Make crispy roast potatoes ‘every time’ with three-minute trick

Brits love to indulge in the ultimate comfort food over the festive season – roast potatoes.

Soft, crispy and utterly delicious, these spuds are a staple of Christmas feasting, but it seems many home cooks might not be getting the full potential out of their roasties.

We all like to think we’re great chefs, but it appears a vast number of us have been botching our roast potatoes for years. TikTok sensation Chef Kelly Scott, who goes by @kellyscleankitchen on the platform, has now debunked a widespread myth about crafting the perfect roastie.

Contrary to popular belief, frying potatoes isn’t the secret to achieving that “super crispy” texture, according to the culinary expert. Instead, she insists on a straightforward trick to perfect the spuds every time.

Chef Kelly explained: “These are burnished potatoes, a rosemary and garlic British potato. That’s the crispiest russet potato ever, and the key is to first boil them in water for three to five minutes before roasting them.”

She added: “This isn’t to like cook them or anything, but it removes the excess starch, because white potatoes are super starchy, which can lead to a soggy and gummy potato, which is why you boil them first.

“It removes all the surface starch, and allows them to get super crispy in the oven.”

Before you get those spuds sizzling, make sure to give them a good boil first. If you’ve got your own roasting ritual, feel free to stick with it, but typically they’ll need between 20 and 35 minutes in the oven to reach that perfect level of crispiness.

Since it was shared, the clip has racked up more than 1,000 views, sparking a flurry of comments from viewers who think the potatoes look seriously “good”.

One viewer said: “Oh great. I learnt something new today. Thank you.”

Another said: “Makes me wish I had an oven.” A third praised: “You’re my favourite TikTok chef.”

Meanwhile, a fourth commented: “I can’t eat potatoes, but I watched since they look scrumptious.”