a touch of extra savouriness into this dish. The alcohol cooks out because it evaporates.
Substitute with mirin or Chinese cooking wine, or water (we just want some liquid to deglaze the pan).
Green onion – For freshness. Cut it a little chunkier than the typical “finely sliced” that is often called for in recipes. We want a decent hit because it’s the freshness here.
White pepper – I use white because it’s habit in Japanese recipes. (Just because this recipe has a touch of miso in it, my brain thinks I’m in the Japanese food cooking sphere). But black pepper is fine too.

Also – Corn!

Yes, we need corn! 😂 Using corn fresh cut off the cob is best because it’s dry so it sautés better for lovely golden spots. Also, flavour (sweeter, better) and texture (firmer, not soggy).

Frozen corn is the next best alternative – use it from frozen but expect to cook longer (thaw>dry>cook) with canned bringing up the rear (it’s the wettest so it doesn’t sauté as well).

Here’s how I cut the corn off the cob without the kernels flying all over the kitchen – large bowl, prop the corn up on a little dish, small knife.

How to cook Miso Butter Corn

This recipe starts by sautéing bacon so the corn can be cooked in the bacon fat for extra tastiness! Then the miso butter is just stirred through at the end until it melts through.

Cut corn off the cob – As mentioned above, prop the corn up on a small ramekin or similar inside a large bowl. Stand upright and cut the kernels off using a small knife. The bowl will catch the kernels so they don’t fly all over your kitchen! A bundt pan also works.
Miso butter – Mix the miso and softened butter until combined.
Cook bacon in its own fat until golden. The fat in the bacon will melt as the pan heats up, so start with a cold pan. No extra oil needed – as long as you use streaky bacon!
Bacon fat – Remove the bacon using a slotted spoon so you keep as much bacon fat in the pan as possible. Then add the corn.

Cook the corn for 4 to 5 minutes until there’s light golden spots, and the corn is sweet and cooked through. (Fresh corn is firmer than frozen and canned corn). To do this, just stir every minute rather than stirring constantly. This gives the corn a chance to get the golden spots.
Add garlic towards the end of the cooking time, else it will burn!
Deglaze – Add the cooking sake and stir until it evaporates. We only use 2 tablespoons so it will evaporate quickly, about 15 seconds or so. The purpose of this step (called deglazing) is to dissolve the golden bits on the base of the pan left from sautéing the corn into the mixture. Those golden bits are called fond and it’s free flavour!
Miso butter – Turn off the stove then stir to melt the miso butter through the corn. We don’t want to sizzle the butter because the miso caramelises quite easily. We want glossy silk buttery sauce through our corn!
Toss the bacon and green onion in, then serve!

Matters of serving

I love how versatile this dish is.

It’s a corn side dish packed with so much flavour that you will happily eat it by the spoonful. Who cares what the main dish is, just gimme all the Miso Butter Corn!

As mentioned earlier, despite the miso in it, this doesn’t taste Japanese or Asian. It’s universally tasty and the flavour profile is such that I wouldn’t hesitate to serve it alongside a pile of Crispy Herb Roasted Chicken with gravy or a Pork Tenderloin with Creamy Mustard Sauce. But then, it’s just at home with Asian mains like Chinese Char Sui BBQ Pork, a big plate of gyoza or Grilled Marinated Thai Chicken (Gai Yang).

But my favourite is to turn it into a meal by adding a fried egg, burst roast cherry tomatoes (10 minutes in the oven), avocado and tortillas for scooping/stuffing.

Breakfast, dinner, lunch, any day of the week.

Yes please!

But don’t worry about how I eat it. Tell me how you’d serve this and what you’d serve it with! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

Miso butter corn

Recipe video above. Simple yet ridiculously delicious corn side dish. Just a dollop of miso adds great savoury flavour! Adapted from the David Chang's famous Momofuku Roasted Summer Corn recipe! (Found his a little salty so I dialled back a bit).

