Almost Patatas Bravas (or, the best crispy roasted potatoes)

If I had to wager a guess as to which recipe I make the very most – which thing I send out of my kitchen more than any other – it would be these roasted, kinda sorta Patatas Bravas (these are very much like the version in Julia Turshen’s Small Victories). Hands down. I am a sucker for a crispy, salty potato and typically I’ll take them any way I can get them, but I am particularly fond of them in this packaging. The crisp, salty skins practically pop when you bite into them, and the interiors stay creamy, with just a hint of seasoning, thanks to the salt we added to the water before boiling them.

Creamy on the inside and wonderfully salty and crisp on the outside, these roasted Patatas Bravas, (or the best crispy roasted potatoes) are perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, or any time you see fit. We like them with a quick spicy/sweet faux aioli for dipping (we’ll jazz some store-bought mayo), sort of like you’d get in Spain but, you know, different. But these potatoes are honestly perfect plain, scarfed up straight off the pan. This recipe works for any amount of potatoes you care to make. I don’t really measure how many I use … I just fill my pan and call it good. 

What are Patatas Bravas?

A classic and much beloved Spanish/Catalan tapas (small plate), patatas bravas are simply fried potatoes, often laced with paprika and served with both a spicy tomato-based sauce as well as a fresh aioli (like a garlicky, olive oil-based mayo) for dipping, as we do in this recipe, with my little sweet/spicy spin.

You definitely do not have to boil your potatoes before roasting them, but it’s a method I learned years ago – a worthy, easy extra step – that gets things cooking and moving inside the potatoes before you blast them with the heat of the oven. By the time they go in the oven, in fact, they’re nearly cooked through on the insides already, and like a 90’s beach bum with their baby oil coated skin, all you have to do is focus on getting those outsides nice and brown.

Patatas Bravas (or, the best crispy roasted potatoes)

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Creamy on the inside and wonderfully salty and crisp on the outside, these roasted potatoes are perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, or any time you see fit. We like them with a quick spicy/sweet faux aioli for dipping (we’l jazz some store-bought mayo), sort of like you’d get in Spain but, you know, different. But these potatoes are honestly perfect plain, scarfed up straight off the pan. This recipe works for any amount of potatoes you care to make – I don’t really measure how many I use … I just fill my pan and call it good. 

• Author: Lauren McDuffie

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

About 4 cups halved mini yellow potatoes, or any amount you like

1/4 cup olive oil (not extra virgin; seems like a lot but trust me)

3 tsp flaky sea salt, divided (or kosher is fine)

1/2 cup full fat mayonnaise

2 tsp honey mustard

1 Tbsp Sriracha or Tabasco Sauce

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Instructions

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Place the potatoes in a medium pot and fill with water to cover. Add 1 Tbsp of salt to the water, bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Drain and transfer the potatoes to a large baking sheet.

Drizzle the potatoes with the oil and sprinkle with the remaining t tsp salt. Toss to evenly coat. Roast, flipping and tossing about halfway through, for 35 to 45 minutes, or until deeply golden brown on the cut sides. Season with a little extra salt, if needed. Serve with the aioli for dipping.

For the Aioli: In a small bowl, combine the mayo, honey mustard, and Sriracha and stir until well blended.