Not Olive Oil Or Butter: Use This Ingredient For Unforgettable Roasted Potatoes

Whether halved, cut into chunky wedges or bite-sized cubes, or sliced thinly so they cook faster, roasted potatoes make an unbeatable side dish. And although they're perfectly tasty with just some seasonings, oil, or butter, there are a few ways to truly take them up a notch, like boiling them with baking soda to make them super crunchy, or using a generous, thick layer of mayo to help roasted taters reach crispy perfection. Still, if you're after the best roasted potatoes you've ever tasted, try swapping your usual cooking fat for ghee.

While ghee and clarified butter are not the same thing, ghee is essentially a form of it. Clarified butter is taken off the heat once the water and milk solids split from the butterfat. When it comes to ghee, the cooking continues until the water evaporates and the milk solids caramelize.

Due to this, the potatoes will pick up the ghee's signature nutty, toasty flavor and richness as they roast. But flavor isn't the only advantage. The removal of water and milk solids also raises the smoke point of ghee. With the ability to withstand up to 485 degrees Fahrenheit, ghee is well suited for high-heat roasting without quickly smoking or burning. Another perk of its low moisture content (typically less than 0.5%) is that it doesn't produce steam. This means that the potatoes can crisp up nicely and take on a beautiful golden-brown color without becoming soggy and unappetizing.

Ghee will need to be in its liquid form before you roast potatoes with it. Heat a couple of tablespoons of the fat in the oven at around 450 degrees Fahrenheit, or on the stovetop over low heat, until it is liquid. (You can be preheating the oven while you are prepping your potatoes — peeling, parboiling, and so on.) This is also where you could get creative with seasonings. Use rosemary or thyme for a nice Mediterranean touch, add chili powder, chiles, or cayenne for a spicy take, or just keep it simple with some salt and pepper. 

Once the ghee is liquid, add the seasonings and potatoes and turn them until they're evenly coated. All that's left is to roast them until they're crisp and golden on the outside, while light and fluffy on the inside. Give this anywhere from 40 minutes to an hour or so, tossing them at least once for even crisping and flavor.

You can easily make ghee at home if you can't find it at your local supermarket. To make it, you just need unsalted butter, a pan, and a fine-mesh strainer or cheesecloth. Ghee keeps for several weeks at room temperature since it contains no milk solids. In the fridge, however, homemade ghee lasts for up to a year. That means you'll always have some on hand for cooking eggs, frying up fritters, infusing with warm spices to drizzle it over oatmeal or desserts, or, of course, making those unforgettable roasted potatoes.