It doesn't taste Japanese or Asian at all, you can barely taste the miso, so it's a great side for Asian and Western mains. But my favourite way to eat this is in bowls with a fried egg and avocado, or stuffed into corn tortillas. YES!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine asian fusioin

Keyword miso butter corn, sauteed corn

Servings

Calories 326cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Miso butter:

30g / 2 tbsp unsalted butter , softened
1 1/2 tbsp white miso (shiro miso) (Note 1)

Corn:

200g / 7oz streaky bacon , chopped into 1cm / 1/2″ pieces
3 cups corn kernels , preferably freshly cut off 3 – 4 corn cobs else frozen thawed (Note 2)
2 garlic cloves , finely minced
2 tbsp cooking sake , optional (sub mirin or dry sherry, Note 3)
1/8 tsp white pepper (sub black pepper)
1 cup green onion , cut into 0.5cm/0.2″ slices

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Miso butter – Mix butter and miso together in a small bowl until combined.
Golden bacon – Put bacon in an unheated large non stick pan, no oil. Turn the stove onto medium high heat – as it heats up, the fat will start to melt so the bacon cooks in its own fat. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes until golden, then use a slotted spoon to transfer onto a paper towel lined plate. Reserve bacon fat in the pan.
Cook corn – Top up with butter if you don’t have 1 tbsp fat left in pan. Still on medium high, add corn, then stir only every minute or so (this lets it get some nice golden spots), for about 5 minutes until corn is just cooked and is sweet. Add garlic, stir for another 30 seconds. Add sake, stir until evaporated (~15 seconds).
Melt miso butter – Turn off stove. Add miso butter, stir until melted. Add pepper, bacon and green onion, toss until coated with sauce. Serve!
Serve as a side dish. In a corn taco with a fried egg and avocado (OMG SO GOOD).

Notes

1. Miso – There are all sorts of miso varieties, find one labelled “white miso” or “shiro miso” (“shiro” means “white” in Japanese). Red miso is also fine but use a little less – about 1 heaped tablespoon (miso flavour is a little more intense).

2. Corn – Fresh cut is best because it’s dry so sautés better. Frozen thawed works too, expect to cook a little longer (needs time to thaw/dry/cook). Canned corn does work but because it’s so wet, it just doesn’t get little golden patches as well.

3. Cooking sake – One of the 3 essential sauces in Japanese cooking, you can find it in the Asian section of grocery stores these days. Adds touch of extra savouriness into this dish. Alcohol cooks out because it evaporates. Sub with mirin or Chinese cooking wine, or water (we just want some liquid to deglaze the pan).

4. Recipe credit – Adapted from David Chang’s famous Roasted Summer Corn with Miso Butter. I found his recipe a little salty so I reduced the miso and skipped the chicken stock.

5. Leftovers will keep for 3 to 4 days. It will freeze ok too!

Nutrition per serving, assuming 4 servings as a side.

Nutrition

Life of Dozer

Summer has arrived early here in Sydney! (Also a good Dozer size-context photo. BIG!)

The post Miso Butter Corn appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Easy Roast Potatoes

Nagi — Wed, 20 Sep 2023 06:00:00 +0000

This is my everyday roast potatoes recipe. I use baby potatoes so it’s quick prep (no peeling). Great garlic-thyme flavour. Fresh herbs really are lovely, though dried can be used in a pinch! Don’t make the mistake of using minced garlic. It burns!

My everyday roast potatoes

I have a recipe for devilishly good crispy roast potatoes. They are the roast potatoes everybody dreams about, with a thick craggy crust that stays crispy for ages.

But they are not Monday night potatoes. They are reserved for when I’m out to impress.

Today’s roast potato recipe is what I make in my day to day life. Low effort yet utterly delicious, with a lovely golden outsides, soft insides, infused with beautiful garlic-thyme flavours.

Serve with everything!

What you need

Here’s what you need:

Potatoes – Use any small potatoes that can be cooked with the skin on. Baby potatoes, cocktail potatoes, new potatoes, red potatoes, creamer potatoes!
My ideal potato size is ~ 4cm/1.6″ which is a nice (big) bite size once cut in half. Half is ideal because there’s only one cut face to make golden (remember, this is my easy roast potatoes recipe!). If it’s much larger, cut into 3 pieces but just be mindful that you won’t get a very good golden colour on more than one cut face.
Garlic – Whole, unpeeled, with the skin on. We’re going to smash them with the side of our knife to make them burst open but remain (mostly) in one piece. Why not use minced garlic? Because it burns. And burnt garlic is bitter. Not pleasant!
You will be surprised how much garlic flavour is imparted from smashed garlic. Your house will smell amazing.
Thyme or rosemary sprigs – Thyme is my default but rosemary is also lovely. If you don’t have fresh herbs, you can use dried. But toss it in halfway through the roasting time, else it will burn.
Olive oil – Just your everyday cooking oil. No need to crank out the good stuff, reserve that for salad dressings!

