Salt and Vinegar Roasted Potatoes Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What does putting vinegar on potatoes do? ›

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.

Place potatoes into a pot and add 1 1/2 cups vinegar with 3 cups cold water (or enough to just about cover the potatoes). Add in 1 tbsp salt, give it a stir then bring to a boil. Cook until knife tender, around 25mins depending on the size of potato chunks.

If you like your roasted potatoes extra crispy, you may want to have a bowl of ice water on standby during the cooking process. Soaking your sliced potatoes in the ice water before roasting them in the oven can draw out extra starch, allowing the spuds to cook up extra crunchy on the outside.

Pre-cooking the potatoes ahead of time in vinegar lets them soak up all that tang, and then with a quick toss in oil and salt they are roasted into warm salt & vinegar chip inspired potatoes.

Vinegar might seem like a questionable addition, but it helps tenderize the beef as it cooks and balances the richness of this dish. Make sure you cook it down until it no longer smells pungent though, or you could end up with a vinegary tasting pot roast.

Of course, you can spray each potato with a little lemon juice or white vinegar, but if you don't want to flavour your potatoes, simply add about 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to about 2 litres of water.

After rinsing potatoes in cold water to remove dirt (if necessary), submerge potatoes in a vinegar bath of approximately 3 parts water and 1 part white vinegar. Ensuring they're all completely submerged, soak potatoes for 5 to 10 minutes, and then pat dry for immediate use.

Vinegar/Water Ratios

As a general rule, most natural cleaning experts suggest mixing one part vinegar to one part water.

The best for crispy potatoes is goose or duck fat or even lard but I as a little healthier have success also with a simple vegetable oil. You always should preheat the oven and get that fat nice and hot. Crispy on outside and lovely and fluffy on the inside. You don't roast them long enough.

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.

What does vinegar do to potatoes? ›

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.

This superstition apparently comes from from the sixteenth century, when potatoes were first introduced to Britain. The belief arose that potatoes, because they grew underground, were the Devil's food. So to keep the evil at bay, potatoes were planted on Good Friday and watered with holy water.

"Placing [peeled and cut] potatoes in water helps prevent oxidation, which turns their exposed flesh brown," says Ronna Welsh, the author of The Nimble Cook and the owner and chef instructor at Purple Kale Kitchenworks in Brooklyn, N.Y. While oxidation won't make the potatoes unsafe to eat, it does change their flavor.

After rinsing potatoes in cold water to remove dirt (if necessary), submerge potatoes in a vinegar bath of approximately 3 parts water and 1 part white vinegar. Ensuring they're all completely submerged, soak potatoes for 5 to 10 minutes, and then pat dry for immediate use.

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.

The addition of a mildly acidic vinegar to a starchy veggie like potatoes not only deepens the flavor profile, but it also helps to tenderize the tubers.

Acid prevents potatoes from softening

Hemicellulose, the carbohydrate that makes up potatoes, softens when cooked, but when you add an acid like vinegar, the hemicellulose will remain solid instead.