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Crispy Leaf Potatoes - the BEST roasted potatoes you'll ever make! Crazy delicious sliced potatoes that taste like layers of potato chips. Make this for holidays or every day!!
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What Are Leaf Potatoes?
Leaf potatoes are roasted potatoes by Australian celebrity chef Donna Hay.
The potatoes are sliced thinly and they are arranged piece by piece in a baking sheet. As the potatoes are paper thin, and they do look like leaves, hence the name leaf potatoes.
Other Roasted Potatoes Recipes You Might Like
Garlic Herb Roasted Potatoes
Parmesan Roasted Potatoes
Italian Roasted Potatoes
Garlic Butter Roasted Fingerling Potatoes
Crispy Roasted Potatoes
The Best Roasted Potatoes for Holidays or Every Day!
You haven’t tried roasted potatoes until you have tried these crispy leaf potatoes. Believe me!
Imagine layers upon layers of super crispy potatoes that taste like potato chips, seasoned with rosemary, butter and salt. My mouth is watering at the very thought.
The texture is unlike any roasted potatoes I have ever tasted. I personally think that it’s way better than hasselback potatoes, smashed potatoes or scalloped potatoes.
For this recipe, I used butter, but go ahead and use duck fat if you like. Duck fat is supposed to be “healthier” as it has higher percentage of monounsaturated fat, at 55% while butter has only 26%.
Layers upon Layers of Crispy Goodness!!
Crispy leaf potatoes is an amazing side dish any time of the year. They are perfect for special occasions such as Thanksgiving or Christmas.
The reason is simple: they are very easy to make, with simple ingredients, but the presentation has a wow factor and the taste and texture are absolutely delightful.
Try this recipe, and use duck fat, if you will. Enjoy!
You can also turn this recipe into sweet potatoes, check out this Crispy Baked Sweet Potatoes recipe.
Mandoline Slicer
I recommend the following OXO Good Grips Adjustable Handheld Mandoline Slicer. It’s available on Amazon for $14.99.
How Many Calories per Serving?
This recipe is only 601 calories per serving.
What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
Crispy Leaf Potatoes - the BEST roasted potatoes you'll ever make. Crazy delicious sliced potatoes that taste like potato chips. Make this for holidays or every day!
4.42 from 229 votes
Print
By Bee Yinn Low
Yield 8People
Prep 40 minutesmins
Cook 1 hourhr
Total 1 hourhr40 minutesmins
Ingredients
9lbs. (4kg)potatoes, peeled, yukon gold or russet
12oz. (350g)melted unsalted butter (or 11 oz. (311g) duck fat)
3teaspoonsMaldon sea salt flakes(preferred or salt)
1teaspoonfreshly ground black pepper
4teaspoonschopped rosemary or oregano
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400°F (207°C).
Using a Mandoline Slicer, thinly slice the peeled potatoes length ways. Pat dry the potatoes with paper towels.
Place the sliced potatoes in a large bowl. Using your hands, toss with butter (or duck fat), 2 teaspoons salt, black pepper and about 2 teaspoons of chopped rosemary until fully coated.
Carefully place the potatoes upright, from left to right, in a baking tray (I used a 8x11" (20x28cm) baking tray) until the tray is full. Do not pack in the potatoes too tightly, as this impacts the crispiness.
Bake for an hour, or until the potatoes are golden and crispy. Garnish with the remaining salt and the rosemary or oregano. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Watch the cooking video on this page for step-by-step guide.
The acid in the vinegar can also help to slightly break down the surface of the potatoes, aiding in the development of a crispier texture during frying. Additionally, the vinegar can contribute to a golden-brown color on the exterior of the fries.
Soaking potatoes in water helps remove excess starch. Excess starch can inhibit the potatoes from cooking evenly as well as creating a gummy or sticky texture on the outside of your potatoes. Cold water is used because hot water would react with the starch activating it, making it harder to separate from the potatoes.
Preheat the fat. While the potatoes parboil, add the oil or butter to the roasting pan, transfer it to the warm oven, and heat it for about 5 minutes before adding the potatoes. This allows the outside of the potatoes to crisp up nicely and not just absorb the cold fat when you put them in the oven.
Keep potatoes crisp in a warm oven if you're serving them in 1-2 hours. If there is a slight wait before everyone eats, don't cover the crispy potatoes—this traps steam which will make the potatoes soggy. Just keep them in the oven, but turn the temperature to the lowest setting.
In his recipe, López-Alt shares his secret for perfectly cooked potatoes every time: Adding vinegar to the water (specifically, 1 tablespoon of vinegar per 1 quart of water) prevents overcooking.
Do I have to boil potatoes before roasting? Not necessary but this can help get the perfect consistency and crispiness. Make sure you boil them but leave them a bit al dente and they will crisp up perfectly in the oven.
The reason is to prevent the potatoes exposure to air, which causes dehydration, oxidation, and discoloration. Immersing cut potatoes will also help rinse off excess starch.
Neutral, low-cost oil such as vegetable oil, canola oil, safflower oil, peanut oil, corn oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, etc., work well for roasting. These oils have a high smoke point, allowing the potatoes to get very hot to achieve maximum crispiness.
Russet potatoes will produce crisper crusts and fluffier centers. Yukon Golds will be slightly less crisp and have creamier centers, with a darker color and deeper flavor. You can also use a mix of the two. The potatoes should be cut into very large chunks, at least 2 to 3 inches or so.
Arrange cooked potatoes on a baking sheet in a single layer (if desired, line with parchment paper). Cover pan with aluminum foil and place in hot oven. Cook for 20 minutes, and then remove foil and let them go for another 5-10 minutes or until they are the crispy potatoes you are looking for.
If roasted potatoes lack their crunchy sheen, overcrowding is usually the culprit. Just as overcrowding bacon or mushrooms in a saucepan causes disappointingly mushy results, placing potatoes too close to each other on a baking sheet will prevent them from crisping while they roast.
Roasted potatoes can become soggy if the water content in the potato isn't fully cooked. Different potatoes have different water content percentages. Also, be mindful of the oil. Potatoes can react like sponges; too much oil can make your potatoes appear to be soggy.
Vinegar causes the potatoes to form a thin crust that further helps in retaining their shape. Vinegar increases the acid pH levels of water which further helps the potato just like when you add a little salt to the water while boiling eggs.
Hemicellulose, the carbohydrate that makes up potatoes, softens when cooked, but when you add an acid like vinegar, the hemicellulose will remain solid instead.
Lowering the pH of the potato helps fight off oxidation. Just like you might use a squirt of lime juice to keep guacamole from browning, a bit of lemon juice or white vinegar in the bowl with the potatoes will ward off gray hues.
But malt vinegar has a way of zinging up fries and other fried foods in a way that ketchup, despite its vinegar base, simply doesn't. It works better on British-style "chips," which are wider and better able to absorb the condiment.
Introduction: My name is Pres. Carey Rath, I am a faithful, funny, vast, joyous, lively, brave, glamorous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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