Potato roasting words of wisdom

It really does take an hour. Don’t shortcut it. Nobody likes underdone potatoes!
Only toss once – the potatoes need undisturbed time to go golden.
If your potatoes are stuck, don’t force them and rip the crust off! They will loosen naturally when ready.
You can use baking paper if you want…..but full contact with metal gives the best colour and crispiness!

How to make easy roast potatoes

Toss potatoes in olive oil, salt and pepper. I just do this on the tray, because why create more washing up? Then toss through garlic and thyme.
Roast for 30 minutes at 200°C / 400°F (180°C fan-forced).
Toss – Remove from oven, then toss. If any are stuck, leave them. They will release when ready!
PRO TIP: Arrange the less golden cut sides facedown on the tray as they will get the best colour during the 2nd baking time.
Roast for a further 25 to 35 minutes. Toss again then pile onto serving plate and serve!

I don’t need to tell you what to serve with roast potatoes.

But what I do want to tell you is what I do with leftovers! I find roast potatoes get a bit sad and soggy when left overnight in the fridge. So I like to transform them into stovetop crispy smashed potatoes. Just lightly press down on the potatoes to flatten slightly (but still stay in once piece) using a glass, your hand or a spatula. Then pan fry in a little oil until golden and crisp.

HOW GOOD DO THESE LOOK???

Frankly, it’s worth making a batch of these roast potatoes just so you can do the smashed potatoes!! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

Easy roast potatoes

Recipe video above. This is my everyday roast potatoes recipe. No-nonsense, quick to prep, with great garlic-thyme flavour. Fresh herbs are lovely, though dried can be used in a pinch. Don't make the mistake of using minced garlic. It burns!

Serve with everything.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Western

Keyword Baby potatoes, new potatoes, roast potatoes

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 1

Servings – 6 as a side

Calories 255cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

1 kg/ 2 lb baby potatoes or other small potatoes, halved (Note 1)
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp cooking/kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
5 garlic cloves with skin on , smashed (Note 2)
5 thyme sprigs or 3 rosemary sprigs (Note 3 for dried herbs)

Optional garnish

Finely chopped parsley or fresh thyme (optional)

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 200°C / 400°F (180°C fan).
Smashed garlic – Place side of knife on unpeeled garlic clove. Hit firmly with palm of hand so the garlic bursts open a bit but mostly stays in tact.
Toss – Put potatoes on a tray and push together. Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Toss through thyme and garlic. Spread out on tray.
Roast 1 hour – Roast for 30 minutes. Toss. Roast for a further 25 to 35 minutes, or until the potatoes are golden. (Note 4 for stuck potatoes & golden TIPS!)
Serve – Sprinkle with parsley, if using, and serve immediately!

Notes

1. Potatoes – Ideal potato size ~ 4cm/1.6″. Use any small potatoes that can be cooked with the skin on. Baby potatoes, cocktail potatoes, new potatoes, red potatoes, creamer potatoes! Cut larger ones into 3 or 4 so they are all roughly the same size (shape doesn’t matter).

2. Smashed garlic – This method of smashing opening garlic releases garlic flavour into the potatoes as they roast but keeps the garlic whole so it won’t burn like minced garlic does.

3. Dried herbs (thyme, rosemary) can be used if you don’t have fresh. But add them halfway through the roasting time else it will burn. Use 1 tsp or so.

4. TIPS:

Potatoes stuck? Don’t worry! If some potatoes are adhered to the tray, don’t fret, it means the crust hasn’t formed. Just leave it, rather than ripping the crust off. It will release when ready!
Golden tip: If you can be bothered, arrange pale sides of potatoes facedown onto the tray for the last 30 minutes. The side of potatoes facedown on the tray will become extra golden.

5. Leftovers will last for 3 days in the fridge but there’s nothing quite like freshly made roast potatoes! I like to revive leftovers but flattening them slightly then pan frying to reheat and make crisp.

Nutrition per serving assuming this serves 5.

Nutrition

Life of Dozer

Dozer on a mini break! Staying in a lovely rustic converted church near the Colo River, only 90 minutes from home. So close – yet feels so far! Wait until you see the kitchen. #goals

The post Easy Roast Potatoes appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.