Baked potato with olive oil

The Best Ways to Prepare Potatoes with Olive Oil

Potatoes have become a staple of the diet in much of the world. They are also one of the most popular side dishes in gastronomy, serving them with both meat and fish.

When cooking them, olive oil becomes a valuable ally in getting the most out of these tubers. Today, we explain the best ways to prepare potatoes with olive oil.

French Fries with Olive Oil

French fries are a classic that not only never goes out of style, but also continue to be a favorite side dish for children and adults alike. To get perfect fries, you just need to consider two things: choose a good variety, and choose a good olive oil, preferably extra virgin, which is the one that best withstands the high temperatures required for frying.

From there, you can use other tricks, such as cutting the potatoes by hand, not too thin (if you cut them into strips) or small (if you cut them into cubes). Place them in cold water to release some of the starch; and dry them well before adding them to the oil to prevent it from degrading under the action of the water. Nowadays, you can also find different cutting tools to make fries in other shapes, such as wavy, grid, etc.

Once fried, simply drain them on paper towels and add salt or, if you prefer, spices or fresh herbs for a special touch.

Oven-roasted potatoes with olive oil

Oven-roasting potatoes allows you to use whole varieties or cut them in half to enjoy a completely different texture than frying, but with a delicious flavor.

To cook them, simply line a baking sheet with parchment paper, wash the potatoes well, and cut them in half. If you want them to cook a little faster, you can make a series of lengthwise cuts, without reaching the bottom of the potato, like a grill, so that the heat and seasonings penetrate better. Drizzle with a generous drizzle of olive oil, of the variety we like best, and add a little salt.

If you want to give them a special touch, you can add minced garlic and julienned onion, as well as spices: pepper, rosemary, or thyme, which give a very good flavor.

And another very interesting alternative for special meals is to cut thin slices of potatoes with a mandolin (so that they are the same thickness) and arrange the slices upright, forming a spiral along the entire tray. Add salt and olive oil and, optionally, a few pieces of bacon and julienned onion, as well as a sprig of rosemary. When cooked to a thin thickness, you’ll get crispy and very flavorful potatoes, perfect as a side dish for any dish.

Sautéed Potatoes with Olive Oil

To make the best sautéed potatoes, you’ll need to choose two cooking methods: a first cooking method, which can be boiled or sautéed in olive oil over low heat, and a second cooking method, which is done in a pan, adding a little olive oil and placing over high heat.

The first cooking method softens the potatoes so they are tender inside, while the second creates a crispy crust on the outside that gives them a wonderful texture.

The best way to prepare these potatoes is to cut them into not-too-thin slices, and once the first cooking method is complete, which should not Since cooking can be very long, drain them well before sautéing. Finally, you can add some fresh herbs, such as parsley or chives, or some spices, such as pepper or paprika.

Roast Potatoes with Olive Oil

We’ll conclude this roundup of the best ways to prepare potatoes in olive oil with a Swiss recipe: potato rosti. Another advantage of this dish is that it can be served as a side dish, but also as a main course, accompanied by a sauce of your choice (chive crème fraîche, homemade mayonnaise, etc.).

To make it, peel the potatoes and grate them on the coarse end of a grater. Then, do the same with an onion and mix the two together. Add salt, pepper, and a little chopped parsley andforms a kind of pasta that we will divide into portions that are not too large, flattening them so that they resemble a pancake and cook well inside. A good drizzle of olive oil in the pan, very hot, will do the rest of the magic. Or, if we prefer, we can cook them in the oven, drizzling all the portions well with olive oil. The result will be a kind of delicious potato pancakes.