Vegan Roast Potatoes

5 from 1 vote

These vegan roast potatoes are simply the best! Crispy on the outside, soft & fluffy on the inside, what's not to like? Infused with fresh thyme, rosemary and garlic & with crunchy polenta coating they are out of this world!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine British

Keyword vegan roast potatoes

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 10

Servings servings

Calories 436kcal

Author Jo Allison

Equipment

Ingredients

1 kg floury potatoes see notes
90 ml cold pressed rapeseed oil see notes
40 g polenta see notes
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast optional
few garlic cloves unpeeled
fresh thyme and rosemary see notes
salt and pepper to taste

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Peel the potatoes and depending on their size half, quarter or (if on a small side) leave whole. Try and keep them similar size for even cooking.
Put peeled potatoes in a saucepan and cover them with cold water, season with some salt and put the pan onto boil. Feel free to cover the pan with a lid at this point.
Pour oil into a large roasting tin, place it in the oven and preheat to 180C fan/350F/Gas Mark 5.
Once water has come to rolling boil, turn the heat down slightly so that it retains steady boil and from that point cook the potatoes (uncovered) for 2-3 minutes. Once the time is up drain the potatoes in a colander.
Shake the colander up and down, back and forth few times to fluff up the potatoes a bit. They should be firm enough to retain their shape but looking a bit fluffy on the outside.
Put the potatoes back into the saucepan you used to cook them in and sprinkle over the polenta and nutritional yeast (if using).
Shake the pan vigorously for a bit to evenly coat the potatoes in polenta, nutritional yeast mix.
Take roasting pan out of the hot oven (take care not to burn yourself) and gently put the potatoes into the pan (I like to use kitchen tongs for that) and ensure they are nicely coated in oil.
Add few sprigs of fresh rosemary and/or thyme to the roasting tin and few unpeeled cloves of garlic. Season with salt and pepper and put back into the oven.
Roast the potatoes for approximately 45-50 minutes, turning them twice.
Enjoy!

Notes

Nutritional information is approximate, per serving based on 4 servings and should be treated as a rough guideline only.
Use floury potatoes for your vegan roast potatoes - Maris Piper, King Edward or Desiree are amongst the most popular ones in the UK.
Use any neutral tasting oil like cold pressed rapeseed or sunflower oil.
Polenta creates that lovely crispy layer on roast potatoes and adds some texture too especially if you use coarse variety.
Leftover vegan roast potatoes can be kept in the fridge for up to 2 days. To keep the crispness reheat them in the oven not a microwave.

TIPS:

Keep the potatoes roughly the same size.
Always par-boil your potatoes by starting them in cold water. Once they reach the point of rolling boil start 2-3 minute countdown.
Ensure your oil is super hot when adding your potatoes to the roasting tray.
Don't overcrowd roasting tin.
Fluffing up the potatoes on a colander after draining is essential for getting that crispy outside.
Don't skip on turning the potatoes couple of times during cooking to ensure that they cook, colour and crisp up evenly.

Nutrition