For Perfectly Crisp Smashed Potatoes, Put The Boiling Pot Away

How can we define a smashed potato? The answer, of course, is right there in the name — it's a potato that has been flattened and is cooked to a crispy golden brown. Think of it more like the rustic version of the French fry. But if the perfect smashed potato is one that is as crispy as can be, how can it be achieved?

Sara Tane's recipe shares that skipping the boiling step altogether is the best method to get the crispiest potatoes possible. As Tane explains, her previous approach involved boiling the potatoes before smashing them flat and baking them in a 450-degree oven until they were golden on each side. She notes that this process, for what it's worth, works completely fine, but then she learned that she could first roast the potatoes instead of boiling them. This gives them the crispy texture she had been looking for.

Tane's reasons for choosing roasting over boiling her smashed potatoes are two-fold. She first notes that roasting potatoes is more efficient in cleaning and prep work than boiling potatoes since you usually need only one baking sheet for the whole roasting process. You don't need to wait for any water to boil. The second reason is that, unlike boiling, roasting introduces no extra moisture to the potatoes and allows the potatoes to cook thoroughly using only dry heat. Without this excess moisture, the potatoes crisp much better than they would following a bath in the boiling pot.

Of course, this isn't to say that boiling potatoes doesn't have some benefits to it. By boiling them first, this par-cooks (a technique of partially cooking) the potatoes and cooks both interiors and exteriors evenly. This, in turn, allows the potatoes to have a softer, creamier texture, similar to a mashed potato. The trade-off, however, is a less crispy end product.

Boiling potatoes is a common method of making smashed potatoes, so how can you make them perfectly crispy even with all that excess moisture? The answer is to let the potatoes steam-dry before smashing them. While you may have the natural urge to smash the potatoes as soon as they come out of the pot, doing so keeps that excess moisture trapped inside. By letting them sit, you're letting them lose a lot of that moisture, so they'll be crispier than if you didn't let them dry. 

Another good method to ensure you get the most out of your potato is choosing the right variety. While any type can make smashed potatoes, you'll want to find potatoes with plenty of potato starch, such as the Russet, Idaho, and Yukon Gold varieties. Whether you're making smashed potatoes or just trying to get a crispy potato in general, the high amount of starch in these potatoes will ensure they will get that trademark crispy golden exterior. So long as you choose the right potato and ensure they're dry before smashing them, you'll have crisp and golden smashed potatoes whether you're boiling or roasting.